Red Sox bring back hard-throwing righty Robert Stock on minor-league deal

The Red Sox have agreed to bring back right-hander Robert Stock on a minor-league contract that includes an invitation to major-league spring training, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. The agreement was first reported by Stock’s winter ball team in Mexico, the Naranjeros de Hermosillo, who previously announced that he was traveling to the United States for a physical exam.

Stock, 35, appeared in 10 games for the Red Sox during the COVID-shortened 2020 season. In that span, the hard-throwing righty allowed nine runs (seven earned) on 16 hits, 10 walks, and 14 strikeouts over 13 1/3 innings of relief in which opposing hitters batted .320 against him. He averaged 96.8 mph on his fastball that year, which ranked in the 93rd percentile in all of baseball, per Baseball Savant.

A former 2009 second-round draft pick out of Southern California, Stock debuted in 2018. He has since forged a 4.71 ERA (3.97 FIP) with 76 strikeouts to 40 walks in 55 appearances (72 2/3 innings) for four teams (Padres, Red Sox, Cubs, and Mets) over parts of four seasons. He made three starts between Chicago and New York in 2021 but has not seen any big-league action since then.

Stock spent all of 2022 with the Doosan Bears of the Korea Baseball Organization and split the 2023 campaign between the Brewers’ Triple-A affiliate in Nashville and the Atlantic League’s Long Island Ducks. He signed on with Tecolotes de los Dos Laredos of the Mexican League for the 2024 season and produced a 3.38 ERA with 104 strikeouts to 41 walks in 19 starts (98 2/3 innings). He then latched on with Hermosillo and became the first in team history to win the pitching triple crown after leading the Mexican Pacific League in wins (10), ERA (1.60), and strikeouts (78) this winter.

Stock figures to provide the Red Sox with versatile pitching depth in the upper minors to open the 2025 season. He joins the likes of Austin Adams, Isaiah Campbell, Noah Davis, Michael Fulmer, Bryan Mata, and Wyatt Mills as non-roster pitchers who will be in Fort Myers for camp, which begins next month.

(Picture of Robert Stock: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Johanfran Garcia emerges as organization’s top catching prospect following Kyle Teel trade

After the Red Sox included Kyle Teel in the five-player trade that netted them frontline starter Garrett Crochet from the White Sox last month, Johanfran Garcia emerged as the highest-ranked catching prospect in the organization heading into 2025.

Garcia got off to a blazing hot start at the plate in 2024 but saw his season come to an abrupt end on May 1 when he was carted off the field at Low-A Salem after tearing the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his right knee while running the bases. The then-19-year-old was placed on the full-season injured list on May 8 and underwent season-ending surgery shortly thereafter.

Garcia, who turned 20 in December, had been one of the top performers in the lower minors before suffering the injury. In 14 games for Salem (Boston’s Carolina League affiliate), the right-handed hitter batted a stout .385/.467/.596 with five doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, five runs scored, six walks, and 15 strikeouts over 60 plate appearances.

At season’s end, Garcia was one of 254 hitters who made at least 60 trips to the plate in the Carolina League. Among those 254, he ranked first in batting average, OPS (1.063), wOBA (.498), and wRC+ (207), second in slugging percentage, fourth in on-base percentage, eighth in line-drive rate (32.4 percent), and 12th in isolated power (.212), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Garcia unsurprisingly saw all of his playing time on the field in 2024 come at catcher. The 5-foot-11, 196-pound backstop logged 85 innings behind the plate for Salem, allowing two passed balls and throwing out six of 32 potential base stealers. He also made four starts at DH and has past experience at first base.

The younger brother of Red Sox outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia (who was added to the 40-man roster in November), Johanfran originally signed with Boston for $850,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in January 2022. The Valencia native is currently regarded by MLB Pipeline as the organization’s No. 17 prospect, eight spots below his older brother.

When making a recent appearance on Boston Sports Entertainment Network’s ‘The Pesky Podcast,’ Garcia (through interpreter and former Red Sox player development coach Fabian Castorena) said that he is feeling “much better now” and “is working to get back to the field.” In terms of where he is at in the rehab process with his right knee, he said that he is “about 65 to 70 percent ready to go.”

