Boston Red Sox Prospect Watch: Big week for power hitters
Power led the way this week in the Boston Red Sox Prospect Watch
The Boston Red Sox saw plenty of power out of their prospects this week, and that’s always a ton of fun.
In the Majors, Bobby Dalbec hit his 10th home run of the year. He’s now slashing .216/.265/.419 with nine doubles, three triples and 10 homers. Dalbec has 34 RBI and 22 runs scored, as well as one steal. It continues to be a season of hot-and-cold streaks for the first baseman. An extended hot streak could do wonders for his overall numbers.
Connor Wong has been very solid for the Red Sox in his limited chances. The catcher has been praised for his game-calling and is 2-for-8 (.250) with a run scored so far. He’ll be back down in Triple-A soon, where he can get regular playing time. This short stint definitely left a good impression though.
Michael Chavis is slashing just .207/.230/.328 with four doubles and one home run in the Majors. He’s driven in four runs and scored 11 more, stealing one base but striking out 22 times in 58 at-bats compared to just one walk. It’s easy to argue though that this is due to playing time. With regular time in Triple-A the infielder was really starting to get his swing back. In the Majors he’s back to a random schedule.
Garrett Whitlock has now thrown 41 innings on the season. He has 43 strikeouts compared to 11 walks in that time. The right-hander also has a 1.54 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and .230 BAA. Whitlock is 3-1 and even has a save. It really doesn’t make much sense that he isn’t in the All-Star game honestly, but whatever.
Quick note, sorry if things feel a little hasty this week. My first ever niece was born, so I’ve been a little preoccupied. Congratulations to my brother Tyler and sister-in-law Stef on a beautiful baby daughter. I love you Chloe!
Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)
Remember how I said it was a good week for power hitters? Let’s start with Jarren Duran who deserves to be seen as a power hitter now (although he does a lot more than just hit bombs). Duran hit two more homers and now has 15 on the season (to go along with seven doubles and one triple). He is slashing .284/.378/.604 with 31 RBI, 36 runs scored and 10 steals. Fun to watch.
Johan Mieses did not hit a home run but he had a really good week and is now hitting .321 in Triple-A. Mieses is slashing .299/.384/.664 with six doubles, one triple, and 14 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A. The outfielder has driven in 30 runs and scored 29 more.
Marcus Wilson hit his ninth home run of the year this week (he also has six doubles and three triples). The outfielder is slashing .259/.377/.488 with 27 RBI and 26 runs scored. He’s stolen nine bases in just 10 attempts as well.
Jeter Downs hit his seventh home run of the year this week. He has three doubles to go along with that. The infielder was named to the futures game, and is currently working with a .234 average. Downs has driven in 17 runs and scored 20 more, while stealing 11 bases.
Tanner Houck made two appearances this week. In those two games, the right-hander allowed a combined three runs on five hits over eight innings. Houck lowered his ERA down to 4.08 and now has 23 strikeouts compared to just three walks in 17 2/3 innings. He has a 1.08 WHIP and a .239 BAA. Houck’s got to be close to ready for the Majors again after returning from injury.
Red Sox Double-A (Portland)
The Portland Sea Dogs started a game on Sunday but it was suspended. In that game, a few players have some nice number bumps but since it’s not official, I’m not counting them. Just throwing that out there.
Triston Casas saw a slight bump in his average, up to .269. He’s working with a solid .348 OBP and .400 slugging percentage as well. The 21-year-old has three doubles, two triples, and four home runs. He’s hit a power slump, but Casas can start racking up the extra-base hits in a hurry, so there’s no concern.
Pedro Castellanos hit another homer this week and now has eight to go along with six doubles and one triple. He is slashing a phenomenal .285/.363/.487 on the year and has 25 RBI and 31 runs scored. The right-hander went 8-for-16 this week. It appears he’s getting very comfortable.
Ronaldo Hernandez had himself a phenomenal week, going 5-for-11. The catcher is now slashing .229/.265/.417 with six doubles and seven home runs. He’s driven in 12 runs (three this week) and scored 13 more. Maybe Hernandez is finally starting to heat up.
Jeisson Rosario is now slashing .259/.345/.318 after a strong week. He’s hit seven doubles and (to prove how great of a power week this has been) one home run. That’s right, Rosario finally got one. The outfielder has 19 RBI and 21 runs scored, to go along with five steals.
Ryan Fitzgerald had a solid week that saw his slash line rise to .248/.342/.461. The shortstop can thank a triple and a home run for the big boost in slugging percentage. He now has 13 doubles, two triples, and six homers on the year. Fitzgerald’s scored 20 runs and driven in 19 more, to go along with two steals. The uptick in power has been a really nice addition to his offensive game.
