Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Hot hitters and relievers turning heads

Relievers are a couple of hot hitters lead the charge in this week's Boston Red Sox prospect watch

What an awesome end to the week for the Boston Red Sox. They swept the New York Yankees, pushing their rivals far away from the playoff race. At the same time, this kept Boston right in the thick of things for a Wild Card spot.

While the Red Sox are making a push toward the playoffs, they are shaking things up in the minor leagues. We saw more promotions, returns, and some draftees make their debuts this week. Hot hitters and dominant relief appearances led the way.

In the majors, Triston Casas continues to put together a phenomenal rookie season. The left-handed hitting first baseman is slashing .253/.353/.483 with 16 doubles, two triples, and 20 home runs. He's driven in 48 runs and scored 54 more.

Connor Wong is slashing .239/.292/.393 with 21 doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. The right-handed hitting catcher has driven in 29 runs, scored 44 more, and stolen five bases. Wong hit a home run and made a phenomenal play against the Yankees this week, flexing his talents.

Masataka Yoshida is slashing .297/.352/.465 with 26 doubles, three triples, and 13 home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 60 runs, scored 60 runs, and stolen eight bases. Yoshida has slumped a bit but did have a four-RBI game against the Yankees.

Jarren Duran is slashing .295/.346/.482 with 34 doubles, two triples, and eight home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 40 runs, scored 46 more, and stolen 24 bases in just 26 attempts. Duran seemed to be going through some personal/mental things this week, so let's all just hope for the best.

Brayan Bello allowed one run on six hits over six innings against New York this week. The right-handed pitcher walked one batter and struck out four. Bello has a 3.70 ERA, .258 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP in 119 1/3 innings. He's struck out 100 batters compared to 31 walks.

Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)

Wilyer Abreu is slashing .274/.391/.538 with 11 doubles, one triple, and 11 home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 65 runs, scored 67 more, and stolen eight bases. Abreu continues to draw walks and get on base while mashing an already-career-best in home runs. He also brings a fantastic arm and strong defense in the outfield.

Ceddanne Rafaela's production this season has been phenomenal. It's even crazier when you consider he had a slow start to the year. The right-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .302/.347/.523 with 29 doubles, three triples, and 19 home runs between Double-A and Triple-A. He's driven in 73 runs, scored 72 more, and stolen 34 bases. Rafaela's been better in Triple-A than he was in Double-A.

Ronaldo Hernandez demolished a grand slam this week. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .253/.349/.478 with 11 doubles and 15 home runs. He's driven in 53 runs, scored 40 more, and stolen one base. Hernandez hasn't brought much defensively, but he does have a good arm, and the offensive production has been fantastic.

David Hamilton is slashing .237/.356/.433 with 15 doubles, three triples, and 14 home runs. The left-handed hitting middle infielder has driven in 43 runs, scored 62 more, and stolen 48 bases. Hamilton has slumped a bit, but the OBP is still great and highlights how he can make a difference even if he isn't hitting.

Stephen Scott is slashing .281/.373/.633 with nine doubles and 12 home runs in Triple-A. The left-handed hitting catcher has driven in 39 runs at the level, scored 26 more, and stolen two bases. Scott has a career-high 18 home runs this season when you add his Double-A numbers. His defense behind the plate isn't great, but he's newer to the position and improving. It's also better than Jorge Alfaro's, so that's something.

Rio Gomez made two starts this week. The left-handed pitcher allowed three earned runs over nine innings of work. He allowed eight hits and three walks while striking out eight batters. Gomez has a 3.95 ERA, .253 BAA, and 1.51 WHIP in Triple-A. He's struck out 47 batters and walked 21 over 41 innings.

Brandon Walter made a start this week and looked fantastic. In fact, he's allowed one run on six hits over eight innings in his last two appearances (both starts). Walter walked three batters and struck out four in that time.

Red Sox Double-A (Portland)

Nick Yorke had a great week, going 8-for-21 with two doubles and a home run. The right-handed hitting second baseman is slashing .275/.352/.456 with 18 doubles, five triples, and 13 home runs. He's driven in 54 runs, scored 61 more, and stolen 10 bases. Yorke's an underrated defender at second, and his bat woke up this week.

Elih Marrero continues to be underrated offensively this season. The switch-hitting catcher has always been elite defensively, but his bat has looked great in 2023. Marrero's slashing .269/.397/.370 with eight doubles and one home run (which he hit this week). He's driven in 10 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen eight bases.

Tyler McDonough is working on a six-game hitting streak. The switch-hitting utility is slashing .235/.306/.360 with 14 doubles, two triples, and five home runs in Double-A. He's driven in 32 runs, scored 37 more, and stolen 16 bases. McDonough also provides solid defense at a lot of positions.

Nathan Hickey picked up a hit in all four games he appeared in this week. The left-handed hitting catcher has a .280/.373/.530 slash line with 18 doubles, one triple, and 18 home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 50 runs, scored 50 more, and stolen three bases.

Blaze Jordan crushed another home run this week. The right-handed hitting corner infielder is slashing .300/.358/.500 with 27 doubles, one triple, and 17 home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 76 runs, scored 59 more, and stolen two bases.

