Boston Red Sox Minors: 2019 will be the year of Denyi Reyes

The Boston Red Sox have plenty of prospects that the following season could be kind to. Just exactly who will make it their year in 2019 though?

Denyi Reyes didn’t have a breakout season in 2018. He’s always been good. What he did have was a season that finally thrust him into the spotlight – somewhat. Reyes is now officially ranked as the Boston Red Sox 30th best prospect after dominating on the mound his whole career.

Reyes posted a 2.88 ERA (75 innings) in his first professional season in 2015. Things have only gotten better from there. In 34 2/3 innings in 2016 the right-handed pitcher had a 2.34 ERA and followed it up with a 1.45 ERA in 62 innings in 2017.

If there was any possible argument against the numbers Reyes was putting up it was the competition. In his first two years, he was pitching in Rookie Ball while in year three it was Short-A.

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Last season was spent in Full-A and Advanced-A though, and he had his best season in the minors. Reyes combined for 155 2/3 innings pitched between the two leagues, posting a 1.97 ERA. He posted a career-best 0.91 WHIP thanks to another best – .210 BAA.

Most incredible was the 145 strikeouts compared to 19 walks. This isn’t a one-time deal though. In 327 1/3 career innings, Reyes has struck out 286 batters while allowing just 33 free passes.

For those wondering, that means Reyes walks 0.9 batters per nine innings. He also strikeouts out 8.7 batters for every one he walks. Insane!

So why will 2019 be the season of Denyi Reyes? That’s pretty simple; I mean, I just told you. One of the bigger roadblocks for young pitchers tends to be control of their pitches. That’s been no problem for Reyes. He’s dominated at every level and it hasn’t been just by throwing fire that inexperienced hitters can’t catch up to.

Reyes uses a mix of pitches that he already has above-average control of. Due to that, he’s been able to leave hitters off balance no matter where he is. That shows by his fantastic career .224 BAA. Reyes will more-than-likely start the year in Advanced-A. He’s already had six starts there though, so he’s got a nice head start on his next promotion.

The Red Sox have a lot of pitching prospects to look out for. But not many are as polished this early on as Reyes. Due to that, he could jump through the ranks quickly this season. At least one promotion seems imminent. Finishing the season in Triple-A definitely isn’t out of the picture.

Denyi Reyes barely found his way into the Boston Red Sox top-30 prospect list at the end of the year. This is the year he sky-rockets up that list and becomes a potential 2020 contributor in the Majors. I for one, wil be keeping a close watch on Reyes as he makes his way to the main club.