Boston Red Sox prospect watch: 2022 Trade deadline shakes things up
By Hunter Noll
Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)
Triston Casas is getting hot at a great time. The left-handed hitting first baseman is rocking a four-game hitting-streak. He has five doubles, two walks, and two RBI in that stretch. Casas is slashing .246/.350/.455 with 15 doubles and eight home runs in Triple-A. He’s driven in 27 runs, scored 30 more, and walked 30 times in 51 games. We could see Casas in Boston in two weeks.
Enmanuel Valdez was one of the names brought over in a trade at the deadline. The left-handed hitting infielder wasted zero time introducing himself to the organization, blasting a homer in his first game. Valdez is 3-for-16 with two homers, four walks, six RBI, four runs scored, and a steal in five games with Worcester.
Kole Cottam got the much-deserved promotion to Triple-A after a great season in Double-A. The right-handed hitting catcher slashed .271/.350/.380 with 15 doubles, two triples, and two home runs in Double-A. He drove in 26 runs, and scored 27 more in that time. In his Triple-A debut Cot went 1-for-4 with a double and showed that great defense behind the plate.
The Pedro Castellanos hype has died down a bit in recent weeks. But he’s been insanely good in Triple-A. The right-handed hitting outfielder and first baseman is slashing .317/.346/.465 with four doubles, one triple, and three home runs with Worcester. He’s driven in 13 runs and scored 14 more in 26 games.
Ronaldo Hernandez should be in the Majors by the end of the season. The right-handed hitting catcher has been incredible in Triple-A this year. He’s slashing .275/.301/.449 with 23 doubles and 10 home runs. Hernandez has driven in 47 runs and scored 36 more. It seems like he tends to get some clutch hits and he has a really good arm behind the plate.
Devlin Granberg had his best game of the year this week, going 3-for-4 with a double and two home runs. He followed that up by hitting another double the next day. The right-handed hitting outfielder and first baseman is slashing .281/.380/.424 with 20 doubles, five triples, and four home runs on the year. He’s driven in 25 runs, scored 44 more, and stolen eight bases. And now it looks like the power is coming back.
Frank German should be in the MLB bullpen. He’s now tossed 26 1/3 innings in Triple-A. The right-handed reliever has a 2.39 ERA, .159 BAA, and 1.06 WHIP in that time. He’s also racked up 36 strikeouts compared to 14 walks. German has some nasty stuff and Boston should give him a look before the end of the year.
Zack Kelly has made two appearances this month. In that time the righty reliever has tossed two shutout innings, allowing no hits and one walk compared to three strikeouts. He’s down to a 3.21 ERA, .206 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP in Triple-A. Kelly has 60 strikeouts compared to 21 walks in 42 innings pitched.
Chris Murphy had a great start this week. The left-handed starter went seven innings, giving up just one run on six hits and four walks, striking out five batters. Murph holds a 3.93 ERA in Triple-A. Total he has a 3.00 ERA, .189 BAA, 1.12 WHIP, and 115 strikeouts over 111 innings pitched in 2022 between Double-A and Triple-A.
Brian Keller is down to a 3.30 ERA, .215 BAA, and 1.18 WHIP on the season. The right-handed pitcher has done this thanks to a pretty insane run that he’s on. Keller also has 88 strikeouts compared to 29 walks over 73 2/3 innings. He allowed one run on two hits and two walks while striking out a season-high 10 batters in his last start.
Connor Seabold might have struggled a bit in the Majors but it’s extremely important to remember how small of a sample size it’s been. In Triple-A he now holds a 2.29 ERA, .207 BAA, and 1.02 WHIP. The righty has 60 strikeouts compared to 15 walks over 59 innings pitched.
Andrew Politi is on an insanely dominant stretch. He’s gone two innings in each of his last seven outings (except one where he went 2 1/3). In that time (14 1/3 innings) the righty has allowed zero runs on five hits and six walks, while striking out 13 batters. Politi is now down to a 3.25 ERA, .219 BAA, 1.17 WHIP, and 40 strikeouts in 36 Triple-A innings.