Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Dazzling debuts and statements made
This week's Boston Red Sox prospect watch features some dazzling debuts.
The Boston Red Sox made some moves in the organization this week. That included promoting some pitching prospects throughout the system. More than just a few promotions happened, though.
There were statements made, including a walk-off hit by a top prospect. But what happened in the Majors?
The Red Sox snapped a four-game winning streak on Sunday and got more contributions from the young players.
Kutter Crawford was activated. He didn't pitch this week, but it's great to have him back in the bullpen. Crawford's been insanely valuable for Boston this season.
Brayan Bello was effectively wild this week. The right-handed starter walked five batters in five innings. However, he only allowed one run on three hits and struck out seven batters. That was Bello's fourth straight solid start. It really feels like he's turned a corner.
Josh Winckowski pitched 4 2/3 scoreless innings over two appearances out of the bullpen this week. The righty picked up a save, his second of the season. Winckowski has a 2.15 ERA, .213 BAA, and 0.99 WHIP over 29 1/3 innings this season.
Enmanuel Valdez clobbered a home run this week. The left-handed hitting second baseman is slashing .283/.338/.500 with four doubles and three home runs. He's driven in 10 runs, scored six more, and stolen three bases in 21 games.
Masataka Yoshida continues to hit. The left-handed hitting outfielder is currently riding a five-game hitting streak. Yoshida's slashing .303/.382/.493 with nine doubles, one triple, and six home runs. He's driven in 28 runs, scored 26 more, and stolen three bases. Masa has as many walks (17) as strikeouts (17).
Triston Casas is slashing .180/.311/.361 with four doubles and six home runs. The left-handed hitting first baseman has driven in 15 runs and scored 19 more. His average is rough, but he's hitting the ball hard. Casas has walked 24 times and is tied with Yoshida for the second-most home runs on the team (Rafael Devers has 13).
Jarren Duran is slashing .330/.385/.532 with 13 doubles and three home runs. He's driven in 19 runs, scored 16 more, and stolen seven bases in seven attempts. The left-handed hitting outfielder has always had the talent, and it's clearly shining through.
Connor Wong holds a .224/.276/.418 slash line with seven doubles and four home runs. The right-handed hitting catcher has driven in 11 runs, scored 14 more, and stolen one base. Wong has offensive flashes that make him intriguing when paired with his defensive talent.
Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)
Shane Drohan was promoted to Triple-A after terrorizing Double-A hitters for a month. In his first start with Worcester, Drohan allowed five runs over five innings. He walked three batters and surrendered three home runs. It was a very un-Drohan game. However, he struck out six and looked good for the first few innings. The wind didn't help his cause either.
Andrew Politi is down to a 3.20 ERA, .236 BAA, and 1.22 WHIP. The right-handed reliever has only allowed one run in 8 2/3 innings this month. He's struck out 22 batters and walked seven in 19 2/3 innings pitched.
Wilyer Abreu is slashing .282/.386/.479 with five doubles and six home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 20 runs, scored 22 more, and stolen two bases. Abreu might be one of the more mature hitters despite being only 23. He has a great command of the strike zone and does everything right on the field.
David Hamilton has slumped a bit but still finds ways to produce. The left-handed hitting infielder is slashing .266/.349/.513 with seven doubles, two triples, and nine home runs. He's driven in 22 runs, scored 30 more, and stolen 23 bases.
Ryan Fitzgerald keeps proving he deserves a chance in the Majors. The left-handed hitting utility has a .300/.370/.558 slash line with eight doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. Fitzy has driven in 28 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen three bases.
Nick Sogard is slashing .275/.405/.353 with six doubles and one triple. The switch-hitting utility has driven in 10 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen six bases. Sogard has flashed good defense around the diamond and gets on base. He's an underrated depth piece for Boston.
Red Sox Double-A (Portland)
Grant Gambrell was called up to Double-A after great back-to-back starts in High-A. Gambrell wasn't having the best year, but he was looking better. And at 25, he felt too old for High-A. The right-handed pitcher made a statement in his first Double-A game. Gambrell was perfect through the first five innings. He ended up going six innings, allowing one run on two hits and no walks while walking eight batters.
