Boston Red Sox prospect watch: 2022 Trade deadline shakes things up

Red Sox Double-A (Portland)

Ceddanne Chipper Nicasio Marte Rafaela is your favorite prospect’s favorite prospect for a reason. The right-handed hitting utility-man is slashing .306/.351/.556 with 28 doubles (career-high), seven triples, and 17 home runs (career-high) between High-A and Double-A. He’s driven in 61 runs (career-high), scored 68 runs, and stolen 23 bases (career-high). Rafaela continues to make insane plays. The base running is elite, the defense is elite, and obviously the offense is wild.

Stephen Scott has been ridiculous since his Double-A promotion. The left-handed hitting catcher/utility-man is slashing .267/.416/.514 with six doubles, one triple, and six home runs. He’s driven in 20 runs, scored 25 more, and stolen one base in 32 games. Scott continues to impress after call-ups.

Wilyer Abreu is another new face. He’s already making a name for himself too. Although he’s only hitting .214 (3-for-14), Abreu’s eight walks give him a .500 OBP. The left-handed hitting outfielder has one double, one steal, and three runs scored in five games with Portland.

Christian Koss is slashing .282/.326/.450 with 17 doubles, four triples, and 12 home runs. The right-handed hitting infielder has driven in 62 runs (career-high) and scored 51 more, while stealing 12 bases (career-high). Koss is solid defensively with a great bat and really good underrated speed. Quietly been one of the most consistent players in the Red Sox system this year.

Tyler Dearden is seeing his average and his slugging percentage go up. The left-handed hitting outfielder is starting to find his double and home run swing. Dearden has a .265/.373/.393 slash line with 35 RBI, and 29 runs scored. The run production isn’t close to last season, but the average and OBP are the highest they’ve ever been in a full season.

David Hamilton is slashing .222/.305/.360 with nine doubles, seven triples, and eight home runs. The left-handed hitting second baseman has driven in 30 runs, scored 50 more, and stolen 50 bases in just 54 attempts. That’s absolutely wild. If he can just get the OBP higher, imagine the steals. His speed is ridiculous, so give him a chance.

Alex Binelas may only be hitting .146 (.254) in his 31 Double-A games, but there are a few things to love. The left-handed hitting corner infielder has two doubles, one triple, and eight home runs already. He’s scored 15 runs and already has 23 RBI. So he’s bringing runs in even with the low average. On the year in total, Binelas has 12 doubles, two triples, and 22 homers. He’s driven in 66 runs, scored 56 more, walked 55 times, and is 8-for-8 on steal attempts.

Nick Northcut is 5-for-33 since his call-up to Double-A. The right-handed hitting corner infielder does have one double, and two homers in that time though. On the season in total, he has 14 doubles and 28 home runs. He’s driven in 63 runs and scored 45 more. The power is 100% legit. So you need to see if he can work on the OBP and strikeouts because it’s worth it.

Elih Marrero is slashing .211/.323/.292 with nine doubles and two home runs. The switch-hitting catcher has driven in 11 runs and scored 25 more. Marrero’s not known for that part of his game though. He’s here because he’s phenomenal defensively with a fantastic arm. Marrero’s also insanely athletic for the position, and has 13 steals this season (and that’s not even a career-high).

Bryan Mata has looked great in Double-A and fantastic overall in his road back from Tommy John surgery. The right-handed pitcher has a 3.02 ERA, .184 BAA, and 1.27 WHIP in 41 2/3 innings between three levels. He’s walked 26 batters but already has 53 strikeouts. El Idolo has shown heat on the radar gun and the breaking stuff looks great.

If I told you a year ago that outfielder Michael Gettys would be one of the best relievers in Double-A would you have believed me? No, because I wouldn’t have believed me. After a strong run in High-A led to him getting promoted, Gettys has now tossed 6 2/3 innings in Double-A. in that time the righty reliever has given up just four hits and two walks compared to two strikeouts. Oh, and he’s yet to give up a run.

Thad Ward is also working his way back from TJ like Mata. The right-handed pitcher made his first start in Double-A this week. He went 3 2/3 innings, giving up no runs on just one hit. The walks were an issue, with Ward handing out five compared to two strikeouts. However, they haven’t really been a problem up to that game. And you can excuse someone for having some command issues every once in a while, especially when they’re coming back from Tommy John.

Brian Van Belle continues to go out there and do his job. It’s not going to get him much praise, but he deserves it. The righty starter has a 4.10 ERA, .253 BAA, and 1.08 WHIP in 48 1/3 Double-A innings. He’s walked just five batters in that time, compared to 56 strikeouts. Van Belle has at least five innings in eight-of-nine Double-A appearances.

Brendan Nail struggled a bit after coming back from an injury. But he’s figured it out again recently. The left-handed reliever has allowed just one run over 4 2/3 innings in his last four appearances combined. That’s lowered his numbers to a 4.91 ERA, .237 BAA, 1.60 WHIP and 30 strikeouts over 25 1/3 innings this season.