Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Injuries and call-ups rule the week

Injuries and promotions take center stage in this week's Boston Red Sox prospect watch

The Boston Red Sox have fallen into a bit of a slump recently. And those negative vibes seem to have slipped into the Minor League system with some big-name injuries. Luckily, there were some promotions this week as well, giving us some positives to talk about.

Triston Casas is really starting to come around. The left-handed hitting first baseman is hitting .345 in May and has gotten his numbers up to a .192/.328/.375 slash line. Casas has four doubles and five home runs. He's driven in 14 runs and scored 18 more.

Masataka Yoshida is slashing .298/.380/.489 with seven doubles and six home runs. He's driven in 24 runs, scored 23 more, and stolen two bases. The left-handed hitting outfield has walked as many times (15) as he's struck out (15).

Connor Wong is slashing .238/.289/.452 with six doubles and four home runs. The right-handed hitter has driven in 11 runs, scored 13 more, and stolen one base. Wong has been fantastic behind the plate, and his offense continues to show positive signs.

Jarren Duran slumped a bit this week and is still slashing .345/.404/.552 with 12 doubles and two home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 16 runs, scored 14 more, and is a perfect 6-for-6 on stolen base opportunities.

Enmanuel Valdez holds a .292/.333/.479 slash line with three doubles and two home runs. The left-handed hitting second baseman has driven in seven runs, scored five more, and stolen three bases.

Brayan Bello had another strong start, continuing to lower his numbers. The right-handed pitcher has a 5.01 ERA, .323 BAA, and 1.59 WHIP. He's struck out 24 batters and walked eight in 23 1/3 innings. Bello's won each of his last two starts.

Josh Winckowski had a blowup outing his last time out, giving up three runs in 2/3 of an inning. Even with that, the right-handed reliever has a 2.55 ERA, .226 BAA, and 1.05 WHIP. He's struck out 19 batters and only walked five in 24 2/3 innings.

Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)

Ryan Fitzgerald has quietly been great this year, and he had another strong week. The left-handed hitting utility man is slashing .314/.383/.578 with seven doubles, one triple, and six home runs. He's driven in 24 runs, scored 15 more, and stolen two bases.

Wilyer Abreu is slashing .296/.398/.490 with four doubles and five home runs. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 18 runs, scored 19 more, and stolen two bases. He's already walked 18 times in 27 games. Triple-A hasn't been a problem for him yet.

Nick Sogard just snapped a six-game hitting streak, but even though it's over, it helped boost his numbers. The left-handed hitting utility is slashing .274/.415/.369 with six doubles and one triple. He's driven in seven runs, scored 15 more, and stolen five bases.

David Hamilton's slumped, but the numbers are still strong. The left-handed hitting second baseman is slashing .271/.367/.496 with six doubles, one triple, and seven home runs. He's driven in 18 runs, scored 26 more, and stolen 21 bases.

Bryan Mata left his start early this week and landed on the IL. The right-handed starter has a 5.61 ERA, .263 BAA, and 2.06 WHIP. He's struck out 26 and walked 27 in 25 2/3 innings. Mata's struggled this season but was showing positive signs, so this is a rough injury.

Chris Murphy has a 7.76 ERA, .331 BAA, and 2.07 WHIP in 29 innings. He's struck out 28 batters and walked 20. The lefty's numbers once again took a small step forward this week.

Brandon Walter has a 5.88 ERA, .296 BAA, and 1.60 WHIP in 33 2/3 innings. The left-handed pitcher has struck out 30 batters and walked 14. The control hasn't looked as dominant this season.

Chase Shugart has now gone seven straight outings (seven innings) without allowing an earned run. The righty reliever has barely even allowed base runners in that time (two hits and one walk). He's down to a 3.52 ERA, .279 BAA, and 1.30 WHIP. Shugart's struck out 11 batters and walked three in 15 1/3 innings.

Andrew Politi has had a phenomenal May, tossing 5 1/3 scoreless inning so far. The right-handed reliever has a 3.31 ERA, .258 BAA, and 1.41 WHIP in 16 1/3 innings. He's struck out 18 batters and walked seven.

Red Sox Double-A (Portland)

Ceddanne Rafaela had an absurd end to the week, stealing nine bases in the final two games. The right-handed hitting centerfielder is slashing .256/.293/.342 with seven doubles and one home run. He's driven in 17 runs and scored 18 more. Rafaela's also stolen 19 bases in just 22 attempts.

