Boston Red Sox Prospect Watch: Promotions galore
By Hunter Noll
Red Sox Double-A (Portland)
Ceddanne Rafaela has hit a short little slump. And that should tell you how absurd of a season the utility-man is having. The gold glove defense at basically every position is one thing. Slashing .316/.354/.605 with 22 doubles, six triples, and 14 home runs is just ridiculous though. The right-handed hitter’s run production is absurd too – with 50 RBI, 47 runs scored, and 15 steals.
The overall numbers for third/first baseman Hudson Potts still don’t look all that great. He’s been fantastic over the last month though. Slashing .215/.304/.450 on the year, he’s slashed .321/.406/.518 in June. The right-handed hitter has 11 doubles and eight home runs, to go along with 23 RBI and 21 runs scored. He’s stolen one base but don’t expect that to be a part of his game at all.
Kole Cottam gets a lot of praise from me for his phenomenal talents behind the plate. The catcher did come in as a hitter-first though, it’s important to remember that. And the right-handed hitter is having another great year with a .264/.343/.346 slash line with 10 doubles and one home run. Cottam’s had a lot of hard-hit balls that just haven’t landed, leading to the power numbers being a little low, but it’s not something to worry about too much. He’s driven in 14 runs and scored 17 more.
David Hamilton’s numbers are still dipping. The left-handed hitting second baseman is down to a .206/.275/.346 slash line with five doubles, six triples, and five home runs. He’s driven in 20 runs and scored 26 more. The slash line doesn’t look great but he does do a lot of things right. And the 25 steals in 28 attempts tell you how elite his speed is. If Hamilton can get it going at the plate again, that speed is undeniable.
Alex Binelas was called-up to Double-A after slashing .245/.355/.495 with 10 doubles, one triple, and 14 homers. The left-handed hitting corner infielder has 43 runs batted in and 41 more scored, to go along with eight steals. He’s 0-for-5 in Double-A but does continue to get on-base thanks to three walks.
Stephen Scott also got the promotion to Double-A. The catcher/first baseman/outfielder didn’t have the best numbers in High-A (.188/.305/.336) but he did already have two walk-off home runs this season. He’s got a lot of versatility, and did have a really strong breakout campaign in 2021. The left-handed hitter is 0-for-7 with a walk in two games in Double-A.
Chris Murphy hasn’t moved up to Triple-A yet, likely due to that rotation already having too many pitchers. But the left-handed pitcher really really needs to get the call. Murph tossed six shutout innings in his last game, allowing just one hit and three walks while striking out eight. He now holds a 2.58 ERA, .170 BAA, and 1.00 WHIP in 76 2/3 innings pitched. Murphy’s also racked up 91 strikeouts and has only allowed six home runs.
Jake Thompson is another pitcher that needs a promotion. The right-handed reliever looks bored in Double-A. What do I mean by that? Well he currently has a 0.82 ERA, .147 BAA, and 0.91 WHIP in 22 innings pitched. Thompson’s struck out 25 batters, which is more than his hits (11) and walks (9) allowed combined.
Jay Groome had a great start to open the week but struggled a bit on Sunday (coming out of the bullpen). Still though, in 9 1/3 innings this week the left-handed pitcher racked up 15 strikeouts. That’s great to see as Ks haven’t been as common for him this year as opposed to last year. He could be getting back on track though. Groome has a 3.84 ERA, .213 BAA, 1.28 WHIP, and 67 strikeouts in 65 2/3 innings.
Oddanier Mosqueda has some absolute filth in his bag. The left-handed pitcher is using that to put together his best season in the minors. Mosqueda has a 2.60 ERA, .179 BAA, and 0.98 WHIP in 27 2/3 innings pitched. He’s struck out 33 batters compared to 10 walks.
Rio Gomez doesn’t have numbers that would jump out at your for positive reasons. The left-handed reliever has a 11.12 ERA, .375 BAA, and 2.29 WHIP. However, he’s done that in just 5 2/3 innings pitched. And in his last five outings Gomez has allowed just one run in 4 1/3 innings. He was great last year and he’s starting to get into a groove again.