CJ Liu did it again. The righty continues a dominant run of starts. Liu tossed 5 2/3 scoreless innings, giving up four hits and three walks. Meanwhile, he struck out eight batters. That ties a season-high (he's done it three times now). Liu has a 3.03 ERA, .210 BAA, and 1.21 WHIP in 35 2/3 innings. He's struck out 39 batters compared to 17 walks.
Brian Van Belle gave up four runs on seven hits and one walk over six innings this week. It doesn't sound great, but BVB pitched well around a three-hitter stretch that ended in a three-run home run in the second inning. He also struck out eight batters. The right-handed pitcher has a 3.26 ERA, .237 BAA, and 1.22 WHIP. He's struck out 29 batters and walked 14 in 38 2/3 innings.
Luis Guerrero has a 1.13 ERA, .148 BAA, and 1.25 WHIP in 16 innings. He's struck out 11 batters and walked 12. The righty reliever has already picked up seven saves this season. He only has 16 innings in Double-A and 13 in High-A. Even with that limited work, it feels like if he can lower the walks, Guerrero might be close to a Triple-A promotion.
Ryan Fernandez has a 2.57 ERA, .167 BAA, and 0.86 WHIP in 14 innings between Single-A and Double-A. The right-handed reliever has 20 strikeouts compared to just four walks and has only allowed one home run.
Brendan Nail has thrown 20 2/3 innings this season. He's posted a 0.87 ERA, .192 BAA, and 0.97 WHIP in that time. The lefty has struck out 22 batters and walked six. Four of his 12 appearances have been starts. While he hasn't thrown more than three innings, Nail's tossed at least two innings six times already.
Rio Gomez only made one appearance this week. The left-handed reliever tossed four perfect innings, striking out four batters. Gomez has a 3.00 ERA, .131 BAA, and 0.94 WHIP. He's struck out 23 batters and walked nine in 18 innings.
Nathan Hickey has one of the best bats in the Boston Red Sox system. The left-handed hitting catcher has a .310/.402/.630 slash line with nine doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. Hickey has driven in 18 runs and scored 19 more. He's been locked in since his Double-A promotion.
Chase Meidroth hit his first Double-A home run this week. The right-handed hitting second/third baseman is slashing .321/.472/.440 with four doubles and three triples between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 20 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen five bases. Meidroth has 28 walks compared to 25 strikeouts.
Nick Yorke is slashing .273/.392/.469 with six doubles, two triples, and five home runs. The right-handed hitting second baseman has driven in 16 runs, scored 31 more, and stolen five bases. Yorke continues to hit. He's fought out of a few slumps, which is something he wasn't doing last year.
Ceddanne Rafaela is slashing .262/.307/.340 with eight doubles and one home run. The right-handed hitting centerfielder has driven in 20 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen 20 bases. Rafaela's been pretty unlucky and had two hits robbed from him on Sunday.
Niko Kavadas was mashing this week. The left-handed hitting first baseman crushed four home runs and drove in 10 runs. Kavadas is slashing .236/.417/.462 with three doubles and seven home runs. He's driven in 22 runs, scored 16 more, and stole one base. All seven of his home runs have come in the month of May.
Corey Rosier quietly continues to be the most consistent hitter on the team. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .316/.380/.439 with four doubles, one triple, and two home runs. He's driven in 11 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen 22 bases.
Matthew Lugo is slashing .258/.282/.423 with 11 doubles, one triple, and one home run. The right-handed hitting third baseman has driven in 17 runs, scored 14 more, and stolen four bases. Lugo has only walked three times, and the power is down. He's still producing runs and isn't getting regular playing time with Meidroth now on the roster.
Phillip Sikes has a .242/.324/.367 with seven doubles, one triple, and two home runs. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 11 runs, scored 21 more, and stolen 17 bases.
High-A (Greenville)
Marcelo Mayer had a few big moments this week. The top prospect in the system hit a home run but also had a walk-off single. He's slashing .308/.387/.533 with 10 doubles, one triple, and five home runs. The left-handed hitting shortstop has driven in 27 runs, scored 20 more, and stolen four bases.
