Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Major injury news dampens the day
By Hunter Noll
Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)
Chris Murphy was promoted to the Majors this week and looked awesome. He was sent back down, but the left-handed pitcher will be back soon enough. Murph tossed 3 1/3 scoreless innings out of the bullpen. He surrendered two hits and one walk while striking out five.
Shane Drohan has made three straight strong starts in Triple-A. The left-handed starter has allowed five earned runs over 16 2/3 innings in that time. Drohan has a 3.09 ERA, .191 BAA, and 1.17 WHIP between Double-A and Triple-A. He's struck out 56 batters and walked 28 in 58 1/3 innings.
Rio Gomez has looked great in Triple-A. The lefty has made two appearances. He's allowed three runs on eight hits in 7 2/3 innings. Gomez has walked five batters but struck out seven.
Brandon Walter's had a tough year but made his best start of the season on Sunday. The left-handed pitcher allowed two runs on six hits and one walk while striking out seven batters. Walter has a 6.44 ERA, .309 BAA, and 1.73 WHIP in 57 1/3 innings. He's struck out 58 batters and walked 26.
Andrew Politi is having a strong June. The right-handed reliever has allowed one run on three hits and one walk over six innings. He's struck out five batters in that time. Politi has a 3.18 ERA, .221 BAA, and 1.24 WHIP in 28 1/3 innings. He's struck out 29 batters compared to 12 walks.
Brendan Nail was promoted to Triple-A after utterly dominating in Double-A. The left-handed pitcher had a 0.99 ERA, .161 BAA, and 0.91 WHIP with Portland. He allowed two runs on three hits and two walks in 3 2/3 innings in his Worcester debut. Nail struck out six batters.
Enmanuel Valdez is back down in Triple-A, and I think this will be perfect for him. He had a taste of the Major Leagues, but now he can work on a few things back in the minor leagues. The left-handed hitting second baseman is 6-for-10 with a double and two home runs in three games since returning to Worcester. He'll get regular playing time and can get his swing back.
It feels like Ronaldo Hernandez got hot the second Jorge Alfaro left the organization. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .223/.305/.476 with five doubles and seven home runs. However, he is 7-for-19 with two walks, one double, three home runs, and nine RBI since June 4. Hernandez has driven in 26 runs and scored 12 more.
Ryan Fitzgerald has a .313/.376/.559 slash line with 16 doubles, two triples, and eight home runs. The left-handed hitting utility has driven in 42 runs, scored 31 more, and stolen five bases. It really feels like Fitzy could help a Major League team right now.
Nick Sogard is slashing .292/.398/.385 with 10 doubles, one triple, and one home run. The switch-hitting utility has driven in 21 runs, scored 27 more, and stolen 10 bases. Sogard has been an incredibly consistent presence in the Worcester lineup all year.
Stephen Scott made the jump to Triple-A this week. He slashed .248/.369/.448 with five doubles, one triple, and six home runs. The left-handed hitting catcher drove in 22 runs, scored 23 more, and stole four bases in Double-A. He's 0-for-5 with a walk and a run in Triple-A.
Christian Koss is 3-for-23 with two doubles in Triple-A. The right-handed hitting shortstop has driven in four runs, scored four more, and stolen one base. Koss is a very good defender who can get hot at the plate in an instant. He's adjusting to Triple-A.