Author: Brendan Campbell

Blogging about the Boston Red Sox since April '17. Also support Tottenham Hotspur.

Red Sox pitching prospect Hunter Dobbins knows how to control the zone

Which pitching prospect within the Red Sox organization possesses the best control? According to one prominent publication, it’s Hunter Dobbins.

The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, who compiles the Red Sox’ organizational rankings for Baseball America, recently identified Dobbins as having the best control of any Boston pitching prospect heading into 2024.

Dobbins ended the 2023 season ranked by Baseball America as the No. 30 prospect (ninth among pitchers) in Boston’s farm system after going 9-6 with a 3.67 ERA and 122 strikeouts to 31 walks in 20 appearances (19 starts) spanning 112 2/3 innings between High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland.

Though his season debut was delayed until early May, Dobbins fared quite well with Greenville. The 24-year-old right-hander forged a respectable 2.63 ERA (2.49 FIP) with 44 strikeouts to just five walks in seven starts (41 innings) for the Drive. He held opposing hitters to a .222 batting average against during that stretch and was then rewarded with a promotion to Portland in late June.

Facing more advanced competition in the Eastern League, Dobbins initially got off a to a rough start, struggling to a 5.70 ERA in his first seven outings (36 1/3 innings) for the Sea Dogs before settling in some as the calendar flipped from August to September. Altogether, the righty produced a 4.27 ERA (3.76 FIP) with 78 strikeouts to 26 walks in 13 appearances (12 starts, 71 2/3 innings) for Portland to close out the 2023 campaign.

One of eight Red Sox minor-leaguers to eclipse the century mark in total innings pitched this year, Dobbins led that group in walks per nine innings (2.48), walk rate (6.6 percent), and FIP (3.30). He also ranked second in xFIP (3.69) and WHIP (1.19), third in ERA, ground-ball rate (44.1 percent) and swinging-strike rate (14.9 percent), fourth in line-drive rate (19.1 percent), and fifth in strikeouts per nine innings (9.75), strikeout rate (26.1 percent), and batting average against (.240), per FanGraphs.

Dobbins was originally selected by Boston in the eighth round of the 2021 amateur draft out of Texas Tech. At the time he signed with the club for $197,500, though, the former Red Raider was recovering from Tommy John surgery that came as a result of a UCL injury suffered during a preseason scrimmage earlier that spring. As such, he did not make his professional debut until last June with Low-A Salem, where he pitched to a 5.22 ERA over 17 starts and 69 innings of work.

Now standing at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, Dobbins throws from a high-three-quarters arm slot and — according to his SoxProspects.com scouting report — operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 92-95 mph fastball that tops out at 97 mph, an 84-90 mph slider that “improved considerably” in 2023, an 81-85 mph splitter that evolved from a previously-used changeup, and a 76-82 mph curveball that features long, 12-to-6 break.

Dobbins, who does not turn 24 until next August, is projected to return to Portland’s rotation for the start of the 2024 season. Assuming he remains in the organization through the winter, the Lone Star State native could be a beneficiary of the Red Sox implementing new strategies when it comes to developing pitching under chief baseball officer Craig Breslow.

(Picture of Hunter Dobbins: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox infield prospect Franklin Arias has the makings of a ‘true shortstop’

The Red Sox had a number of young, international prospects make their respective professional debuts in the Dominican Summer League this past season, including infielder Franklin Arias.

Arias, who just turned 18 last month, signed with Boston for $525,000 coming out of Venezuela back in January. In May, Ben Badler of Baseball America noted that the Caracas native was a “high baseball IQ player with good rhythm at the plate” and “easy arm strength” on the field.

Nearly four months after putting pen to paper, Arias debuted for DSL Red Sox Red on June 18. The right-handed hitter immediately made his impact felt by going 4-for-5 out of the leadoff spot with two RBIs, one run scored, and one walk in an 11-9 victory over DSL Tigers 1.

