Red Sox prospect Brainer Bonaci has a mature eye for the plate
Not all that long ago, Brainer Bonaci was considered one of the most exciting prospects in the Boston Red Sox organization. In 2022, he’s still sitting at number 21 on their prospect rankings. But a hefty influx of talent in the system has prevented him from catching the eye of the fans all that much.
That’s pretty ironic, because the 19-year-old’s eye is what this article is all about.
Through six games, the switch-hitting middle infielder has a .300 average (6-for-20) with zero extra-base hits, four RBI and two steals. Solid, but that’s not exactly anything to go crazy over – right?
Well he’s already scored eight runs. And how did he score eight runs already, you ask? Well that’s because Bonaci has drawn 11 walks. Yes, 11 walks in just 31 plate appearances. Compared to just five strikeouts too.
In his first two years in the minors, Bonaci had 47 walks over 476 plate appearances. That’s not bad at all. And it shows that this isn’t just some outlier of a start. The Venezuelan might just be taking the next logical step in his game.
Being able to work a pitcher and draw walks is an underrated part of the game now. If you aren’t hitting bombs you aren’t going too get much attention. But there’s a lot to love about Bonaci’s game.
He’s probably never going to be a major home run threat, but he has good bat skills that could lead to a strong average. Good speed is going to help him pick up a lot of extra-base hits and a decent amount of steals could come from that. Meanwhile, Bonaci is an elite-level defender.
All of that is more-than enough to help him become a serious Major League talent in a couple years. But first, he needs to make his way through the minor leagues. 2019 saw the shortstop in Rookie Ball. In 2021 he was in Rookie Ball for most of his time again, only appearing in 13 games in Low-A. So this is his first chance to really show what he can do in the minors.
Adding an elite eye to his report card is only going to accelerate the process.
Yes, it has only been six games. But there are some prospects that would kill to get 11 walks in five times that many contests. No one is expecting Bonaci to keep up this pace. That would be unheard-of. I mean, he’s getting on-base at a .548 clip.
What we’re seeing though is patience. He’s not settling and waiting for his pitch. It’s leading to a strong batting average and an insane amount of walks. We’ll be seeing a new standard when it comes to walks and OBP for Brainer Bonaci this season. And with that, the Boston Red Sox might have another prospect that you need to keep an eye on – and it’s all thanks to his eye.