The Boston Red Sox prospect watch is celebrating this week after Marcelo Mayer's promotion to the major leagues. However, not everything is perfect for Boston. The team still can't seem to find an identity as they hover around the dreaded .500 mark.
Luckily for us, the minor league system is surging. Even with Mayer moving up, there's more than enough to talk about at each level.
Red Sox Prospect Update: Brooks Brannon, Jhostynxon Garcia, Franklin Arias
Worcester Red Sox (Triple-A)
Roman Anthony shouldn't be far behind Marcelo Mayer on his path to the big leagues. The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .321/.453/.518 with eight doubles, two triples, and seven home runs. He's driven in 21 runs, scored 37 more, and stolen three bases.
Anthony had a pair of two-hit games and a pair of home runs this week, the last of which went 116 MPH off the bat. He's been ready for the majors.
Jhostynxon Garcia didn't waste time introducing himself to Triple-A pitching. The right-handed hitting outfielder went 10-for-24 (.417) with one double and two home runs in his first week. He drove in five runs and scored five more in six games.
Garcia absolutely has the ability to terrorize Triple-A pitching and could catapult himself into top-100 prospect territory sooner rather than later.
Tyler McDonough missed a month of baseball but returned this week. The switch-hitting utility went 6-for-16 with a pair of doubles and a steal.
McDonough is slashing .348/.412/.478 with three doubles and a home run. He's driven in four runs, scored four more, and stolen two bases in 14 games. The 26-year-old has spent time in all three outfield spots, as well as second base, third base, and shortstop. He could be useful for the Red Sox at some point this season.
Brian Van Belle made one start and one relief appearance He combined for nine innings of one-run ball. BVB has a 2.92 ERA, .243 BAA, and 1.11 WHIP in 10 appearances (six starts). The right-handed pitcher has 31 strikeouts compared to just six walks in 37 innings.
Tyler Uberstine looked much better in his second start at the Triple-A level. The right-handed pitcher allowed five hits in five scoreless innings. He struck out seven batters without walking any.
Uberstine has a 3.40 ERA, .240 BAA, and 1.10 WHIP in eight starts between Double-A and Triple-A. He's struck out 47 batters compared to just eight walks in 39 2/3 innings.
Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A)
Blaze Jordan is making me look like a genius after another phenomenal week. Jordan went 10-for-23 with one double and two home runs. He drove in eight runs, scored four more, and even stole two bases.
Jordan is slashing .306/.401/.485 with nine doubles and five home runs. He's driven in 30 runs, scored 25 more, and stolen three bases. The 22-year-old has 19 walks compared to 17 strikeouts. Since the start of May, he's slashing .379/.481/.652. Please, get him out of Double-A.
Yordanny Monegro set a season-high with 10 strikeouts in his start on May 20. The right-handed pitcher allowed just three hits over five scoreless innings. He only walked one batter to go with those 10 strikeouts.
Monegro has a 2.05 ERA, .232 BAA, and 1.14 WHIP in seven appearances (six starts). He's struck out 47 batters compared to seven walks in 26 1/3 innings.
Connelly Early tied a career-high with nine strikeouts in his May 24 start. The left-handed pitcher surrendered one hit over five shutout innings. He walked four, which was a bit of an issue, but got out of trouble thanks to those nine strikeouts.
Early has a 1.55 ERA, .135 BAA, and 0.97 WHIP in seven appearances (four starts). He's struck out 47 batters compared to 15 walks in 29 innings.
David Sandlin had easily his best outing of the year, and it came in his first appearance out of the bullpen. The right-handed pitcher didn't allow a run on five hits in five innings. He struck out six batters without walking any.
Sandlin has a 4.50 ERA, .257 BAA, and 1.31 WHIP in eight appearances (seven starts). He has 37 strikeouts compared to 11 walks in 36 innings.
Isaac Coffey made his first start of the season. The right-handed pitcher missed the first two months due to injury but showed zero rust.
Coffey struck out four batters over three perfect innings. He was one of the better pitchers in the system last season and could be in Triple-A soon after he gets up to speed.
Greenville Drive (High-A)
Brooks Brannon got a special kind of hot over the last three games of the week. The right-handed hitting catcher/first baseman is slashing .233/.287/.346 with four doubles, one triple, and three home runs. He's driven in 17 runs, scored 16 more, and stolen three bases.