Arias recorded two more four-hit games in June (the first of which he notched his first pro home run) before cooling off to the tune of a .191/.261/.262 slash line in 12 July contests. He then ended the year on a strong note by going 14-for-34 (.412) with five extra-base hits in August.

All told, Arias batted a stout .350/.440/.453 with nine doubles, one triple, one home run, 15 runs driven in, a team-high 32 runs scored, three stolen bases, 19 walks, and 14 strikeouts in 37 games (159 plate appearances) for Boston’s DSL Red affiliate. Going even deeper, Arias posted a 1.036 OPS against lefties and an .854 OPS against righties.

Among the 276 hitters in the Dominican Summer League who registered at least 150 plate appearances this season, Arias ranked fifth in strikeout rate (8.8 percent), fourth in batting average, 24th in on-base percentage, 57th in slugging percentage, 37th in OPS (.893), 57th in line-drive rate (23.3 percent), 12th in swinging-strike rate (14.8 percent), and 33rd in wRC+ (144), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Arias saw all of his playing time on the field this summer come at shortstop. The 5-foot-11, 170-pounder logged a team-leading 260 1/3 innings at the position, committing nine errors in 121 chances (.926 fielding percentage) while also turning 16 double plays.

Arias, who was not ranked by SoxProspects.com at the start of the minor-league season in April, is now regarded by the site as the No. 30 prospect in Boston’s farm system. Similarly enough, MLB Pipeline currently has Arias ranked 28th on its Red Sox-centered top prospects list.

The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, who compiles the Red Sox’ organizational rankings for Baseball America, unsurprisingly excluded Arias from his preseason top-10 list heading into 2024. He did, however, have encouraging things to say about Arias in a virtual chat with BA subscribers on Friday.

“Yeah, he’ll start to get attention next year,” Speier wrote of Arias. “There’s a strong consensus that he’s a true shortstop, with enough bat-to-ball that he should have some offensive value. His physical development will determine how much, but he has an unusually clear path to being a big-leaguer for someone who has yet to play in the United States.”

To that end, Arias is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to the States and play in the rookie-level Florida Complex League next season. As things stand now, he would seemingly be in a competition for playing time at shortstop with top prospect and fellow 2023 international signee Yoeilin Cespedes.

Of course, the Red Sox will more than likely find a way to accommodate both infielders so they each get plenty of at-bats in Fort Myers. Still, this can be viewed as a good problem to have if it means one or both of Arias and Cespedes get exposure at a new position next year.

(Picture of JetBlue Park: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox bring back Wyatt Mills on two-year minor-league deal

The Red Sox brought back injured reliever Wyatt Mills on a minor-league contract last week, per the club’s transactions log. It is a two-year deal that will cover the 2024 and 2025 seasons, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

Mills, who turns 29 in January, was non-tendered by Boston earlier this month after not pitching at all this past season. The right-hander was originally acquired from the Royals for relief prospect Jacob Wallace last December and was expected to compete for a spot in the Sox’ Opening Day bullpen out of spring training.

After allowing just one earned run and striking out 10 over six innings his first four appearances of the spring, Mills was shelled for four runs on four hits, one walk, and two hit batsman in the sixth inning of a 16-3 Grapefruit League loss to the Blue Jays in Dunedin on March 13. He was then shut down to to an elbow issue and opened the season on the injured list.

Despite trying to rehab the injury, Mills ultimately underwent Tommy John surgery in early July. As a result, he will miss most — if not all — of the 2024 season, but the structure of his new contract allows the Red Sox to oversee his rehab and the potential benefits that come with it once he is presumably healthy in 2025.

Mills, a former third-round draft pick of the Mariners out of Gonzaga in 2017, first broke in with Seattle in May 2021 and was then traded to Kansas City last June. Between the two stops, the Washington state native owns a 6.21 ERA (but much more encouraging 3.84 FIP) with 37 strikeouts to 20 walks in 38 relief appearances (42 innings) at the big-league level.

As MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith noted earlier this summer, the Red Sox were intrigued by Mills because of how his profile mirrors that of fellow side-winder John Schreiber. Like Schreiber, Mills throws from a lower arm angle and operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a four-seam fastball, a slider, and a sinker. He had also been planning on adding a changeup to his arsenal before going under the knife.

While proceeding with his rehab moving forward, Mills will remain in the Red Sox organization without occupying a spot on the club’s 40-man roster.

(Picture of Wyatt Mills: Doug Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox sign former Mariners pitching prospect Jorge Benitez to minor-league deal

The Red Sox have signed free agent left-hander Jorge Benitez to a minor-league contract, per MiLB Central on X/Twitter. The deal comes with an invitation to major-league spring training.

Benitez, 24, was originally selected by the Mariners in the ninth round of the 2017 amateur draft out of Leadership Christian Academy in Puerto Rico. The San Juan native signed with Seattle for $150,000 and made his professional debut in the rookie-level Arizona League that June.

After splitting the 2022 campaign between Low-A Modesto and High-A Everett, Benitez earned All-Star honors in the Arizona Fall League while forging a 2.08 ERA in nine appearances (13 innings) for the Peoria Javelinas. The lefty then broke camp with Everett this past spring before receiving a promotion to Double-A Arkansas in late April.

With the Travelers, Benitez posted a 2.14 ERA and 4.24 FIP with 74 strikeouts to 39 walks across 40 outings (59 innings) out of the bullpen. He also converted his lone save opportunity on the year while holding opposing hitters to a miniscule .190 batting average against.

Among the 92 Texas League pitchers who accrued 50 or more innings this season, Benitez ranked 17th in strikeouts per nine innings (11.29), 21st in strikeout rate (28.6 percent), fifth in opponents’ batting average, first in line-drive rate (14.4 percent), 16th in groundball rate (47 percent), 20th in swinging-strike rate (14.4 percent), third in ERA, and 29th in FIP, per FanGraphs.

While the punchout numbers and the like are certainly encouraging, Benitez also ranked 86th in walks per nine innings (5.95), 86th in walk rate (15.1 percent), and 59th in xFIP (4.92) when using those same parameters. That in itself suggests that the southpaw has had some issues when it comes to his command of the strike zone.

As Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser noted back in March, Benitez “annihilates left-handed batters with a 90-93 mph fastball from a low arm slot and a high-spin curveball in the mid 70s.” The 6-foot-2 hurler’s “tough angle also plays against righties and gives him a chance to be a low-leverage reliever.”

Benitez, who does not turn 25 until next June, is the second notable young lefty to sign a minors pact with the Red Sox this month, joining ex-Rockies prospect Helcris Olivarez. Like Olivarez, Benitez figures to provide Boston with high-upside pitching depth from the left side at Triple-A Worcester in 2024.

In the meantime, Benitez has been pitching for the Criollos de Caguas of the Puerto Rican Winter League this winter. Coming into play on Friday, he had yet to allow a run through his first six appearances (7 2/3 innings) of the season for the club.

(Picture of Jorge Benitez: John E. Moore III/Getty Images)

Former Red Sox infielder Deven Marrero shares spicy anecdote from 2017 about ghost peppers, sushi

Six years ago this past May, several members of the 2017 Red Sox went out for dinner in downtown Chicago after suffering a series-opening loss to the White Sox in a Memorial Day matinee at Guaranteed Rate Field.

The restaurant they went to, which based off a quick Google search is more than likely Sunda New Asian on West Illinois Street, serves a unique sushi dish called “The Gambler.” According to the establishment’s menu, this offering features spicy tuna, kani, cucumber, scallion, kampyo, avocado, and ghost pepper sambal, which is extremely spicy.

What makes this dish so risky? Well, as former Red Sox infielder Deven Marrero explained in a recent Instagram post, only two of the 12 pieces served actually contained the ghost pepper sambal. Since it was done randomly, though, each member of Boston’s contingent was at slight risk of consuming the peppery morsel.