Since he is coming off major knee surgery and spent much of this past year rehabbing in Fort Myers, the Red Sox will likely exercise caution when it comes to Garcia’s status leading into the start of spring training next month. With that being said, he is projected by SoxProspects.com (who has him ranked 15th in the system) to open the 2025 season at High-A Greenville.

(Picture of Johanfran Garcia: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

How did Red Sox relief prospect Isaac Stebens fare in 2024?

Despite dealing with his fair share of command and control issues throughout the year, Red Sox pitching prospect Isaac Stebens still turned in a solid 2024 season.

Stebens, who just turned 23 last month, was selected by the Red Sox in the 16th round of the 2023 draft out of Oklahoma State. The Stillwater native received an at-slot $150,000 signing bonus that July but did not pitch for a minor-league affiliate after putting pen to paper. He instead had to wait until last April to make his professional debut.

Stebens opened the 2024 campaign at Low-A Salem but was not there long. The right-hander allowed just three runs (one earned) on seven hits, four walks, and 14 strikeouts in six relief appearances (11 innings) before receiving a promotion to High-A Greenville on April 25.

In 29 outings for Greenville, Stebens posted a 3.68 ERA (3.77 FIP) with 73 strikeouts to 31 walks over 51 1/3 innings of relief in which opposing hitters batted .228 against him. That includes a 0.53 ERA (2.62 FIP) in his final 12 appearances (17 innings) of the season dating back to July 14.

Altogether, Stebens forged a 3.18 ERA (3.58 FIP) with 87 strikeouts to 35 walks in 35 total relief appearances (62 1/3 innings) between Salem and Greenville last year. Among 39 Red Sox minor-leaguers who threw at least 60 innings, Stebens ranked third in strikeout rate (31.3 percent), fourth in strikeouts per nine innings (12.56), 11th in FIP, 12th in ERA, 14th in xFIP (3.79), and 17th in batting average against (.220). On the opposite end of the spectrum, he ranked 33rd in walk rate (12.6 percent) and 34th in walks per nine innings (2.49), per FanGraphs.

Listed at 6-foot and 194 pounds, Stebens featured four pitches last season, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report. Throwing from a low three-quarters arm slot, the righty sat between 92-94 mph and topped out at 95 mph with his fastball while also mixing in an 83-84 mph slider, a 78-80 mph curveball, and an 84-86 mph changeup.

As he recently explained to hosts Andrew Parker and Chris Henrique on Beyond The Monster’s ‘To the Show We Go’ podcast, Stebens implemented three new pitches into his arsenal last year after primarily relying on his fastball at Oklahoma State. Because of that, the 2024 season served as somewhat of an adjustment period for him.

“I wouldn’t say it was seamless. It was definitely a grind,” Stebens said. “There was no backlash on my part. I was all about it. I knew it was what needed to be done. But going from throwing one pitch that’s pretty good to adding three more, it definitely increased my walk rate just because I didn’t know how to control those yet. So we’re still learning those. Hopefully, having a long career, I’m going to nail some of those things down.

“I was able to strike out more in less innings than I did at OSU [in 2023], so a lot of good things,” he continued. “But it was definitely a grind learning those new pitches, just utilizing them more than anything. I had three of the four I have now going into the year but the usage rate went from 85 percent fastball and 10 percent slider and five percent changeup to about 40-20-20, so it was a big difference to split up that 80 percent.”

Stebens is not currently regarded by publications such as Baseball America or MLB Pipeline as one of the top pitching prospects in Boston’s farm system. SoxProspects.com projects him to return to Greenville for the start of the upcoming season, though he made clear in his conversation with Parker and Henrique that he, at the very least, wants to make it to Double-A Portland before the end of 2025.