Grant Williams is hitting .312 with seven doubles and two triples. The power isn’t big but you have to love what Williams does. He gets on base and scores runs. Williams has just six RBI but he’s stolen five bases and has 24 runs scored so far.
Hudson Potts is only hitting .190 through 18 games but has decent numbers. He’s ripped four home runs already, and has nine RBI and seven runs scored. Most importantly the average did rise a little bit this week and he managed two of those homers. So the power has been there.
More from Red Sox Prospects
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- Jeter Downs’ official departure will continue to haunt Red Sox
Brayan Bello has a 2.66 ERA between both Advanced-A and Double-A so far. That is paired with a 1.10 WHIP and a .221 BAA. The right-hander has struck out 64 batters (compared to 14 walks) in 47 1/3 innings pitched. Bello is just 22 and already impressing even in Double-A. Legitimate ace potential.
Zack Kelly has a 0.46 ERA through 19 2/3 innings. Let me say that again, a 0.46 ERA through 19 2/3 innings. Absolutely wild. The right-hander has a 1.17 WHIP and a hilariously low .167 BAA. He’s struck out 31 batters as well, good luck hitters.
Kutter Crawford returned from injury last week and had an “eh” game. This week he was back to his normal dominance. The right-hander threw 4 1/3 innings, allowing one run on three hits and one walk. Oh, and he struck out seven. Crawford now holds a 3.81 ERA, .200 BAA, and phenomenal 0.88 WHIP. He’s racked up 37 strikeouts compared to five walks over 28 1/3 innings pitched.
Durbin Feltman threw another 2 1/3 shutout innings this week. He’s all the way down to a 3.09 ERA on the year now. The right-hander has a solid .239 BAA and 1.29 WHIP, and has 31 strikeouts compared to nine walks in 23 1/3 innings pitched. We could be getting the reliever that we saw when he was first drafted by the Red Sox.
Dominic LoBrutto is lowering his ERA once again. The left-hander is now down to a 3.54 ERA. His .284 BAA and and 1.48 WHIP are not great, I’ll admit that. However, I’ll say it again. It shows that LoBrutto is able to get himself out of jams. Hopefully he can stop getting himself into them though. The 25-year-old has a great track record though, so I’m not worried at all.
Denyi Reyes was one of the more dominant pitchers in the Red Sox system a few years ago. He slipped a little bit but is back to dominating in 2021. The right-handed pitcher has a 2.97 ERA, 1.17 WHIP, and .262 BAA. He’s struck out 34 batters in 33 1/3 innings, while walking just five.
Red Sox Advanced-A (Greenville)
What a week for Tyreque Reed. His average rose from .278 to .295 (.395 OBP and .596 slugging percentage), thanks to a now nine-game hitting-streak. They weren’t all singles either. Reed hit four more homers this week and is now up to 13 on the season. He also has six doubles and one triple and has 35 runs scored, 44 RBI, and three steals in 41 games.
Brandon Howlett is back up to a .288/.388/.545 slash line to go along with 12 doubles, two triples, and eight home runs. That’s right, Howlett hit a homer this week too. The third baseman has driven in 30 runs and scored 33 more, stealing two bases.
Tyler Dearden is slashing .284/.420/.560 with 13 doubles and eight home runs. He did not hit a homer this week but it was still very productive with a nice boost in average. Dearden has driven in 36 runs and scored 32 more on the season. The outfielder has been very consistent most of the year and has new career-highs in virtually every category.
Nick Sogard has a strong .264/.339/.473 slash line at the moment. The second baseman has eight doubles, one triple, and seven home runs on the year (of course he hit one this week). Sogard’s driven in 22 runs and scored 26 more, stealing five bases.
Tyler Esplin has a .276/.400/.362 slash line at the moment with 10 doubles and one home run. He’s driven in 23 runs and scored 32 more, stealing three bases. I always say Esplin has a nice all-around game, and that’s what excites me. He has more power than this. Maybe not 25-homer power but expect the doubles to start coming in bunches and the homers to pick up nicely.
Cameron Cannon had a great week. His average rose to .270, he added three doubles (now has 16), and of course he added one homer (now has six). The shortstop has 28 RBI and 31 runs scored, to go along with six steals.
Kole Cottam is slumping a bit and is now down to a .233/.357/.422 slash line. Still not terrible, and he did manage another double (his seventh of the year) and two more RBI this week. The catcher has five home runs, 17 RBI, and 17 runs scored on the season.
Christian Koss wanted to join in on the home runs. But with just one on the year it was going to be difficult. So he went unconventional with it and hit his second of the year without leaving the field of play, going with an inside-the-parker. The shortstop is slashing .240/.311/.354 with eight doubles, three triples, and two homers on the year. He has driven in 15 runs and scored 25 more, stealing four bases.