“It was me, Mookie [Betts], [Jackie Bradley Jr.], [Chris Young], [Brock Holt], [David Price], [Joe Kelly], [Andrew Benintendi], and a couple other guys,” Marrero recalled. “The sushi restaurant that we were at had a Russian roulette-style game that you could play. They give you 12 pieces of sushi, but two of them both have ghost pepper in it.

“Ghost pepper is the third-spiciest pepper in the world,” he continued. “We played one round. Everybody was nervously chewing until Brock Star and C.Y. got up out of their chairs and started going crazy because they got it. We thought it was over and dodged a bullet, until Joe Kelly steps up and says, ‘Hey man, we’re a team. We all got to take one.’ We did. We had big plans, but that ended our night pretty much on the spot. Everyone spent the rest of the night chugging milk.”

The following afternoon, Marrero and Co. arrived at the ballpark and were expectedly feeling uneasy as a result of the previous night’s endeavors.

“The trainer was running low on [Pepto Bismol], because that’s all we all asked for,” said Marrero. “We were all kind of worried about how the game was going to go.”

As it turns out, though, the Red Sox lineup overshadowed Chris Sale’s return to the South Side that fateful Tuesday night by homering six times as part of 13-7 win over the White Sox. Marrero went 2-for-5 with a pair of early home runs and five RBIs, marking the first and only multi-homer game of his big-league career. Betts and Bradley Jr. also went deep, as did Xander Bogaerts and Mitch Moreland

“Sure enough, everyone who ate the ghost pepper homered that day,” Marrero said. “To this day, this group identifies itself as the Ghost Pepper Boys.”

Marrero, now 33, appeared in a career-high 71 games for the Red Sox in 2017 and batted .211/.259/.333 with nine doubles, four homers, 27 RBIs, 32 runs scored, five stolen bases, 12 walks, and 61 strikeouts. The former 24th overall pick out of Arizona State was then traded to the Diamondbacks for a player to be named later the following March.

That player turned out to be lefty reliever Josh Taylor, who debuted for Boston in May 2019. Marrero, meanwhile, spent the 2018 campaign with Arizona and then signed a minor-league deal with his hometown Marlins that December. The Miami-area native appeared in five games in 2019 and — after not playing at all in 2020 — got into 10 more games for the Fish in 2021 despite being designated for assignment on five separate occasions.

Last April, Marrero signed with the Long Island Ducks of the independent Atlantic League. He spent two months with the club before joining the Mets organization on a minors pact in late June. The right-handed hitter was called up by New York twice, but he received just six plate appearances before again being designated and outrighted off the 40-man roster in September. He elected free agency shortly thereafter but did not sign with a team at any point during the 2023 season.

(Picture of Deven Marrero: Quinn Harris/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox sign former Rockies pitching prospect Helcris Olivarez to minor-league deal

The Red Sox have signed former Rockies pitching prospect Helcris Olivarez to a minor-league contract, per the club’s transactions log. The deal comes with an invitation to major-league spring training, according to Ari Alexander of Houston’s KPRC 2.

Olivarez, 23, spent the first seven-plus years of his professional career in the Rockies organization after originally signing with the club for $77,000 as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in August 2016. The left-hander debuted in the Dominican Summer League the following June and spent parts of three seasons in rookie ball through the end of 2019.

While the 2020 minor-league season was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Olivarez impressed at Colorado’s alternate training site and fall instructional league. The Rockies then added the lefty to their 40-man roster that November in order to protect him from the Rule 5 Draft.

Olivarez came into the 2021 campaign ranked by Baseball America as the No. 11 prospect in Colorado’s farm system. But he struggled in his first taste of full-season ball, posting a 6.05 ERA (5.71 FIP) with 112 strikeouts to 68 walks in 22 appearances (21 starts) spanning 99 2/3 innings of work for High-A Spokane. As such, he fell four spots to No. 15 in the system entering 2022.

