Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Brooks Brannon arrives
The Boston Red Sox prospect watch is back this week with plenty of newsworthy performances, including the arrival of catching prospect Brooks Brannon in Single-A.
Brooks Brannon arrives to the Boston Red Sox prospect watch
The Boston Red Sox had another weird week but ended it on a high note with a three-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays. We saw some big performances from young talent in the Majors. It was in the minor leagues where some of the top names stole headlines, though.
Brayan Bello is special. It's something a lot of people have felt for a while now. But it feels like he's truly arrived now. The right-handed pitcher flirted with history in his start this week. He got through seven innings before allowing a hit. Bello has a 3.08 ERA, .234 BAA, and 1.19 WHIP in 73 innings. He's struck out 67 batters and walked 22.
Chris Murphy has allowed two runs on six hits over 10 innings of work in the bullpen. The lefty has only walked three batters while striking out 12. We may be at the point where he has a permanent role in the Boston bullpen. Let's go, Murph.
Jarren Duran went 5-for-5 on Sunday and is now slashing .305/.356/.479 with 25 doubles and four home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 29 runs, scored 25 more, and stolen 15 bases. He robbed a home run this week as well. Duran is an all-star caliber player right now.
Triston Casas is slashing .226/.328/.400 with 12 doubles, one triple, and nine home runs. The left-handed hitting first baseman has driven in 27 runs and scored 30 more. His fantastic June is officially over. Let's see if he keeps improving in July. You have to love what you've seen from Casas recently.
David Hamilton is 3-for-21 with a double in limited playing time. The left-handed hitting middle infielder has scored two runs and stolen two bases. Hamilton can make plays with his speed, which we've seen a little bit of already.
Connor Wong continues to be fantastic behind the plate. However, the bat is slumping at the moment. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .218/.279/.394 with 15 doubles and six home runs. He's driven in 18 runs, scored 30 more, and stolen one base.
Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)
Ceddanne Rafaela went 3-for-14 in his first week in Triple-A. The right-handed hitting centerfielder/shortstop did hit his first home run at the level, though. Rafaela was on a tear in Double-A before his promotion, and this was a decently encouraging start with Worcester.
Wilyer Abreu is slashing .259/.370/.466 with seven doubles, one triple, and nine home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 31 runs, scored 34 more, and stolen three bases. Abreu's shown good defense in the corner outfield spots, and there's power in his bat.
Nick Sogard holds a .286/.379/.373 slash line with 11 doubles, one triple, and two home runs. The switch-hitting utility has driven in 28 runs, scored 37 more, and stolen 11 bases. Sogard doesn't hit for power, but he's had solid run production this season.
Stephen Scott's been better in Triple-A than he was in Double-A this season. The left-handed hitting catcher is slashing .263/.375/.500 with three doubles and two home runs in Triple-A. He's driven in 13 runs and scored six more in 13 games.
Ronaldo Hernandez is slashing .245/.341/.458 with six doubles and nine home runs. The right-handed hitting catcher has driven in 40 runs and scored 22 more. His run production has been great, and the power is there. The most impressive part, however, is the 19 walks he's drawn. Hernandez is just two away from his total last season (21), despite 257 fewer plate appearances.
Brandon Walter made one appearance this week in Triple-A after making his MLB debut last week. The left-handed pitcher came out of the bullpen for two innings. He didn't allow a run or even a hit. Walter walked one batter and struck one batter out. It feels like he'll be getting another look in the Majors soon, especially considering he was impressive in his first outing.
Red Sox Double-A (Portland Sea Dogs)
Marcelo Mayer finished his week strong with a three-hit performance. The left-handed hitting shortstop is slashing .249/.323/.482 with 16 doubles, one triple, and 13 home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 51 runs, scored 38 more, and stolen nine bases. Mayer's playing much better than the numbers show with Portland.
Nathan Hickey is slashing .288/.388/.537 with nine doubles, one triple, and 11 home runs between High-A and Double-A. The left-handed hitting catcher has driven in 31 runs, scored 30 more, and stolen two bases.
Nick Yorke holds a .274/.365/.456 slash line with 12 doubles, four triples, and nine home runs. The right-handed hitting second baseman has driven in 35 runs, scored 50 more, and stolen six bases.
Elih Marrero has been hot at the plate and has a five-game hitting streak. The switch-hitting catcher is slashing .266/.413/.328 with four doubles. He's driven in five runs, scored 11 more, and stolen five bases in 22 games. Marrero has walked 16 times compared to 19 strikeouts.