(Picture of Isaac Stebens: Gwinn Davis/Greenville Drive)

Who is Yosander Asencio? Switch-hitting Red Sox OF prospect posted .834 OPS in 2024 Florida Complex League

When searching for under-the-radar Red Sox prospects who could break out to some degree in 2025, infielder-turned-outfielder Yosander Asencio is one name that may be worth monitoring.

Not to be confused with Vladimir Asencio, Boston’s top international signing last winter, Yosander originally signed with the Red Sox for $85,000 as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in January 2022. The Bajos de Haina native spent the first two seasons of his professional career in the Dominican Summer League, where he slashed .295/.458/.415 over 78 total games (308 plate appearances), before making his stateside debut in 2024.

Asencio, who turned 20 in November, enjoyed a solid season offensively in the Florida Complex League. The switch-hitter batted .271/.393/.441 with seven doubles, two triples, three home runs (the first three of his pro career), 27 RBIs, 23 runs scored, six stolen bases, 25 walks, and 48 strikeouts in 43 games (145 plate appearances) for the FCL Red Sox. That includes a .255/.377/.434 line from the left side of the plate and a .417/.533/.500 line from the right side.

Among the 82 FCL hitters who made at least 140 trips to the plate last year, Asencio ranked 14th in isolated power (.169), 17th in walk rate (17.2 percent), 20th in slugging percentage, 21st in OPS (.834), 22nd in wOBA (.403) and wRC+ (128), 25th in speed score (7.5), 28th in on-base percentage, and 33rd in batting average. Conversely, he posted the fifth-highest swinging-strike rate (21.8 percent) and ninth-highest strikeout rate (33.1 percent), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Asencio saw playing time at all three outfield positions with Boston’s FCL affiliate. The 5-foot-11, 160-pounder (listed height and weight) logged a team-leading 116 2/3 innings in left, 90 1/3 innings in right, and 35 innings in center. He recorded three outfield assists without committing a single error in 53 total chances.

Asencio is not currently regarded by publications such as Baseball America or MLB Pipeline as one of the top prospects in Boston’s farm system. However, SoxProspects.com projects him to open the 2025 season at Low-A Salem, which would represent an opportunity for him to get his name out there more if he continues to produce the way he has been.

(Picture of Yosander Asencio: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox two-way prospect identified as potential 2025 breakout candidate

The Red Sox have several prospects who could break out in 2025, including those who have yet to make their professional debuts.

Conrad Cason, the club’s eighth-round selection in last summer’s draft, is one such name to watch. MLB.com’s Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo, and Sam Dykstra recently identified the two-way talent as a potential breakout candidate within Boston’s farm system this year.

Cason, 18, was taken with the 237th overall pick in the 2024 draft out of Greater Atlanta Christian School. The Georgia native forwent his commitment to Mississippi State by signing with the Red Sox for a well over-slot $1.25 million. However, he did not play for one of Boston’s minor-league affiliates after putting pen to paper at Fenway Park on July 29.

To cap off his high school career at Greater Atlanta Christian, Cason shined as both a pitcher and a shortstop en route to earning Gatorade Player of the Year honors in Georgia last spring. On the mound, the right-hander posted a 0.48 ERA with 99 strikeouts over 43 2/3 innings. At the plate, the right-handed hitter batted .364/.519/.545 with three home runs, 28 RBIs, 32 runs scored, and 16 stolen bases.

As a senior, Cason flashed a three-pitch mix that consisted of a 93-95 mph fastball that reached 97-98 mph, a low-80s split-grip changeup, and a tight slider with similar velocity, per his MLB.com scouting report. The athletic 6-foot-1, 190-pounder also possesses solid speed and power potential, which he put on display while showcasing his abilities as a shortstop at the MLB Draft Combine.

Though most teams preferred him as a pitcher during the pre-draft process, the Red Sox will provide Cason with an avenue to develop on both sides of the ball at the outset of his pro career. Devin Pearson, Boston’s director of amateur scouting, made that much clear when speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) shortly after Cason was drafted.

“Our group was actually a little bit split on it. We had some guys that liked him better as a pitcher and other guys that liked him better as a hitter,” Pearson said. “On both sides, you have an elite athlete who can throw 100 mph and hit balls very far. We will take that bet and see where he best fits but we’re going to develop him as a two-way player.”