At that time, Baseball America described Olivarez’s raw stuff as “electric,” noting that the 6-foot-2, 192-pounder “has easy fastball velocity up to 100 mph and usually sits in the high 90s. But his command is questionable and his off-speed pitches need honing, with an average changeup and a curveball that can be flat. Cleaning up and simplifying his delivery will help him achieve the release-point consistency needed to become a bona fide starter. He already creates uncomfortable at-bats from either side, but to complement his plus heat, Olivarez needs to keep a better lid on his emotions on the mound.”

Unfortunately, Olivarez ran into injury troubles last year. He opened the season on Double-A Albuquerque’s injured list and was then transferred to the Rockies’ 60-day injured list with a left shoulder strain in late May. After making one two-inning rehab start for Colorado’s Arizona Complex League affiliate in mid-July, Olivarez was ultimately shut down and later underwent major shoulder capsule surgery.

The Rockies waived and outrighted Olivarez off their 40-man roster right around this time a year ago. He remained in the organization but did not pitch in any organized games this past season. As noted by MLB.com’s Thomas Harding, though, Olivarez returned to action this fall by pitching in a couple of instructional league games and impressed while flashing 93-96 mph with his fastball.

Olivarez, who does not turn 24 until next August, provides the pitching-needy Red Sox with an intriguing left-handed arm who was once viewed as a standout prospect. It remains to be seen if the club views Olivarez as a starter or reliever moving forward, but the southpaw nonetheless possesses tantalizing stuff and — if healthy — could make his impact felt at the big-league level next season.

(Picture of Helcris Olivarez: Rob Leiter/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Rafael Devers recognized in AL MVP voting

Red Sox third baseman Rafael Devers finished tied for 17th in 2023 American League MVP voting, as was revealed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on MLB Network earlier Thursday evening.

Devers received one ninth-place vote from Paul Hoynes of Cleveland.com for a total of two points. The 27-year-old slugger was one of 23 players to net at least one vote and finished in a four-way tie for 17th place with the Mariners’ Cal Raleigh, the Rays’ Isaac Paredes, and the Twins’ Sonny Gray.

Angels two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani, who is now a free agent, won the award unanimously for the second time in three years. Rangers teammates Corey Seager and Marcus Semien finished second and third, respectively. In the National League, former Red Sox star Mookie Betts and Dodgers teammate Freddie Freeman were the runners-up behind the Braves’ Ronald Acuna Jr., who also won unanimously as a result of receiving all 30 first-place votes.

Devers, meanwhile, netted at least one MVP vote for the third straight season and for the fourth time in the last five years dating back to 2019. Much like reliever Chris Martin the AL Cy Young race, Devers was the lone Red Sox player to receive a vote on Thursday. That puts an end to an eight-year run (2015-2022) in which Boston had two or more representatives on the ballot.

By his own admission, the 2023 campaign can be described as “just average” for Devers. Still, the left-handed hitter paced the Red Sox lineup by batting .271/.351/.500 with 34 doubles, a team-high 33 home runs, 100 RBIs, and 90 runs scored, five stolen bases, 62 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 153 games (656 plate appearances) en route to winning his second career Silver Slugger Award.

Among qualified hitters in the American League this past season, Devers ranked 16th in hits (157), 10th in extra-base hits (67), tied for eighth in total bases (290), 15th in doubles, tied for fourth in homers and runs driven in, tied for 13th in runs scored, 17th in batting average, 13th in on-base percentage, seventh in slugging percentage and OPS (.851), and 10th in isolated power (.229), per MLB.com’s leaderboards.

According to Baseball Savant, Devers finished in the 98th percentile among all big-leaguers in hard-hit rate (55.1 percent) this year. He also ranked in the 96th percentile in expected slugging percentage (.536), the 95th percentile in average exit velocity (93.1 mph), the 94th percentile in expected weighted on-base average (.380), the 87th percentile in expected batting average (.280), and the 84th percentile in barrel rate (12.7 percent).

While Devers was among the best when it came to making loud contact in 2023, his defense at the hot corner lagged far behind. In the process of logging 1,293 innings at third base, the 6-foot, 235-pounder committed a team-leading 19 errors in 370 chances. He accrued -9 defensive runs saved and was worth -9 outs above average, but it does not appear as though the Red Sox will have him move off the position anytime soon.