Brainer Bonaci needs more love. No, me gushing over him doesn't count. The switch-hitting shortstop is currently on a six-game hitting streak. Bones is slashing .349/.406/.540 with six doubles and two home runs. He's driven in 14 runs, scored seven more, and stolen two bases in 16 games.
Eddinson Paulino had a monster game that included a grand slam. The left-handed hitting utility is slashing .246/.318/.410 with nine doubles, two triples, and three home runs. He's driven in 16 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen 11 bases in 11 attempts.
Ronald Rosario hit his first High-A home run on Sunday. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .253/.376/.453 with seven doubles, one triple, and two home runs between Single-A and High-A. He's driven in 14 runs and scored 15 more.
Blaze Jordan is slashing .290/.342/.478 with nine doubles, one triple, and five home runs. The right-handed hitting corner infielder has driven in 26 runs, scored 20 more, and stolen one base. Jordan has a strong arm at third but has genuinely looked great at first base.
Bryan Gonzalez had a 4-for-4 with two homers game this week. The right-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .236/.314/.491 with two doubles, five triples, and five home runs. He's driven in 20 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen two bases. Gonzalez leads the team in triples and is tied for the lead in homers (with Mayer and Jordan).
Max Ferguson is slashing .246/.386/.356 with seven doubles and two home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 15 runs, scored 25 more, and stolen 19 bases. Ferguson gets on base and has tons of speed. There's a lot of value here.
Eduardo Lopez holds a .263/.355/.400 with three doubles, one triple, and two home runs. The switch-hitting outfielder has driven in 14 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen eight bases. Lopez is sneaky good at basically every facet of the game.
Nick Decker is only slashing .155/.347/.328 with three doubles, two triples, and one home run. He's driven in four runs, scored 13 more, and stolen two bases. The left-handed hitting outfielder is 3-for-5 with two walks in his last two games, though, and has a hit in three of his last four games, picking up two doubles in that time. Is Decker starting to turn it around?
Isaac Coffey dropped a gem this week. The right-handed pitcher threw six shutout innings, allowing just four hits and one walk while striking out 11 batters. Coffey has a 3.35 ERA, .229 BAA, and 1.06 WHIP in 37 2/3 innings pitched. He's struggled with home runs, allowing 10 already. However, Coffey's also struck out 50 batters and only walked seven.
Angel Bastardo didn't want to get outdone. The righty also tossed six shutout innings. Bastardo gave up just one hit and two walks while striking out seven. He has a 5.03 ERA, .208 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP. Bastardo's struck out 47 batters and walked 17 in 34 innings.
Hunter Dobbins made his best start of the year this week. The right-handed pitcher allowed two runs on six hits and one walk over six innings while striking out four batters. Dobbins has a 4.80 ERA, .250 BAA, and 1.20 WHIP in 15 innings. He's struck out 11 batters and walked four.
Wikelman Gonzalez gave up six earned runs over 10 2/3 innings this week. He walked seven batters in those two games. The good news is that Gonzalez also struck out 16 batters. He has a 7.43 ERA, .240 BAA, and 1.95 WHIP. The right-handed pitcher has walked 28 batters in 26 2/3 innings but has 42 strikeouts.
Christopher Troye has a 1.72 ERA, .143 BAA, and 1.09 WHIP. The right-handed reliever has struck out 32 runs and walked nine over 15 2/3 innings. Troye has electric stuff on the mound and has been the best bullpen arm for Greenville this season.
Nathan Landry continues to dominate ever since he allowed three runs in one inning in his High-A debut. Since then, the lefty reliever hasn't allowed a run in 4 1/3 innings over four outings. Landry has a 1.72 ERA, .182 BAA, and 1.02 WHIP in 15 2/3 innings between Single-A and High-A. He's struck out 19 batters and walked six.
Nate Tellier has a 2.92 ERA, .196 BAA, and 1.38 WHIP in 12 1/3 innings. The right-handed reliever has 15 strikeouts and eight walks. The walks were a problem, but he's only issued one free pass in 6 1/3 innings this month.
Red Sox Single-A (Salem)
Roman Anthony hit his first professional home run this week. The left-handed hitting outfielder holds a .234/.377/.308 slash line with five doubles and one home run. He's driven in 15 runs, scored 20 more, and stolen 10 bases. Anthony's walked 25 times compared to 26 strikeouts.