Chase Meidroth was promoted to Double-A this week and promptly slashed .350/.458/.400 with one double in five games. The right-handed hitting second baseman has driven in four runs, scored one more, and stolen one base.

Nathan Hickey also made the jump to Double-A this week and slashed .278/.316/.444 in four games. The left-handed hitting catcher hit one home run, drove in two runs, and scored two more.

Tyler Dearden is slashing .310/.403/.431 with two doubles, one triple, and one home run. He's driven in 11 runs and scored six more. The left-handed hitting outfielder has been one of the more underrated players in the system this season.

Stephen Scott is in the same category as Dearden as one of the most underrated players in Boston's system. The left-handed hitting catcher is slashing .295/.389/.487 with four doubles, one triple, and three home runs. Scott has driven in 12 runs, scored 14 more, and stolen two more.

Corey Rosier is slashing .299/.365/.437 with four doubles, one triple, and two home runs. He's driven in 10 runs, scored 13 more, and stolen 18 bases. The left-handed hitting outfielder continues to use his speed to get on base.

Phillip Sikes holds a .260/.339/.410 slash line with seven doubles, one triple, and two home runs. He's driven in 10 runs, scored 16 more, and stolen 15 bases. The right-handed hitting outfielder has been a consistent bat in the leadoff spot.

Nick Yorke is slashing .250/.377/.444 with five doubles, two triples, and four home runs. The right-handed hitting second baseman has driven in 11 runs, scored 26 more, and stolen four bases.

Niko Kavadas has driven in .218/.420/.345 with two doubles and three home runs. The left-handed hitting first baseman has driven in 12 runs, scored 11 more, and stolen one base. He's already walked more times (29) than games played (27).

Christian Koss is starting to come around. The right-handed hitting utility is now slashing .210/.282/.300 with four doubles, one triple, and one home run. He's driven in six runs, scored 12 more, and stolen nine bases.

Shane Drohan has a 1.32 ERA, .161 BAA, and 0.82 WHIP. The left-handed starter has struck out 36 batters and only walked nine in 34 innings. Drohan wasn't perfect this week, but still managed five strong innings, helping Portland to another win.

CJ Liu was coming off a no-hitter and managed to throw four more no-hit innings this week before finally surrendering a hit. The right-handed pitcher has a 3.60 ERA, .210 BAA, and 1.20 WHIP this season. He's struck out 31 batters and walked 14 in 30 innings.

Brian Van Belle has a 2.76 ERA, .226 BAA, and 1.19 WHIP this season. The righty has struck out 21 batters and walked 13 in 32 2/3 innings. BVB tossed 6 2/3 innings of one-run ball on Sunday, continuing to eat up innings.

Brendan Nail has a 0.54 ERA, .190 BAA, and 0.96 WHIP this season. The left-handed pitcher has struck out 16 batters and only walked five in 16 2/3 innings. Nail has made three starts this season. Although he's yet to go over three innings, it feels like they're trying to stretch him out a bit.

Luis Guerrero continues to shut it down in the ninth inning for Portland. The righty reliever has a 1.38 ERA, .140 BAA, and 1.38 WHIP in 13 innings. He's struck out 11 batters but has walked 12. Guerrero's picked up six saves this season.

Ryan Fernandez tossed two clutch innings for Portland this week, including a shutout 10th inning in an eventual win. The right-handed pitcher has a 2.45 ERA, .139 BAA, and 0.73 WHIP in 11 innings. He's struck out 16 batters and walked three.

Red Sox Single-A (Salem)

The injury bug extended to Salem this week, with Miguel Bleis suffering an injury in back-to-back games and saw him completely miss the final three games. Bleis is slashing .259/.315/.370 with three doubles, three triples, and one home run. He's driven in 16 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen 11 bases.

Enderso Lira was promoted to Single-A this week. The right-handed hitting catcher has great defensive projections with some power potential. The hit tool is a question mark, though. So this was great to see. Lira went 4-for-10 with a double. He drove in two runs, scored one, and walked twice in three games.

Yorberto Mejicano is slashing .357/.426/.595 with five doubles, one triple, and one home run. The right-handed hitting catcher and first baseman has driven in four runs, scored 10 more, and stolen one base. Mejicano is on a six-game hitting streak and again, I ask for him to get more respect.

