Boston Red Sox Prospects: Candidates for early season promotions
By Hunter Noll
Red Sox pitching prospect Brandon Walter (Double-A to Triple-A)
Brandon Walter had a rough time of it last week. In two games he combined to give up 11 earned runs over seven innings. It’s a testament to how dominant he’s been this season that his stats are still very good.
As of May 16, Walter has a 3.50 ERA, .218 BAA, and 0.94 WHIP in 36 innings. Most impressive though has been the strikeout to walk ratio. To this point, the left-handed pitcher has racked up 49 strikeouts compared to just three walks.
And his career numbers are fantastic too. In fact, the ERA and BAA would both be career-worsts if the season ended today. That’s wild, as both are very strong.
The big thing going against Walter here is experience. Last season he spent 13 games in Low-A, then 12 games in High-A. Now this year he’s made just seven starts in Double-A. So that might not be enough time for the Red Sox to feel like he’s ready for the jump to Triple-A.
That being said, Walter is already 25. He was drafted out of the University of Delaware in 2019. Then he lost a year due to the pandemic in 2020 canceling the MiLB season.
With College experience and with his age, maybe the organization doesn’t feel he needs a long time in Double-A though. A call-up to Triple-A in the near-future could set him up for a promotion to the Majors before the end of the year. Or at the very least give him a chance to make the Major League roster to start next season.
Walter struggled in his last two starts. He was so utterly dominant before that though that it feels safe to say that the trend won’t last. The University of Delaware product could be back to his nasty ways on the mound sooner, rather than later. And if he does indeed right the ship, Worcester could be picking up that phone.