The Boston Red Sox farm system has had life injected into it over the last few seasons. Nearly every position has upgraded significantly.
The Red Sox have a top-five prospect in all of baseball, thanks to Marcelo Mayer. Miguel Bleis is a consensus top-100 prospect as well. Meanwhile, some have Nick Yorke, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Roman Anthony on their lists. Pitcher Shane Drohan could work his way onto a list at some point too. That is if he doesn't get promoted to the Majors too fast.
One position that has lagged behind the rest is catcher, however. The Red Sox have Nathan Hickey as their top prospect at the position. He possesses a lethal bat that will play in the Majors. His defense has been a serious question mark, though. And there are questions on whether or not Hickey will remain a catcher.
Elsewhere in the minor leagues, there are catchers like Enderso Lira. Lira is seen as a defensive star, but there are holes in his bat. Stephen Scott is in Triple-A, but his defense isn't seen as much of an upgrade over Hickey. Elih Marrero's great defensively and is an athlete, but the bat falls behind.
Red Sox prospect Brooks Brannon having great success in FCL
Then there's Brooks Brannon. He's another catcher prospect with serious question marks surrounding his defense. A ninth-round pick in 2022, Brannon has elite bat potential with devastating raw power. He also possesses a rocket for an arm, but the receiving aspects of his game are the issue.
Brannon just turned 19 in May, though. There is plenty of time for him to work out some of his weaknesses and improve behind the dish. While he does that, Brannon will mash.
As of June 20, Brannon has appeared in 10 games in the FCL this season. The right-handed hitter has at least one hit in eight of those contests. He's slashing .297/.350/.676 with three doubles, one triple, and three home runs. Brannon has already driven in 13 runs and scored eight more.
The defense isn't something we're going to see just magically become great overnight. Fans will have to be patient with that. It's clear that his offensive potential is through the roof, though.
With that in mind, when will we see Brannon in Single-A? The Red Sox have been pretty aggressive with their promotions this season. And it's pretty clear that more are coming soon.
As of right now, Salem has three catchers on their roster. Lira is joined by Yorberto Mejicano and Juan Montero.
Mejicano plays a decent amount of first base, and Montero doesn't get much playing time in general. So if Brannon were to be called up, he could split time with Lira (especially considering I think Mejicano would be promoted in this scenario).
Brooks Brannon is already delivering with his bat, serving up some monster moonshots in the FCL. The Boston Red Sox might want to see what he can do in Salem before August rolls around.