Yorberto Mejicano continues to be an elite hitter at the level. The right-handed hitting catcher and first baseman is slashing .327/.407/.519 with five doubles, one triple, and one home run. He's driven in five runs, scored 11 more, and stolen two bases.
Enderso Lira is slashing .350/.409/.400 with one double in six games for Salem. The right-handed hitting catcher has driven in two runs and scored one more. Lira is a defensive-minded catcher, so this has been amazing to see.
Juan Chacon is slashing .260/.391/.356 with four doubles and three triples. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 10 runs, scored 12 more, and stolen 11 bases.
Cutter Coffey has a .196/.369/.235 slash line with four doubles. The right-handed hitting shortstop has driven in nine runs, scored 19 more, and stolen 10 bases. Coffey has 27 walks compared to 28 strikeouts. He also had a go-ahead single in the top of the ninth inning on Sunday, coincidentally Coffey's 19th birthday.
Luis Ravelo is slashing .280/.394/.415 with seven doubles and three home runs. The switch-hitting shortstop has driven in 23 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen six bases. I can't say "Ravelo is known for his defense" anymore. Clearly, there's plenty of offensive talent as well.
Ahbram Liendo is slashing .179/.336/.226 with three doubles and one triple. The switch-hitting second baseman has driven in nine runs, scored 19 more, and stolen 16 bases. Liendo's numbers are slowly starting to creep up.
Allan Castro is slashing .203/.350/.328 with 10 doubles and two home runs. The switch-hitting outfielder has driven in 17 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen 10 bases. Castro's walked 27 times compared to 29 strikeouts.
Karson Simas holds a .254/.353/.352 with one double and three triples. The right-handed hitting utility has driven in 10 runs, scored 11 more, and stolen six bases. Simas gets plugged in all over the diamond and continues to produce.
Juan Montero had his first Single-A RBI this week. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .278/.278/.389 with two doubles in five games. He's driven in one run and scored two more.
Quick note, Miguel Bleis did not play this week after suffering an injury last week. There hasn't been much news surrounding the outfielder, but no news is good news, as he hasn't been placed on the IL. It's likely that the team is just being cautious with one of the top prospects in all of baseball.
Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz tossed five scoreless innings this week. The right-handed pitcher gave up three hits and four walks, striking out three batters in the game. ERC has a 2.01 ERA, .253 BAA, and 1.66 WHIP in 22 1/3 innings. He's struck out 13 batters and walked 16.
Luis Perales allowed three runs on four hits and two walks over 4 2/3 innings. This was a massively encouraging start for a few reasons. First of all, that's the second-longest outing of his career. Second, he struck out a career-high seven batters. Third, both walks came in the fifth inning. Perales has a 6.05 ERA, .289 BAA, and 2.02 WHIP in 19 1/3 innings. The right-handed pitcher has struck out 21 batters and walked 17.
Jedixson Paez has a 6.75 ERA, .262 BAA, and 1.43 WHIP in 14 2/3 innings. The righty has 16 strikeouts compared to five walks. He's already missed time this season and is considered a raw prospect. Therefore, it's not surprising that Paez has struggled at times.
Luis De La Rosa has a 2.88 ERA, .194 BAA, and 1.32 WHIP in 25 innings. He's struck out 26 batters and walked 15. The right-handed pitcher has made nine appearances, with two of them being starts.
Dalton Rogers allowed one run on three hits and two walks over four innings in his lone start this week. Rogers added another seven strikeouts to his total. The lefty has a 2.49 ERA, .139 BAA, and 1.11 WHIP in 21 2/3 innings. He's struck out 38 batters and walked 13.
Jose Ramirez has a 1.21 ERA, .163 BAA, and 0.91 WHIP in 29 2/3 innings. The right-handed starter has struck out 24 batters and walked 11. Ramirez has been the most consistent starter in Single-A, and he's doing it in a pretty dominant fashion.
Luis Talavera has a 3.38 ERA, .227 BAA, and 1.58 WHIP in 13 1/3 innings. The righty reliever has struck out nine batters and walked 11. Obviously, the command hasn't been the best, and he's not picking up a lot of Ks. However, he's limited damage by not allowing a home run yet this season.
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