Alex Binelas is still boosting his numbers and hitting more home runs. The left-handed hitting corner infielder is slashing .211/.263/.434 with 11 doubles, one triple, and eight home runs. He's driven in 27 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen three bases.
Niko Kavadas hit a baseball a mile this week. The left-handed hitting first baseman is slashing .205/.394/.425 with five doubles and 13 home runs. He's driven in 40 runs, scored 31 more, and stolen two bases. Kavadas has a low average and is striking out a lot, but he's getting on base and hitting baseball far.
Phillip Sikes is slashing .241/.326/.353 with 13 doubles, two triples, and three home runs. He's driven in 26 runs, scored 40 more, and stolen 31 bases. Sikes has been solid this season and is stealing bases at a high rate.
Hunter Dobbins has now made two starts in Double-A. The right-handed pitcher has allowed four runs on 11 hits over 10 1/3 innings. He's struck out nine batters and walked four. Dobbins dominated High-A, and he's making a great first impression in Double-A.
Isaac Coffey struggled in his first Double-A outing, but he was phenomenal in start number two. The right-handed pitcher tossed six shutout innings, allowing just three hits. He walked two batters and struck out four.
Brian Van Belle has a 3.00 ERA, .242 BAA, and 1.20 WHIP in 81 innings. The right-handed pitcher has struck out 69 batters and walked 25. We might be getting close to seeing BVB making the jump to Triple-A.
Luis Guerrero continues to dominate late in games. The right-handed reliever has a 1.19 ERA, .147 BAA, and 1.09 WHIP in 30 1/3 innings. He's struck out 27 batters and walked 18. Guerrero has 13 saves and a 3-1 record. He's in the future's game and should be making his way to Worcester soon.
Christopher Troye hasn't allowed an earned run over his last six outings (8 1/3 innings). The righty reliever is down to a 3.10 ERA, .168 BAA, and 1.34 WHIP in 29 innings between High-A and Double-A. Troye has 56 strikeouts compared to 21 walks.
Dylan Spacke tossed 2 2/3 shutout innings this week and now has four straight scoreless appearances (10 innings). The right-handed reliever has a 2.70 ERA, .227 BAA, and 1.34 WHIP in 36 2/3 innings. He's struck out 25 batters and walked 20.
Red Sox High-A (Greenville Drive)
Wikelman Gonzalez tossed 5 2/3 more shutout innings this week. The right-handed pitcher only allowed one hit and three walks while striking out 10 batters. Gonzalez has a 4.50 ERA, .194 BAA, and 1.40 WHIP in 58 innings. He's struck out 97 batters and walked 40. It feels like time for Gonzalez to move up to Double-A.
Angel Bastardo allowed one run on five hits over five innings this week. He struck out seven batters and walked two. Bastardo has a 4.19 ERA, .219 BAA, and 1.31 WHIP in 68 2/3 innings. The righty has struck out 90 batters and walked 33.
Dalton Rogers allowed two runs on three hits in three innings this week. The right-handed pitcher walked four batters but did strike out seven. Rogers has a 4.02 ERA, .159 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP in 47 innings. He's struck out 75 batters and walked 32.
Bradley Blalock made his second High-A start and bounced back with a strong performance. The right-handed pitcher allowed one run on five hits over six innings. He didn't walk anyone and struck out four batters.
Juan Daniel Encarnacion had found his form again. The right-handed pitcher allowed three earned runs over 16 innings in June. In his first start in July, JDE allowed two runs on five hits over six innings. He struck out six batters and didn't walk any. Encarnacion has a 4.74 ERA, .229 BAA, and 1.29 WHIP in 62 2/3 innings. He's struck out 62 batters and walked 27.
Roman Anthony missed the last few games of the week but still boosted his numbers. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .313/.441/.729 with five doubles and five home runs in High-A. He's driven in 12 runs, scored 13 more, and stolen one base in 13 games.
Brainer Bonaci is slashing .327/.388/.547 with 10 doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. The switch-hitting shortstop has driven in 28 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen six bases. Bonaci already has more home runs than he hit all of last season, despite 329 fewer plate appearances.
Blaze Jordan holds a .317/.377/.513 slash line with 20 doubles, one triple, and 10 home runs. The right-handed hitting corner infielder has driven in 48 runs, scored 42 more, and stolen one base. He's only struck out 43 times in 297 plate appearances (14.5%).
Alex Erro had a monster day on Sunday that included three hits, two home runs, and eight RBI. The right-handed hitting catcher/first baseman is slashing .300/.392/.438 with six doubles and four home runs. He's driven in 24 runs, scored 25 more, and stolen seven bases. Erro has 20 walks compared to 24 strikeouts.