Chris Murphy maybe shouldn’t be in Advanced-A anymore. And when I say maybe, I mean definitely. The left-handed pitcher had another phenomenal start this week (one run in five innings). He now has a 3.08 ERA, 1.13 WHIP, and .216 BAA. Murph has 53 strikeouts in 49 2/3 innings pitched. Might be time for a new challenge, because outside of one bad start and one “eh” start (both back-to-back even), he’s been insane.
Jay Groome had a phenomenal start this week as well. The lefty threw six innings, allowing just two runs on two hits. Groome is now down to a 5.36 ERA. Meanwhile his BAA took a major dip down to .243 and his WHIP dropped all the way to 1.40. Those are suddenly really decent numbers. It didn’t take long for him to correct his season – incredible.
Alex Scherff is now down to a 2.78 ERA. His WHIP dropped back down to a 1.24 and his BAA is a fantastic .198. The right-handed pitcher has 37 strikeouts in 22 2/3 innings so far. And suddenly looks like a legitimately elite bullpen prospect, which is really exciting.
Red Sox Full-A (Salem)
Wow. For a while I’ve been talking about Nick Yorke’s average climbing steadily. This week it took a massive bump from .265 to .287. That pairs with a .376 OBP and a .389 slugging percentage by the way. And speaking of that slugging percentage, Yorke managed one double this week (he now has nine) and surprise surprise, a home run (he now has two). He also has a triple on the year. Yorke has driven in 19 runs, scored 27 more, and stolen nine bases.
Gilberto Jimenez is slashing .290/.320/.371 with eight doubles, two triples, and one home run. The outfielder has driven in a really solid 25 runs and scored 31 more, while stealing seven bases. Overall a really strong season, but what’s wild is it feels like he’s not playing his best baseball. The sky is the limit for Jimenez.
Joe Davis is slashing .335/.381/.571 on the year. Do you realize how ridiculous that is? The first baseman has 14 doubles and eight homers (he hit two of each this week). Meanwhile, he has 40 RBI and 27 runs scored. Davis is a monster at the plate and could have a promotion in his future.
Jaxx Groshans is down to a .298/.417/.454 slash line. Obviously, still fantastic. The catcher has seven doubles and five homers on the year and has driven in 21 runs while scoring 26 more. He’s even managed to steal a base. The 31 walks compared to 35 strikeouts is one of the more impressive numbers to look at.
Matthew Lugo joined the home run party this week. He is now slashing .237/.279/.299 with four doubles, one triple, and two home runs. That’s a boost from the week before. The shortstop has driven in 16 runs, scored 24 more, and stolen 10 bases. Overall, a solid season – and he’s been improving in the later weeks.
Nicholas Northcut holds a .217/.328/.422 slash line at the moment. It hasn’t been the best season for him, but he could be turning it around. In fact, he went 7-for-19 with four walks this week. Oh, and he added three home runs. The outfielder now has 13 doubles, one triple, and six homers on the year. He’s driven in 31 runs and scored 26 more. Honestly, the numbers are solid outside of the average, and that’s climbing.
Ceddanne Rafaela only appeared in one game this week and went 0-for-4, dropping his average to .219. The 20-year-old is in a slump right now but it doesn’t worry me. For one thing, he’s just 20. Another is he brings so much to the table you shouldn’t get hung up on one aspect. For example, Rafaela has a solid 24 runs scored and is an incredible 13-for-13 on stolen base attempts.
Jeremy Wu-Yelland’s ERA rose to 3.97 on the year. With it his WHIP and BAA also went up. The left-handers WHIP is now 1.32 and his BAA is .185. That’s insane that his BAA went up and it’s still at a minuscule .185. Wu-Yelland has struck out 41 batters in 34 innings and has only allowed one home run. The 22 walks is a bit of an issue but this being his first year in the minors, there’s no real concern.
Casey Cobb has thrown 29 1/3 innings so far this year. The right-hander has a 0.92 ERA in that time. Cobb isn’t just getting lucky though, he also has a 0.85 WHIP and a .184 BAA. He’s struck out 33 batters compared to six walks and has yet to allow a home run.
Cody Scroggins is working with a 1.33 ERA over 27 innings pitched at the moment. Also a righty, Scroggins has a 1.26 WHIP and a .224 BAA. He has 30 strikeouts on the year and already has three wins and six saves.
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Brandon Walter has done it all so far this season. The left-handed pitcher has a 1.45 ERA in 31 innings. He has a 0.87 WHIP and a .178 BAA. Walter has 46 strikeouts compared to just six walks in 31 innings, and has yet to allow a home run. The 24-year-old has picked up one win and two saves in that time.