Boston Red Sox Prospects: Ceddanne Rafaela is MiLB Hitter of the Month

Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela is MiLB’s ‘Hitter of the Month’

How many times have I said it now? Ceddanne Chipper Nicasio Marte Rafaela. Stud. The Boston Red Sox have a lot of exciting prospects. Are any of them more electric than Ceddanne Rafaela though? He’s trying to make that an easy answer for everyone, as he was named the Minor League April Hitter of the Month.

Rafaela is listed at 5’8″, 152 lbs. The 21-year-old came into the year with a lot of potential at the plate, but his defense was the main attraction. Rafaela was named the Red Sox MiLB defensive player of the year last season. He did that by showing off Gold Glove type defense at shortstop, and third base, and second base, and the outfield. Seriously, great defense anywhere they put him.

Like I said though, the offensive potential was there. As the season went on, Rafaela started to look more comfortable at the plate. This led to a rise in his average and a serious rise in his slugging percentage. He finished the year slashing .251/.305/.424 with 20 doubles, nine triples, and 10 home runs in Low-A Salem. Rafaela drove in 53 runs and scored 73 more, stealing 23 bases.

2022 would see him in High-A Greenville though. Could Rafaela continue to build on his game at a higher level?

Well, you can guess how the first month went, you know with him winning an award and all. Rafaela slashed .305/.360/.585 with five doubles and six home runs in April. He drove in 15 runs and scored 17 more, stealing seven bases. That’s some beautiful all-around offense right there. He was hitting for power, getting on-base, producing tons of runs, and stealing bases. There was nothing he couldn’t do.

On Thursday, it was announced that Rafaela was named the MiLB April hitter of the month. So naturally, he celebrated by hitting a ball a good 430 feet to center field for his seventh homer of the season.

Altogether, the prospect is slashing .290/.336/.570 with seven doubles and seven home runs. Remember, he hit 10 home runs all of last season. He’s also racked up 21 RBI (nearly half of his total from last year) and scored 20 runs. Throwing in nine steals just to show you just how good he is at everything.

The Boston Red Sox have a very deep prospect pool. Because of that, it’s easy for some players to get overlooked. It’s great to see Ceddanne Rafaela getting the recognition he deserves for his stellar play. Everyone should be excited to see where he can go from here.