Boston Red Sox prospect watch: Shaking off the rust

Top prospects are still shaking off the rust in this week's Boston Red Sox prospect watch.

The Boston Red Sox prospect watch is back, as we're starting to see some of the top names in the system shake off all that rust and get their numbers up.

As always, we're starting in the majors. It was a busy week for Boston. They got swept by the Tampa Bay Rays but have bounced back nicely against the Los Angeles Angels.

Just like the team's success, the young guys on the team dealt with a mixed bag.

Connor Wong is gaining some fans with his arm. The right-handed hitting catcher is slashing .156/.250/.250 with three doubles, two RBI, and four runs scored. But he's throwing out base runners at a phenomenal rate. His defense has been enough while the team waits for him to wake up at the plate.

Triston Casas has given positives to point to. The left-handed hitter is slashing .133/.200/.311 with two doubles and two home runs. He's driven in seven runs and scored three more. Defensively, he's looked good at first base. Casas had a fantastic 14-pitch walk this week that shows you how special he can be at the plate.

Masataka Yoshida missed the majority of the week due to an injury. He was back in the lineup on Sunday, though. The left-handed hitting outfielder holds a .205/.354/.308 slash line with one double and one home run. He's driven in six runs, scored eight more, and stolen two bases. The outfielder also has more walks (7) than strikeouts (4).

Josh Winckowski is looking like a bullpen ace. The right-handed pitcher has a 1.50 ERA, .205 BAA, and 0.92 WHIP this season. In 12 innings, he has eight strikeouts compared to only two walks. It looks like the full-time transition to reliever has unlocked something for Winck.

Sad news did strike the Red Sox this week. Zack Kelly suffered a scary-looking injury. The initial thought of many was that he would need Tommy John surgery. However, the first tests seemed to indicate that wasn't the case. Kelly is awaiting more updates and testing. All we can do is hope for the best.

Red Sox Triple-A (Worcester)

The David Hamilton hype train has gained an insane amount of traction recently. While the Red Sox are struggling with their middle infield, Hamilton is thriving in Triple-A. The left-handed hitter holds a .370/.420/.674 slash line with three doubles, one triple, and three home runs this season. He's driven in six runs, scored nine more, and already has seven steals. Hamilton's gaining a lot of traction as the next potential second base/shortstop.

Nick Sogard needs some love too. The switch-hitter is slashing .375/.516/.542 with four doubles this year. He's driven in two runs and scored seven more, while stealing four bases on four attempts. Sogard can play multiple positions around the infield and showed off his arm strength at third base on Sunday.

Enmanuel Valdez's numbers are still rough, but he had a major breakout game on Saturday that can hopefully get things going. The left-handed hitter is slashing .179/.289/.333 with three doubles and one home run. He's driven in six runs, scored three more, and stolen one base. The second baseman picked up three hits on Saturday. That game saw him hit a homer, a double, and a walk-off single.

Wilyer Abreu returned from the IL to make his Triple-A debut this week. The left-handed hitting outfielder is 1-for-14 with three walks and one run scored. Far too early to worry, especially for someone coming off the IL and starting at a new level.

Worcester's pitching staff has to be thrilled to get away from the Columbus Clippers. It was rough. Chris Murphy now has a 20.77 ERA, .542 BAA, and 4.38 WHIP through two starts (4 1/3 innings). The left-handed has had some insanely bad BABIP luck, but the six walks haven't helped either. He'll be fine. It's just not a fun hole to have to climb out of.

Bryan Mata's command continues to be an issue this year. He walked five batters in his first start and three more in his second. Three walks doesn't sound too bad, but Mata somehow managed to plunk four batters in that game as well. The right-handed pitcher has a 6.43 ERA, .240 BAA, and 2.00 WHIP with eight strikeouts over seven innings.

Brandon Walter was one of the few pitchers on the roster to survive Columbus. The lefty allowed two runs on four hits and three walks over five innings, striking out five batters. Walter has a 4.40 ERA, .268 BAA, and 1.47 WHIP in 14 1/3 innings this season.

Chase Shugart gave up a run in his first relief appearance of the season, but has been clean since then. The right-handed pitcher has a 1.93 ERA, .316 BAA, and 1.50 WHIP over 4 2/3 innings this season. As you can tell by the BAA, he's given up some hits (six). Only one has been for extra bases (a double), though, and he's only walked one batter.