Now a veteran of seven major-league seasons, Devers has come a long way since signing with the Red Sox for $1.5 million as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic a little more than a decade ago. The two-time All-Star, of course, inked a 10-year, $313.5 million contract extension in January that will go into effect in 2024.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox reliever Chris Martin finishes 12th in AL Cy Young voting

In somewhat surprising fashion, Red Sox reliever Chris Martin finished 12th in 2023 American League Cy Young Award voting. The results were revealed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on MLB Network earlier Wednesday evening.

Martin received one fifth-place vote from Paul Sullivan of the Chicago Tribune for a total of one point. The veteran right-hander placed last in a field of 12, finishing behind the likes of Yankees ace Gerrit Cole, who won the award unanimously, runner-up Sonny Gray of the Twins, and Kevin Gausman of the Blue Jays.

It goes without saying that Martin enjoyed a dominant first season in Boston after signing a two-year, $17.5 million deal with the club he began his professional career with last December. The 37-year-old hurler initially got off to a so-so start and even missed some time in April due to right shoulder inflammation, but he did not miss a beat upon returning to action in early May.

In 55 total relief appearances, which ranked second on the Red Sox behind Josh Winckowski’s 59, Martin posted a miniscule 1.05 ERA and 2.44 FIP with 46 strikeouts to just eight walks over 51 1/3 innings of work in which he held opposing hitters to a .237 batting average against.

With closer Kenley Jansen locked in for the ninth most nights, Martin emerged as one of manager Alex Cora’s most-trusted setup men. All 55 of his outings came in the seventh inning or later as he recorded three saves in four opportunities while leading the club in holds with 23.

Before being shut down with a viral infection in late September, Martin had gone 20 straight appearances (19 innings) without allowing an earned run dating back to July 30. Altogether, the native Texan put up zeroes in all but five of his outings for the Red Sox this year.

Among the 66 relievers in the American League who reached the 50-inning threshold this season, Martin ranked second in walks per nine innings (1.40), second in walk rate (4.0 percent), eighth in WHIP (1.03), first in left on base percentage (93.6 percent), second in barrel rate (2.1 percent), first in ERA, third in FIP, and fifth in xFIP (2.90), per FanGraphs.

Martin — who is up for All-MLB consideration — was the only Red Sox pitcher to receive a Cy Young vote on Wednesday, becoming the first to accomplish that feat since Nathan Eovaldi finished fourth in the race two years ago. He also joins Craig Kimbrel (2017) and Koji Uehara (2013) as notable Boston relievers to net votes for the award within the last decade.

(Picture of Chris Martin: Paul Rutherford/Getty Images)

Red Sox add top pitching prospects Wikelman Gonzalez, Luis Perales to 40-man roster ahead of Rule 5 deadline

The Red Sox added two of their top pitching prospects to the 40-man roster on Tuesday in order to protect them from being available in next month’s Rule 5 Draft.

Boston selected the contracts of right-handers Wikelman Gonzalez and Luis Perales, bringing its 40-man roster up to 39 players. Even with that one vacant spot, the club somewhat surprisingly decided against adding another eligible top pitching prospect in left-hander Shane Drohan.

Gonzalez, 21, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 8 prospect in the Sox’ farm system, which ranks second among pitchers in the organization behind only Perales. The Venezuelan-born righty split the 2023 season between High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland, posting a 3.96 ERA and 3.33 FIP with 168 strikeouts to 70 walks in 25 starts spanning 111 1/3 innings of work.

After closing out the 2022 campaign in Greenville, Gonzalez returned to the Drive this spring but struggled out of the gate by allowing 15 earned runs over 8 2/3 innings in his first four starts of the year. He then turned a corner as the calendar flipped from April to May, forging a 3.48 ERA across his next 11 outings (54 1/3 innings) before earning a promotion to Portland on July 14.