The numbers aren't spectacular, but the 21-year-old is clearly trending up. In his last three games, Brannon is 8-for-11 with one walk, two doubles, and one home run. He drove in six runs and scored two more.
Brannon hits the ball extremely hard and has always shown the ability to be an impact bat. Could this be the start of something special?
Franklin Arias is on a seven-game hitting streak. He is 15-for-30 with two doubles and a triple in that time. The right-handed hitting shortstop is slashing .360/.406/.517 since being promoted to High-A. He slashed .346/.407/.397 in Single-A this year.
Arias has 10 doubles, one triple, and two home runs between the two levels. He's driven in 26 runs, scored 26 more, and stolen seven bases.
When Mayer and (hopefully soon) Anthony graduate from prospect status, Arias will be the new Golden Boy. Red Sox fans should be excited about that.
Payton Tolle allowed one run on four hits in 4 2/3 innings on May 23. He struck out nine batters without walking any.
Tolle has a 4.13 ERA, .243 BAA, and 1.20 WHIP in seven starts. The left-handed pitcher has 49 strikeouts compared to seven walks in 28 1/3 innings. He's dominated in most of his starts and could be on his way to Double-A in around a month if he keeps this up.
Brandon Clarke gave up two hits in 4 1/3 scoreless innings on Saturday. He struck out five batters and walked one.
Clarke hasn't missed a beat since being promoted. He has a 1.88 ERA, .085 BAA, and 0.67 WHIP over seven starts between Single-A and High-A. The left-handed pitcher has 38 strikeouts compared to nine walks in 24 innings.
Yes, he's already been promoted once this year, but don't expect it to be the last.
Eduardo Rivera allowed one unearned run on zero hits in 4 2/3 innings on May 21. The left-handed pitcher walked two batters and struck out a career-high nine batters.
Rivera has a 0.83 ERA, .072 BAA, and 0.65 WHIP in six appearances (four starts). He's struck out 37 batters compared to nine walks in 21 2/3 innings. The 21-year-old could be a phenomenal find by the Red Sox, who picked him up as a free agent last season after he was released by the Athletics. Rivera possesses a fastball that can touch 99 MPH and has looked filthy this season.
Salem Red Sox (Single-A)
Freili Encarnacion is currently riding a five-game hitting streak. He's 8-for-19 with two doubles in that time. Most important is the two walks compared to two strikeouts, which has been an issue for him this season.
Encarnacion is slashing .291/.337/.527 with 13 doubles, one triple, and eight home runs. The right-handed hitting infielder has 28 RBI, 31 runs scored, and four steals.
Natanael Yuten desperately needed his last three games in which he went 5-for-11 with a home run, six RBI, and three steals.
The left-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .208/.286/.321 with six doubles and two home runs. He's driven in 17 runs, scored 17 more, and stolen three bases.
Justin Gonzales went 5-for-18 with a double and seven walks this week. The right-handed hitting outfielder is slashing .246/.394/.281 with two doubles in 15 games with Salem. He's driven in four runs, scored 10 more, and stolen two bases.
Gonzales has 11 walks compared to 14 strikeouts. The 18-year-old hasn't looked uncomfortable at all since being promoted.
Shea Sprague allowed one run on three hits in four innings in his lone appearance. The left-handed pitcher struck out four batters but did walk four as well.
Sprague has a 3.86 ERA, .269 BAA, and 1.35 WHIP in seven appearances (two starts). He has 35 strikeouts compared to nine walks in 30 1/3 innings. Following two rough outings to start his career, Sprague has been phenomenal in Single-A.
Jay Allmer made two appearances, allowing two runs on four hits over five innings. He struck out six batters and walked three.
The right-handed pitcher has a 1.54 ERA, .179 BAA, and 1.29 WHIP in five appearances. Allmer has eight strikeouts and eight walks in 11 2/3 innings. He went undrafted but has gotten off to a promising start in Single-A.
Noah Song tossed one perfect inning in his first Single-A rehab appearance (he made one FCL appearance and looked fantastic). The right-handed pitcher struck out two batters on just 12 pitches in his one inning of work.
Song will likely work his way up to Double-A quickly before taking a few appearances there and potentially getting back to Triple-A before the end of the year.