Taylor Broadway has already shown some flashes of his nasty stuff. The righty reliever has a 6.75 ERA, .292 BAA, and 1.50 WHIP in 5 1/3 innings. He's allowed two home runs already. Broadway has also walked just one batter and struck out eight, though.

Red Sox Double-A (Portland)

Nick Yorke is quietly having a strong start to the 2023 season. The right-handed hitter is slashing .231/.444/.385 with one double and one home run. He's driven in one run and scored nine more while stealing one base. The second baseman has more walks (9) than strikeouts (8) on the year.

Ceddanne Rafaela took some promising steps after not drawing a walk last week. His stat line improved nicely because of those improvements. The right-handed hitter is now slashing .242/.306/.273 with one double. He's driven in five runs and scored five more while stealing four bases and walking three times. The centerfielder's defense continues to be elite.

Tyler Dearden's coming out of the gates firing. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .438/.438/.500 with one double. In only four games, Dearden has driven in seven runs and scored one more. The RBI production won't keep up this pace, but he could be in for a big year in this Portland lineup.

Phillip Sikes holds a .269/.387/.500 slash line with one double, one triple, and one home run. The left-handed hitting outfielder has driven in three runs, scored six runs, and stolen four bases this season.

Corey Rosier is slashing a balmy .400/.455/.500 with two doubles this year. The left-handed hitting outfielder has three RBI and two runs scored. He's also a perfect 5-for-5 on stolen base attempts and has reached base in all six games he's appeared in.

Niko Kavadas is slashing .208/.412/.208 but has shown signs of getting on track. The left-handed hitting first baseman has three RBI and two runs. He's surprisingly even stolen a base. Kavadas has walked nine times and is working on a three-game hitting streak that includes six walks.

Christian Koss has cooled down, but his .250/.344/.321 slash line certainly isn't bad to start the year. The right-handed hitter has two doubles, four RBI, three runs scored, and three steals. Koss adds extra value with his ability to play multiple positions in the field.

Alex Binelas has run into a bit of a strikeout problem. The left-handed hitting third baseman is 3-for-15 on the year. All three hits have been doubles, but he's also struck out in over half of his at-bats. Eight strikeouts compared to two walks isn't a promising ratio for someone who had some K issues last year. He does have four RBI and has flashed the leather, though.

Tyler McDonough is slashing .148/.303/.259 with one home run. The switch-hitter has driven in two runs, scored four more, and stolen four bases. McDonough has brought a lot of value by appearing at multiple positions, and has already provided some defensive highlights in the outfield.

Matthew Lugo is slashing .194/.194/.290 with three doubles this season. The right-handed hitting third baseman hasn't had any issues with run production despite the low average. He's driven in eight runs, scored five more, and stolen one base.

Shane Drohan followed his great first start with another phenomenal outing this week. The left-handed pitcher tossed six shutout innings, striking out six batters. Drohan now has a 0.00 ERA, .158 BAA, 0.64 WHIP, and 11 strikeouts compared to one walk in 11 innings.

Brian Van Belle made his first start of the year and absolutely dominated. The righty gave up zero runs on three hits in six innings. He struck out four batters and walked none, needing 59 pitches to do the job.

Chih-Jung Liu bounced back this week. The right-handed pitcher tossed five scoreless innings, allowing only five hits and three walks while striking out eight batters. He's down to a 3.00 ERA, .353 BAA, and 1.89 WHIP.

Sterling Sharp allowed one run on three hits and no walks in his first start of the year. The righty went six strong innings, striking out four batters along the way.

Theo Denlinger's strong start to the year continues. The right-handed reliever has not thrown four innings out of the bullpen. He's allowed no runs on one hit and one walk, picking up six strikeouts.

Brendan Nail has thrown 3 2/3 scoreless innings so far. In fact, he's yet to even allow a hit. Nail has walked two batters but struck out seven. The lefty even has a save early on.

Luis Guerrero has made three appearances this year. The right-hander has a save in all three. He holds a 3.00 ERA, .182 BAA, and 1.67 WHIP with three strikeouts.

Rio Gomez is absolutely dominating to start the season. The left-handed pitcher has a 1.80 ERA, .063 BAA, and 0.40 WHIP over five innings. Gomez has a save to go along with eight strikeouts compared to just one walk on the year.

Skylar Arias has a 3.38 ERA, .167 BAA, and 1.50 WHIP this year. The left-handed pitcher has walked five batters compared to four strikeouts in 5 1/3 innings on the season.