In his first start with the Sea Dogs on July 16, Gonzalez fanned nine of the 23 batters he faced over six scoreless innings on the road against the Reading Fightin Phils. Six days later, he struck out 10 more while being responsible for the first six innings of a combined no-hitter against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Hadlock Field.

All told, Gonzalez produced a 2.42 ERA and 3.07 FIP with 63 strikeouts to 28 walks in his final 10 starts (48 1/3 innings) of the season for Portland. He put up those numbers while holding opposing hitters to a miniscule .162 batting average against.

Recognized as Boston’s 2023 Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year in September, Gonzalez led all qualified Red Sox minor-leaguers in strikeouts, strikeouts per nine innings (13.58), strikeout rate (35.2 percent), and batting average against (.189). On the flip side of that, though, the 6-foot, 167-pounder also posted a suboptimal 14.7 percent walk rate.

Gonzalez originally signed with the Red Sox for $250,000 as an international free agent coming out of Maracay in July 2018. He now throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 94-96 mph fastball that tops out at 97 mph, a 75-79 mph curveball that features 11-to-5 break, an 84-88 mph changeup, and an 84-88 mph curveball, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

Perales, Boston’s No. 7 overall prospect according to Baseball America, also split the 2023 season between two levels. The 20-year-old righty broke camp this spring with Low-A Salem and pitched to a 3.21 ERA (3.16 FIP) with 71 strikeouts to 28 walks in 13 starts (53 1/3 innings) for the Red Sox. He then made the jump to Greenville at the same time Gonzalez moved up to Portland during the All-Star break in July.

In eight starts for the Drive, Perales posted a 4.95 ERA (6.07 FIP) to go along with 44 strikeouts to 22 walks over 36 1/3 innings in which opponents batted .275 against him. Altogether, Perales finished the year with a 3.91 ERA (4.34 FIP) and 115 strikeouts to 50 walks across 21 total starts (89 2/3 innings) between Salem and Greenville.

Like Gonzalez, Perales also hails from Venezuela. The Guacara native signed with Boston for $75,000 as an international free agent in July 2019 and has now put himself in a position where he can be viewed as arguably the No. 1 pitching prospect in the organization.

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 160 pounds, Perales throws from a high three-quarters arm slot and works with five different pitches: a 94-96 mph fastball that can reach 99 mph, an 88-91 mph cutter that features short, horizontal break, an 81-85 mph slider, and an 85-87 mph changeup, according to his SoxProspects.com scouting report. In similar fashion to Gonzalez, much of Perales’ development moving forward hinges on if he can improve his control/command of the strike zone.

Gonzalez, who turns 22 in March, is projected to return to Portland for the start of the 2024 minor-league season. Perales, who turns 21 in April, is expected to return to Greenville next spring.

Drohan, meanwhile, looked like a sure bet to join Gonzalez and Perales on Boston’s 40-man roster just a few months ago. The 24-year-old lefty got off to a fantastic start this season, putting up a 1.32 ERA (2.42 FIP) with 36 strikeouts to nine walks in six starts (34 innings) for Portland before receiving a promotion to Triple-A Worcester in mid-May.

With the WooSox, though, Drohan struggled mightily to the tune of a 6.47 ERA (6.55 FIP) and 93 strikeouts to 63 walks over 21 outings (19 starts) spanning 89 innings. It did not help that his both his stuff and command faded as the year progressed and that obviously created some question marks regarding his upside.

Drohan, the No. 3 pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system behind Perales and Gonzalez, was selected by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the COVID-shortened 2020 draft out of Florida State. The Fort Lauderdale native signed with the club for $600,000.

Now that he has been left unprotected, Drohan — who turns 25 in January — could be scooped up by another team for $100,000 in December’s Rule 5 Draft. That club would then need to carry the 6-foot-3, 195-pound southpaw on their active roster for the entirety of the 2024 season (barring an injury) or would otherwise have to place him on outright waivers and then offer him back to the Red Sox for $50,000 should he clear.

