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Red Sox Prospect Watch: Austin Rei working his way back

By Hunter Noll

FT. MYERS, FL - FEBRUARY 20: Austin Rei #89 of the Boston Red Sox poses for a portrait during the Boston Red Sox photo day on February 20, 2018 at JetBlue Park in Ft. Myers, Florida. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images)
FT. MYERS, FL - FEBRUARY 20: Austin Rei #89 of the Boston Red Sox poses for a portrait during the Boston Red Sox photo day on February 20, 2018 at JetBlue Park in Ft. Myers, Florida. (Photo by Elsa/Getty Images) /
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TORONTO, ON – MAY 22: Michael Chavis #23 of the Boston Red Sox celebrates after hitting the eventual game-winning solo home run in the thirteenth inning during MLB game action against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre on May 22, 2019 in Toronto, Canada. (Photo by Tom Szczerbowski/Getty Images) /

Boston Red Sox catching prospect Austin Rei is working his way back to higher minor league levels as he attempts to return from injury.

I’ve long said that the Boston Red Sox have a lot of solid catchers in the minors that can be big parts of their futures. Someone I talked about a lot last season was Austin Rei. However, some people might have noticed he hasn’t been mentioned at all this year.

There’s a simple reason for that – he was hurt. Rei is making his way back though, playing for the GCL Red Sox. There, he’s 4-for-14 (.286) with one double and four RBI. I’m excited to get to talk about him regularly soon.

Remember, this is a guy who won the Red Sox minor league defensive player of the year award in 2017. He hit 30 doubles in 2017, then he had career-highs in average (.249), OBP (.355), triples (2) and home runs (7) last season. He tends to get on-base at a solid clip and should only continue to improve at the plate.

Overall, Rei is an all-around talent who can make a nice block behind the plate, gun out a runner and get on-base all in the same game. Great to have him back.

Meanwhile, Michael Chavis ended his first half in the Major Leagues with great numbers. The infielder is hitting .263 with eight doubles and one triple, as well as those 15 home runs. He’s driven in 48 runs and scored 38 more. It’s scary to think where the Red Sox would be without his bat right now – as he’s definitely brought some extra life to the lineup.

Of course, he definitely needs to work to strike out a little less and figure out that high fastball. If he can do that not only will his numbers sky-rocket, but the Boston lineup fills in another hole.

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