Brainer Bonaci is slashing .296/.356/.465 with 18 doubles, one triple, and 10 home runs between High-A and Double-A. The switch-hitting shortstop has driven in 41 runs, scored 42 more, and stolen seven bases. Bonaci flashed his fantastic defense and elite arm strength this week as well.

Tyler Dearden stayed hot with three more multi-hit games this week. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .257/.350/.388 with seven doubles, one triple, and six home runs. He's driven in 29 runs and scored 24 more.

Corey Rosier is slashing .295/.352/.458 with 19 doubles, five triples, and seven home runs in Double-A. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 34 runs, scored 55 more, and stolen 43 bases.

Chase Meidroth hit a home run this week. The right-handed hitting second baseman/third baseman is slashing .267/.395/.387 with 14 doubles, one triple, and eight home runs between High-A and Double-A. He's driven in 49 runs, scored 61 more, and stolen 11 bases.

Hunter Dobbins twirled a gem this week. The right-handed pitcher allowed one run on five hits over seven innings. He struck out eight batters without walking any. Dobbins has a 3.84 ERA, .248 BAA, and 1.22 WHIP between High-A and Double-A. He's struck out 94 batters compared to 22 walks in 84 1/3 innings.

Grant Gambrell made two starts this week. He combined to allow four runs on eight hits over 11 innings. The righty has a 3.42 ERA, .227 BAA, and 1.22 WHIP in Double-A. He's struck out 84 batters compared to 32 walks in 84 1/3 innings.

CJ Liu allowed one run on two hits over five innings in his lone start this week. The right-handed pitcher struck out seven batters and walked two. He has a 5.05 ERA, .264 BAA, and 1.50 WHIP in 98 innings. He's struck out 124 batters and walked 50.

Luis Guerrero tossed 2 1/3 shutout innings over two appearances this week, picking up two more saves. The righty reliever has a 1.59 ERA, .154 BAA, and 1.19 WHIP in 45 1/3 innings. He's struck out 51 batters and walked 30. Guerrero has 17 saves this season.

Alex Hoppe hasn't allowed a run over his last four appearances. In that time, the right-handed reliever has allowed just one hit and one walk in 4 2/3 innings. He has a 3.98 ERA, .278 BAA, and 1.50 WHIP between High-A and Double-A. Hoppe has struck out 54 batters compared to 16 walks in 40 2/3 innings.

Red Sox High-A (Greenville)

Allan Castro had a monster week. The switch-hitting outfielder went 8-for-20 with one triple and one home run. Castro's slashing .298/.373/.481 with six doubles, two triples, and three home runs in High-A. He's driven in 11 runs, scored 16 more, and stolen two bases in 27 games.

Roman Anthony is slashing .295/.415/.596 with 11 doubles, three triples, and 11 home runs in High-A. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 33 runs, scored 33 more, and stolen two bases in 44 games. Anthony has walked 72 times in 86 games between Single-A and High-A.

Kyle Teel is slashing .414/.514/.483 with two doubles in seven games in High-A. The left-handed hitting catcher has driven in seven runs and scored seven more. He's walked nearly as many times (5) as he's struck out (6). Teel has caught four would-be-base-stealers at the level already.

Eddinson Paulino is starting to wake up. The left-handed hitting utility man has a .249/.331/.401 slash line with 22 doubles, four triples, and nine home runs. He's driven in 50 runs, scored 58 more, and stolen 23 bases. Paulino's a good defender at a few positions, and the offensive production hasn't been bad at all.

Bryan Gonzalez is slashing .256/.318/.422 with 14 doubles, seven triples, and 10 home runs. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 50 runs, scored 63 more, and stolen 10 bases. Gonzalez has struck out a lot (129 times), but his power potential is legit.

Nick Decker went 4-for-7 in two games this week and hit for the cycle between those contests. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .217/.330/.429 with 11 doubles, four triples, and six home runs. He's driven in 20 runs, scored 34 more, and stolen five bases.

Ronald Rosario went 5-for-10 with a triple this week. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .261/.352/.392 with 16 doubles, two triples, and four home runs between Single-A and High-A. He's driven in 42 runs, scored 41 more, and stolen one base.

Gilberto Jimenez is back in High-A and is stealing some bases. The switch-hitting outfielder is slashing .229/.260/.371 with seven doubles and one home run in High-A. He's driven in seven runs, scored 11 more, and stolen six bases in 18 games.

Cutter Coffey has struggled a bit in High-A, but it's still early, and he did hit a double and drive in a run on Sunday. The right-handed hitting shortstop is slashing .216/.330/.329 with 15 doubles, two triples, and six home runs between Single-A and High-A. He's driven in 33 runs, scored 55 more, and stolen 19 bases.

Felix Cepeda's performance since being promoted to High-A needs to be studied by future generations. The right-handed relief pitcher tossed three more scoreless innings over two appearances this week. That puts him at 14 shutout innings since being promoted. Cepeda has a 0.00 ERA, .114 BAA, and 0.57 WHIP in 14 innings in High-A. He's struck out 14 batters and only walked three. Cepeda is also a perfect 3-for-3 in save opportunities.