On this week’s installment of Podding the Red Sox: A BloggingtheRedSox.com Podcast, I am joined by Red Sox area scout Josh Labandeira, who covers Northern California for the team.
Labandeira, a former big-league infielder who played in seven games with the Montreal Expos in 2004, joined the Red Sox organization as an amateur scout in January 2015.
Among the topics Josh and I discussed are what it was like playing with future All-Stars like Ian Desmond, Ryan Zimmerman, and Ben Zobrist when they were just prospects, what led him to pursue a career in scouting once his playing days were done, his relationship with Red Sox amateur scouting director Paul Toboni, the benefits of scouting in California, and how the COVID-19 pandemic changed the way he scouts.
We also talked about the prospects he has helped the Red Sox sign over the years, including 2019 25th-round pick Karson Simas, 2021 sixth-round pick B.J. Vela, and — perhaps most significantly, 2020 first-round pick Nick Yorke.
There are plenty of great anecdotes about Yorke throughout this episode, which is available to listen to on iTunes and Spotify, among other platforms.
Thanks to Josh for taking some time out of his busy summer schedule to have a conversation with me.
And to the listners, thank you for listening and we will see you next time! Please make sure to subscribe and leave a five-star review if you can!
(Picture of Josh Labandeira: Jamie Squire/Getty Images)
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