Cason, who does not turn 19 until August, comes into the new year ranked by MLB Pipeline as the No. 15 prospect in Boston’s farm system. He is currently projected by SoxProspects.com (which has him ranked 16th) to open the 2025 minor-league season at Low-A Salem. How his workload is managed will presumably come into focus closer to Opening Day.

(Picture of Conrad Cason via his Instagram)

Why Juan Valera took the biggest leap of any Red Sox pitching prospect in 2024

The case can be made that Juan Valera took the biggest leap of any Red Sox pitching prospect in 2024.

Originally signed for $45,000 as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in April 2023, Valera posted a 5.93 ERA (4.67 FIP) over 27 1/3 innings as part of his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League last year. As such, the young right-hander came into the 2024 season with very little fanfare.

Transitioning from the Dominican Summer League to the Florida Complex League, Valera impressed out of the gate in his stateside debut. The 18-year-old forged a 1.79 ERA (3.25 FIP) with 40 strikeouts to 14 walks in 11 outings (nine starts) spanning 40 1/3 innings for the FCL Red Sox. He held opposing hitters to a .128 batting average and leveraged his performance into a promotion to Low-A Salem in late July.

The trade deadline passed shortly thereafter, but not before Valera saw three teammates (fellow teenage righties Gilberto Batista, Ovis Portes, and Yeferson Vargas) get moved elsewhere. The Red Sox, however, elected to hold onto Valera, who proceeded to post a 2.35 ERA (3.54 FIP) with 28 strikeouts to 14 walks in seven starts (23 innings) for Salem to close out the year. Opposing hitters in the Carolina League batted just .120 against him in that stretch.

Altogether, Valera pitched to a 1.99 ERA (3.36 FIP) with 68 strikeouts to 28 walks in 18 appearances (16 starts) spanning 63 1/3 innings between the FCL and Salem this past season. Among the 39 Red Sox minor-leaguers who threw at least 60 innings in 2024, Valera ranked first in ERA, batting average against (.125), WHIP (0.85), line-drive rate (10.3 percent), and groundball rate (56.6 percent), fifth in swinging-strike rate (15.9 percent), eighth in FIP, 12th in strikeout rate (27.9 percent), and 13th in xFIP (3.76), per FanGraphs.

As far as post-season accolades are concerned, Valera was recognized as a 2024 Florida Complex League All-Star by Minor League Baseball. He was also named a 2024 SoxProspects.com All-Star and the 2024 SoxProspects.com Pitcher of the Year.

Standing at 6-foot-3 and around 225 pounds, Valera throws from a high three-quarters arm slot and utilizes a side-step delivery. This past season, the projectable hurler operated with a four-pitch mix that consisted of a 93-96 mph fastball that reached 99 mph, an 85-88 mph slider that featured 10-to-4 break, an 82-85 mph sweeper, and an 89-92 mph changeup that is still viewed as a work progress.

Lauded by club officials for his strong work ethic and teachability, Valera is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 19 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks ninth among pitchers in the organization. MLB Pipeline has the righty ranked 20th on its top 30 Red Sox prospects list while Baseball America has him unranked, though that will likely change soon.

“We’re super high on this kid,” Red Sox director of pitching Justin Willard said of Valera when speaking with The Boston Globe’s Sarah Barber back in August. “He’s starting to get to some pretty cool shapes from a pitch-design standpoint. We’re very excited about this kid, and he’s only continued to go out there and kind of hammer the things that he needs to for his long-term development as well.”

Valera, who turns 19 in May, is projected by SoxProspects.com to return to Salem for the start of the 2025 minor-league season. He should, however, have the opportunity to advance to High-A Greenville before the end of the summer depending on how aggressive the Red Sox are willing to be.

(Picture of Juan Valera: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Craig Breslow on trade addition Carlos Narvaez: ‘He’s a guy that we’re really excited about’

The Red Sox did not pluck a player from the Yankees organization in the major- or minor-league phase of the Rule 5 Draft earlier this month, but they did swing a rare trade with their division rivals on the final day of the Winter Meetings in Dallas, Texas.