Ryan Miller has a 2.08 ERA in 4 1/3 innings pitched this season. The right-handed pitcher has dominated with a .071 BAA and 0.23 WHIP. He's allowed just one hit and zero walks while striking out six batters.

Red Sox High-A (Greenville)

Marcelo Mayer's 2023 has been off to a rough start. He had a breakout game on Saturday, though. The left-handed hitter went 3-for-5 with a home run and four RBI. While his numbers still don't look great, it was a positive sign. The shortstop is slashing .179/.303/.357 with six RBI and four runs scored.

Gilberto Jimenez needed a big season, and he's delivering early on. The switch-hitting outfielder is slashing .300/.300/.600 with three doubles and one home run. He's driven in two runs and scored four more, stealing one base. Jimenez has always had elite speed, and now he's hitting the ball hard with more consistency.

Chase Meidroth is slashing .364/.588/.545 with one double and one home run. The right-handed hitter has driven in four runs, scored six more, and stolen one base. You did read that right, by the way. Meidroth has a .588 OBP thanks to 11 walks in 34 plate appearances. The second baseman already looks too advanced for High-A.

Max Ferguson holds a .292/.414/.333 slash line with one double. The left-handed hitter has driven in two runs and scored three more. Ferguson has looked more comfortable at the plate, and the high OBP is great for someone with his speed. The second baseman/outfielder has six steals in six attempts.

Kier Meredith has only appeared in two games this year, but he's made a massive impact. The left-handed hitter is 2-for-7 with a walk, three RBI, and one run scored. He's also shown off his great baserunning with four steals in those two games.

Nick Decker is 3-for-15, but it's been a lot better than that. The left-handed hitter has one double, one triple, and one home run. He's hit the ball with power consistently. Decker has driven in one run, scored four more, and stolen one base. He's also made countless defensive plays already.

We saw the first Eddinson Paulino pimp job of the year on Sunday, so that was fun. The left-handed hitter is slashing .125/.176/.281 with a triple and a home run. He's driven in two runs, scored four more, and stole two bases. Despite the numbers, Paulino's had some great at-bats. His home run on Sunday is a good sign.

Blaze Jordan is slashing .148/.233/.185 with one double this year. He's driven in five runs and scored two more. The right-handed hitter's numbers look bad, but he's trending up. Jordan entered the week 0-for-12. The corner infielder went 4-for-15 over the last few days.

Nathan Hickey is just 4-for-17 with one double and one run this year. The left-handed hitting catcher has a .500 OBP, though, thanks to eight walks (compared to only four strikeouts).

Alex Erro has a .278/.350/.389 slash line with two doubles. The switch-hitting catcher (and utility man) has driven in two runs, scored two more, and one stolen base. He's not known as a power bat, but Erro has been hitting the ball hard all year.

Juan Daniel Encarnacion made two starts this week. Outside of one inning, he looked great the entire time. The right-handed pitcher has a 5.79 ERA over 9 1/3 innings, but the rest of his numbers are impressive. Encarnacion has a .182 BAA, 1.18 WHIP, and 12 strikeouts this season.

Wikelman Gonzalez is having some major command issues. The righty has allowed seven free passes in 5 1/3 innings this season. That led to a high ERA (4.76) and WHIP (1.76). However, Gonzalez does have a phenomenal .150 BAA and nine strikeouts.

Isaac Coffey's first High-A start went well. The right-handed pitcher allowed two runs on six hits over five innings of work. Coffey struck out five batters while only walking one.

Jaret Godman has a 2.25 ERA, .154 BAA, and 1.25 WHIP in four appearances this year. The righty reliever has six strikeouts and has already picked up two saves.

Casey Cobb has a 1.59 ERA, .150 BAA, and 1.06 WHIP through 5 2/3 innings. The right-handed reliever has seven saves compared to three walks and has one hold this season.

Aaron Perry has thrown three innings this season. The righty has allowed one run on two hits and two walks (compared to five strikeouts) in that time. Perry has managed to pick up two holds.

Christopher Troye has a 1.80 ERA, .167 BAA, and 1.40 WHIP over five innings this season. The right-handed pitcher has already racked up 11 strikeouts compared to four walks, helping him collect two holds.

Graham Hoffman has allowed one run on two hits in two innings this year. The righty has yet to walk anyone, and five of his six outs have come via the K.

Nate Tellier has four walks through 2 2/3 innings. That's a bit of an issue, and it factored into the run he's given up this year. The right-hander has limited the damage thanks to five strikeouts, though.