Roman Anthony has been fantastic in May. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .385/.514/.462 this month. He's now slashing .256/.409/.314 with five doubles. He's driven in 13 runs, scored 16 more, and stolen 10 bases. Anthony's walked more times (23) than he's struck out (22).

Juan Chacon is slashing .279/.422/.384 with three doubles and three triples. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in 10 runs, scored 11 more, and stolen 10 bases. Chacon is one of the more electric players in the system.

Karson Simas has been quietly fantastic for Salem. The right-handed hitting utility is slashing .264/.388/.377 with three triples. He's driven in eight runs, scored nine more, and stolen five bases in limited playing time.

Luis Ravelo is slashing .255/.369/.382 with four doubles and three home runs. He's driven in 20 runs, scored 18 more, and stolen four bases. Ravelo has shown some impressive pop and top-tier run production this season.

Allan Castro is slashing .190/.356/.295 with five doubles and two home runs. The switch-hitting outfielder has driven in 15 runs, scored 20 more, and stolen nine bases. Castro has struggled, but he's still walked more times (25) than he's struck out (24) and hit a home run on Sunday.

Albert Feliz is slashing .260/.418/.300 with two doubles. The right-handed hitting outfielder has driven in nine runs and scored eight more. He hasn't produced much with the numbers at the moment, but Feliz has had some big moments. Those now include a walk-off single on Sunday.

Cutter Coffey is slashing .200/.382/.235 with three doubles. The right-handed hitting shortstop has driven in six runs, scored 15 more, and stolen eight bases.

Ahbram Liendo is slashing .172/.333/.207 with one double and one triple. The switch-hitting second baseman has driven in six runs and scored 17 more. Liendo's offense hasn't looked great, but he's stolen 14 base. Meanwhile, his defense has been fantastic all year.

Lyonell James is slashing .231/.317/.308 with four doubles and one home run. The right-handed hitting infielder has driven in 15 runs, scored 14 more, and stolen two bases.

On May 13, Luis Perales pitched in his first game since April 29. The right-handed pitcher allowed two runs (one earned) on two hits and three walks over 2 2/3 innings. He struck out three batters. Perales has taken some steps forward, and it's good to see that missing some time didn't cause him to regress hard. He has a 6.14 ERA, .310 BAA, and 2.25 WHIP in 14 2/3 innings. Perales has struck out 14 batters and walked 15.

Noah Dean allowed four runs (two earned) on three hits and two walks (three strikeouts) in four innings. The defense let him down a bit in this one, but it was still a solid start. Dean has a 5.09 ERA, .210 BAA, and 1.92 WHIP in 17 2/3 innings. The lefty has struck out 26 batters compared to 21 walks.

Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz has a 2.60 ERA, .269 BAA, and 1.73 WHIP. The right-handed pitcher has struck out 10 batters and walked 12 in 17 1/3 innings. Rodriguez-Cruz doesn't have an elite fastball, but at 19, he can still gain velocity, and his breaking stuff makes up for a lot of it.

Nathanael Cruz has appeared in three games for Single-A. The right-handed pitcher has a 0.00 ERA, .167 BAA, and 1.64 WHIP in that time. He's struck out five batters and walked four more in 3 2/3 innings.

Luis De La Rosa has a 2.57 ERA, .171 BAA, and 1.19 WHIP in 21 innings. The right-handed pitcher has struck out 23 batters compared to 12 walks. De La Rosa has appeared in seven games so far, starting two.

Jose Ramirez continues to be the unsung hero of the Single-A pitching staff. The right-handed starter has a 0.75 ERA, .154 BAA, and 0.88 WHIP in 24 innings. He's struck out 20 batters and walked nine. Ramirez has yet to give up a home run.

Dalton Rogers twirled a gem this week. The lefty starter gave up no runs on one hit and three walks (striking out six) over five innings. Rogers has a 2.55 ERA, .125 BAA, and 1.08 WHIP. He's struck out 31 batters and walked 11 in 17 2/3 innings.

Luis Talavera has a 3.72 ERA, .265 BAA, and 1.86 WHIP in 9 2/3 innings. The right-handed reliever has walked nine batters and struck out eight. However, he's also yet to allow a home run.

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