In exchange for pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez and $250,000 in international bonus pool space, Boston acquired catcher Carlos Narvaez from New York on December 11. The move came just hours after the Red Sox included top catching prospect Kyle Teel in the five-player trade that netted them frontline starter Garrett Crochet from the White Sox.

Narvaez, who turned 26 late last month, comes to the Red Sox with just six games of major-league experience under his belt. The native Venezuelan originally signed with the Yankees for $50,000 as an international free agent coming out of Maracay in July 2015. He made his professional debut the following June and — in the process of working up the minor-league ladder — was added to New York’s 40-man roster for Rule 5 protection in November 2023.

Narvaez opened the 2024 season at Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre and was not called up for his big-league debut until mid-July. The right-handed hitter appeared in six games for the Yankees from July 20 through August 10, going 3-for-13 (.231) with three singles, two walks, and six strikeouts. From behind the plate, he threw out one of two possible base stealers before being optioned on August 13.

Narvaez would close out the year with Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, finishing with a .254/.370/.412 slash line with 20 doubles, 11 home runs, 58 RBIs, 54 runs scored, nine stolen bases, 56 walks, and 105 strikeouts in 96 games (403 plate appearances) for the RailRiders. Defensively, the 5-foot-11, 190-pound backstop gunned down 15 of 83 would-be base stealers. He also logged 114 innings at first base and three innings at third base.

Equipped with a strong arm and solid framing and receiving skills, Narvaez has spent his winter with the Cardenales de Lara of the Venezuelan Winter League (LVBP). Despite dealing with visa issues that resulted in him being away from the team for a bit, Narvaez still batted a stout .357/.456/.662 with five home runs and 18 RBIs in 23 regular-season games (90 plate appearances) for the Cardenales, who are now in the LVBP playoffs.

Having said that, it is worth noting that Venezuelan journalist Carlos V. Rodriguez reported on Monday that — regardless of how far the Cardenales advance in the playoffs — Narvaez will only play until January 7 because the Red Sox want him back in the United States to take part in team activities. That tracks with Narvaez being among the players expected to attend the first-ever Fenway Fest fan event in Boston on January 11.

Barring any other catching additions in the coming days or weeks, Narvaez will likely enter his first spring training with the Red Sox as the club’s top backup option behind Connor Wong. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow acknowledged as much when speaking with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) via Zoom earlier Monday afternoon.

“He’s a guy that we’re really excited about,” Breslow said of Narvaez. “What we saw out of him in winter ball I think only enhances or reinforces that we think he’s a great complement to Connor. That doesn’t mean that we’ll stop looking but I think we brought Narvy in because of what he brings offensively but also more specifically in terms of pitch framing and receiving. We feel really good about that.”

(Picture of Carlos Narvaez: Adam Hunger/Getty Images)

Red Sox agree to minor-league deal with ex-Rockies righty Noah Davis

The Red Sox have agreed to terms on a minor-league contract with free-agent right-hander Noah Davis, a team source confirmed to BloggingtheRedSox.com. The deal, which is pending a physical, comes with an invite to major-league spring training.

Davis, who turns 28 in April, first announced his joining the Red Sox organization on Friday night via an Instagram post. The California native had spent parts of the last three seasons (2022-2024) with the Rockies before being outrighted off the club’s 40-man roster in September, which allowed him to reach free agency two months later.

A former 11th-round draft selection of the Reds coming out of UC Santa Barbara in 2018, Davis was traded to the Rockies for veteran reliever Mychal Givens in July 2021. The righty was added to Colorado’s 40-man roster for Rule 5 protection that November and entered the 2022 season ranked by Baseball America as the organization’s No. 21 prospect. He then made his big-league debut that October.