Bryan Gonzalez had two home runs this week. The right-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .238/.290/.403 with seven doubles, five triples, and seven home runs. He's driven in 34 runs, scored 38 more, and stolen four bases.
Tyler Miller is slashing .273/.328/.455 with 12 doubles and six home runs. The left-handed hitting corner infielder/outfielder has driven in 28 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen seven bases. Miller has already set a career-high in doubles. He could top his 13 home runs from last season as well.
Eddinson Paulino is slashing .239/.316/.402 with 16 doubles, four triples, and six home runs. The left-handed hitting utility has driven in 32 runs, scored 44 more, and stolen 16 bases. Paulino's production may be disappointing to some, but he's putting in a good showing as a just-turned-21-year-old (literally turned 21 on July 2) in High-A.
Eduardo Lopez had a big week, going 7-for-17 with five walks. The switch-hitting outfielder is slashing .266/.356/.387 with 10 doubles, one triple, and three home runs. He's driven in 29 runs, scored 35 more, and stolen 11 bases.
Red Sox Single-A (Salem)
Luis Perales can't stop doing crazy things. The right-handed pitcher tossed five shutout innings on Sunday. He allowed two hits and two walks in that game while striking out a career-high 12 batters. Perales has a 3.54 ERA, .209 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP. He's struck out 67 batters compared to 24 walks in 48 1/3 innings. A promotion to High-A should be coming.
Luis De La Rosa allowed one run on one hit in 3 1/3 innings this week. The righty reliever walked two and struck out three. De La Rosa has a 3.72 ERA, .206 BAA, and 1.29 WHIP in 38 2/3 innings. He's struck out 42 batters and walked 21.
Jonathan Brand probably shouldn't be in Single-A anymore. He had a 0.00 ERA in eight innings in June. In his first July appearance, the right-handed relieve tossed 1 1/3 scoreless innings. Brand has a 0.90 ERA, .164 BAA, and 0.85 WHIP in 20 innings. He's struck out 25 batters compared to six walks. Brand has a 2-1 record with five saves.
Caleb Bolden tossed one scoreless inning this week. In his last four outings, Bolden has allowed zero runs in 7 1/3 innings. He's struck out 16 batters and walked two in that time. The righty reliever has a 3.55 ERA, .195 BAA, and 1.15 WHIP in 33 innings. He's struck out 52 batters compared to 16 walks.
Brooks Brannon has arrived in Single-A, and it didn't take him long to hit a ball very hard and very far. The right-handed hitting catcher went 2-for-7 with a home run in his first two Single-A games. Brannon has driven in three runs and scored one more. His offense makes Brannon an absurdly intriguing catching prospect. If he can work on his defense, the Red Sox have an amazing talent.
Cutter Coffey is slashing .227/.349/.343 with 12 doubles, two triples, and three home runs. The right-handed hitting shortstop has driven in 23 runs, scored 34 more, and stolen 13 bases. The on-base percentage has kept him afloat all year, and now Coffey is starting to produce with the bat.
Allan Castro has a .242/.366/.373 slash line with 18 doubles, two triples, and three home runs. The switch-hitting outfielder has driven in 25 runs, scored 36 more, and stolen 12 bases. Castro has 45 walks compared to 52 strikeouts.
Yorberto Mejicano is slashing .289/.366/.392 with five doubles, one triple, and one home run. The right-handed hitting catcher/first baseman has driven in 10 runs, scored 17 more, and stolen four bases. Mejicano's walked 12 times and struck out 16.
Enderso Lira is slashing .262/.280/.350 with six doubles and one home run. The right-handed hitting catcher has driven in 19 runs and scored nine more. Lira's a great defensive catcher, so he'll get playing time even with Brannon on the roster. His offense has been a pleasant surprise as well.
Ahbram Liendo is slashing .184/.352/.250 with eight doubles, one triple, and one home run. The switch-hitting second baseman has driven in 15 runs, scored 38 more, and stolen 29 bases. I'll continue to say the batting average doesn't represent Liendo. On Sunday, he went 0-for-1 but walked three times, stole one base, and scored a run. Liendo is much more than a batting average.
Alexis Hernandez is slashing .242/.395/.424 with three doubles and a home run in 11 games in Single-A. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in seven runs, scored seven more, and stolen four bases. He's walked nine times and only struck out four.
Jhostynxon Garcia is slashing .195/.323/.221 with two doubles in 23 games. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in four runs, scored 12 more, and stolen two bases. Garcia is slumping a bit, but he's still contributing. He made one of the more ridiculous home run robberies you'll see this week.