Red Sox catching prospect Franklin Primera has been named the Carolina League Player of the Week for the week of August 10-16, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.
Primera appeared in all six of Low-A Salem’s road games against Delmarva this past week, going 9-for-19 (.474) with one double, one triple, one home run, three RBIs, six runs scored, one stolen base, five walks, and one strikeout. The 19-year-old recorded two hits in Tuesday’s series opener, tripled in a four-hit effort on Wednesday, doubled on Friday, homered on Saturday, and scored three times on Sunday.
Since arriving at Salem from the rookie-level Florida Complex League in late June, Primera has not missed a beat. In his first taste of full-season ball, the right-handed hitter is batting .333/.474/.509 with eight doubles, one triple, three home runs, 12 RBIs, 28 runs scored, one stolen base, 19 walks, and 17 strikeouts over 31 games (137 plate appearances) for the RidgeYaks.
Among 171 hitters who have logged at least 130 plate appearances in the Carolina League this year, Primera ranks first in on-base percentage, third in wOBA (.467), fourth in batting average and wRC+ (165), fifth in OPS (.983), ninth in strikeout rate (12.4%), 12th in slugging percentage, 27th in swinging-strike rate (8.3%), 48th in isolated power (.176), and 75th in walk rate (13.9%), according to FanGraphs.
Overall, Primera is slashing a stout .379/.511/.611 with 14 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 41 RBIs, 58 runs scored, five stolen bases, 41 walks, and 30 strikeouts in 63 games (271 plate appearances) between the FCL and Salem this season, his first in the United States. He has posted a .390/.523/.663 line in 222 plate appearances against right-handed pitching and a .333/.458/.385 line in 49 plate appearances against left-handed pitching across the two levels.
Between his stops in the FCL and Salem, Primera has unsurprisingly seen the majority of his playing time come at the catching position. In 41 total starts behind the plate, the 6-foot, 230-pound backstop has allowed seven passed balls and thrown out 25 of 146 would-be base stealers. He has also made eight starts at first base (all in the FCL, where he committed one error in 50 chances) and 13 starts at DH.
A native of Venezuela, Primera originally signed with the Red Sox for $10,000 as an international free agent in September 2024. He made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League last season and shined, earning DSL All-Star and All-Star Game Co-MVP recognition. This year, he has shown no signs of slowing down even while acclimating to life stateside, as evidenced by his taking home FCL Player of the Month honors for June and reaching Salem as a teenager.
Primera, who turned 19 in June, is currently ranked by Baseball America as Boston’s No. 3 prospect behind only infielder Franklin Arias and outfielder Justin Gonzales. The publication also identified Primera as the top talent to play in the Florida Complex League this season, tabbing him as the circuit’s “purest hitter” thanks to “improved bat speed and sound swing decisions.”
“Defensively,” Baseball America’s Josh Norris wrote last month, “evaluators are bearish on Primera’s chances to stick behind the dish. He’s already big and physical, and will need to stay on top of his conditioning as he ages. For now, he has the arm strength for the position but will need to work on most of the rest of the required skills, including receiving, game-calling, footwork, and blocking.”
Primera is the second Salem position player to earn a weekly award this season, joining outfielder Enddy Azocar, who was dealt to the Orioles as part of the Adley Rutschman trade earlier this month. With the minor league season winding down, it will be interesting to see if the Red Sox could consider promoting Primera to High-A Greenville for the stretch run.
(Picture of Franklin Primera: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)
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