Boston Red Sox Prospect Watch: Hot streaks everywhere in the minors
By Hunter Noll
The Red Sox prospect watch is highlighted by a number of hot streaks
Well, it hasn’t been the best week for the Boston Red Sox. They’ve scuffled mightily and suddenly find themselves desperate for a win. We’ve seen the pithing struggle, and we’ve seen the bats struggle. No one can seem to get it going.
That hasn’t been the same in the minors though. The Red Sox have some of the hottest bats and arms in the world working in their system. That has led to a pretty stacked prospect watch this week. Of course, we start with the Majors though. So it might not be all sunshine and rainbows.
We’ll start on a major positive. Garrett Whitlock is unstoppable. The right-hander is now up to 54 innings pitched on the year. He has a 1.17 ERA, 1.07 WHIP, and .235 BAA. He has a 4-1 record, 10 holds, one save, and 56 strikeouts. Whitlock deserves all the love.
Yes, Tanner Houck is in Triple-A again but his last two appearances have been for Boston. So we’re talking about him here. The right-hander has thrown 25 2/3 innings in the Majors this year. In that time he has a 2.45 ERA, .227 BAA, and 1.13 WHIP. Houck has 36 strikeouts and even has a save this year.
Jarren Duran missed some time this week due to a COVID scare. However, he came back and immediately contributed. The outfielder is up to a .196/.220/.357 slash line. He has had some strikeout problems (23 in 56 at-bats) but that’s understandable when getting used to the Majors. Duran has one double, one triple, and two homers so far. He’s driven in five runs, scored eight more, and stolen one base.
Bobby Dalbec holds a .218/.264/.391 slash line currently. Strikeouts have been a serious issue (119 in 294 at-bats), as have major cold streaks. But the first baseman has had his moments. He has 12 doubles, three triples, and 11 home runs. Meanwhile, he’s driven in 41 runs and scored 27 more. The Red Sox might be making some moves soon, and it wouldn’t hurt Dalbec to show some life at the plate.