Fresh off making his major-league debut, Brayan Bello will represent the Red Sox in the All-Star Futures Game for the second consecutive year, Major League Baseball announced on Thursday.
Bello, 23, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the top pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system and the 44th-ranked prospect in all of baseball. The right-hander made his first career start against the Rays at Fenway Park on Wednesday night and allowed four runs on six hits, three walks, and two strikeouts over four innings in a 7-1 loss.
Of the 79 pitches Bello threw, 45 went for strikes. He averaged 97.1 mph and topped out at 97.7 mph with his four-seam fastball while also mixing in a high-80s changeup, a high-90s sinker, and a mid-80s slider, per Baseball Savant.
Prior to getting called up for the first time on Wednesday, Bello had posted a 2.81 ERA and 2.68 FIP to go along with 72 strikeouts to 21 walks over his last nine appearances (eight starts) and 51 1/3 innings pitched since earning a promotion from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester in May.
At last year’s Futures Game at Coors Field, Bello yielded one run on one hit in two-thirds of the inning. This time around at Dodger Stadium, the Dominican-born hurler will be joined by other top pitching prospects around the American League such as the Rays’ Taj Bradley, the Mariners’ Emerson Hancock, the Rangers’ Jack Leiter, and the Yankees’ Ken Waldichuk.
In the scenario that Bello remains with the Sox through the All-Star break, he would then be replaced on the American League’s roster by another player.
Along with Bello, versatile prospect Ceddanne Rafaela will also be representing the Red Sox in Los Angeles on July 16. This will be Rafaela’s first trip to the Futures Game. The 21-year-old has burst onto the scene this season and is currently ranked by Baseball America as the No. 22 prospect in Boston’s farm system.
Both Bello and Rafaela signed with the Red Sox as international free-agents coming out of the Dominican Republic and Curacao on July 2, 2017, respectively. They have never played for the same affiliate at the same time before.
(Picture of Brayan Bello: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
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