The Red Sox, of course, lost three pitchers in last year’s Rule 5 Draft as Thad Ward (Nationals), Noah Song (Phillies), and Andrew Politi (Orioles) were all nabbed by other teams. Of those three, though, Ward was the only one to not be offered back to Boston at any point this past season.

(Picture of Wikelman Gonzalez: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Triston Casas finishes third in AL Rookie of the Year voting; Masataka Yoshida also receives votes

Red Sox first baseman Triston Casas and outfielder Masataka Yoshida respectively finished third and sixth in 2023 American League Rookie of the Year voting. The results were revealed by the Baseball Writers’ Association of America on MLB Network earlier Monday evening.

Casas placed third behind Orioles infielder Gunnar Henderson — who won the award unanimously after securing all 30 first-place votes — and Guardians right-hander Tanner Bibee by receiving six second-place votes and seven third-place votes for a total of 25 points. Yoshida, meanwhile, placed sixth behind Rangers third baseman Josh Jung and Astros catcher Yainer Diaz by netting three third-place votes for three points. Twins second baseman Edouard Julien (two points) and Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (one point) rounded out the ballot.

Casas, who last week became the first Red Sox player since Andrew Benintendi in 2017 to be recognized as a Rookie of the Year finalist, put together a strong first full season in the major-leagues after not initially getting off to the best of starts.

Having first debuted at the big-league level last September, Casas unsurprisingly made Boston’s Opening Day roster out of spring training this past March. But the former first-round pick-turned-top prospect struggled at the plate out of the gate and, by the end of April, found himself batting just .133/.283/.293 with three home runs and eight RBIs through his first 25 games of the year.

Despite those early struggles, the Red Sox stuck with Casas, who then rewarded the club for doing so by turning a corner offensively. As the calendar flipped from April to May, the 23-year-old slugger steadily raised his OPS and, after a solid showing in June, broke out to the tune of a ridiculous .349/.442/.758 slash line with seven home runs and 13 RBIs in 21 July contests to take home American League Rookie of the Month honors.

Even as the Red Sox began to fall out of contention in the AL East over the summer, Casas remained a force to be reckoned with in the batter’s box. From August 1 through September 13, the left-handed hitter batted .284/.389/.508 with eight home runs and 25 RBIs in 39 games. He then missed the final two-plus weeks of the season after being shut down with right shoulder inflammation.

Still, despite the disappointing finish, Casas managed to forge one of the more impressive Red Sox rookie seasons in recent memory by slashing a stout .263/.367/.490 with 21 doubles, two triples, 24 home runs, 65 RBIs, 66 runs scored, 70 walks, and 126 strikeouts over 132 total games (502 plate appearances). Altogether, he led Boston in walks, on-base percentage, and OPS (.856) while finishing second in homers and fourth in runs driven in.

Among qualified rookies in the junior circuit this season, Casas ranked second in homers, fourth in RBIs, fourth in runs scored, second in walks, seventh in batting average, third in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging percentage, second in OPS, fifth in isolated power (.226) and third in walk rate (13.9 percent), per MLB.com’s leaderboards.

On the other side of the ball, all but two of Casas’ 117 starts this year came at first base. The burly 6-foot-5, 244-pounder committed only five errors in 958 chances while logging 1,037 innings at first. In spite of the high fielding percentage, though, Casas graded poorly in other areas such as defensive runs saved (-4) and outs above average (-10). That likely did not help his case when it came to award voting.

Regardless of the defensive metrics, the 2023 campaign still served as an important stepping stone for Casas in which he established himself as the Red Sox’ first baseman of the future. To that end, Casas — who turns 24 in January — is a prime candidate for a pre-arbitration contract extension depending on how things shake out for Boston this winter.

Yoshida, on the other hand, spent the first seven years of his professional career in Japan before signing a five-year, $90 million contract with the Red Sox in December. As a major-league rookie this season, the left-handed hitting 30-year-old batted .289/.338/.445 with 33 doubles, three triples, 15 home runs, 72 RBIs, 71 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 34 walks, and 81 strikeouts in 140 games spanning 580 trips to the plate.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)