Davis owns a 7.71 ERA and 5.65 FIP with 43 strikeouts to 23 walks in 18 outings (six starts) spanning 51 1/3 innings for his career at the major-league level (all with Colorado). That includes a 5.75 ERA (4.64 FIP) with 15 strikeouts to seven walks in nine relief outings (20 1/3 innings) for the Rockies in which opposing hitters batted .352 against him this past season. At the Triple-A level, he most recently pitched to a 5.77 ERA (4.72 FIP) with 72 strikeouts to 31 walks over 19 appearances (68 2/3 innings) for the Albuquerque Isotopes of the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League in 2024.

Standing at 6-foot-2 and 195 pounds, Davis flashed seven different pitches this year, per Baseball Savant. A client of Driveline Baseball, which was founded by Red Sox special advisor/interim director of baseball sciences Kyle Boddy, Davis relied heavily upon his mid-90s sinker (thrown 46 percent of the time) while also mixing in a sweeper, cutter, screwball, changeup, curveball, and four-seam fastball.

Davis should get an opportunity to compete for a spot in Boston’s Opening Day bullpen alongside fellow non-roster invitees Austin Adams, Isaiah Campbell, Michael Fulmer, Bryan Mata, and Wyatt Mills once camp begins in February. If he does not make the team, he figures to provide the Red Sox with versatile pitching depth at Triple-A Worcester to open the 2025 season since he has experience as both a starter and reliever.

(Picture of Noah Davis: Dustin Bradford/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox agree to minor-league deal with veteran reliever Austin Adams

The Red Sox have agreed to terms on a minor-league contract with free-agent reliever Austin Adams, as was first reported by KPRC’s Ari Alexander. The deal, which is still pending a physical, includes an invite to major-league spring training and would be worth $1.5 million if Adams makes Boston’s active roster.

Adams, 33, is a veteran of eight big-league seasons who spent all of 2024 with the Athletics after being acquired from the Mets for cash considerations in March. The right-hander posted a 3.92 ERA (4.47 FIP) with 53 strikeouts to 23 walks over 56 relief appearances (41 1/3 innings) before being shut down with forearm tendinitis in mid-August. He was outrighted off Oakland’s 40-man roster in late October, which allowed him to reach free agency.

A Tampa native, Adams was originally selected by the Angels in the eighth round of the 2012 draft out of South Florida. The righty was traded to the Nationals in December 2016 and debuted for Washington the following July. He has since forged a lifetime 4.10 ERA (3.98 FIP) with a 31.6 percent strikeout rate and 13.9 percent walk rate in 188 career outings (155 2/3 innings) between the Nationals (2017-2019), Mariners (2019), Padres (2020-2022), Diamondbacks (2023) and Athletics (2024).

Although he has struggled with his command in the past (42 hit batsmen since 2021), Adams has proven to be effective when throwing strikes, as evidenced by the fact that opposing hitters have batted just .199 against him throughout his career. The 6-foot-3, 220-pound hurler relies heavily upon his upper-80s slider (thrown nearly 74 percent of the time this past season) and can mix in a lower-90s fastball and an occasional sinker as well.

Adams, who turns 34 in May, should get an opportunity to compete for a spot in Boston’s Opening Day bullpen alongside fellow non-roster invitees Isaiah Campbell, Michael Fulmer, Bryan Mata, and Wyatt Mills once camp begins in February. If he does not make the team, he will likely provide the Red Sox with an experienced depth option at Triple-A Worcester to open the 2025 season.

(Picture of Austin Adams: Eakin Howard/Getty Images)

Red Sox trade lefty reliever Cam Booser to White Sox for pitching prospect Yhoiker Fajardo

The Red Sox simultaneously created a 40-man roster spot and added a young pitching prospect to the organizational pipeline by connecting on their second trade in as many weeks with the White Sox on Saturday evening.

In exchange for left-handed reliever Cam Booser, who forged a 3.38 ERA in 43 relief appearances (42 2/3 innings) as a 32-year-old rookie this past season, Boston acquired right-hander Yhoiker Fajardo from Chicago.

Fajardo, 18, made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League this year after signing with the White Sox for $400,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in February. The Villa de Cura native earned DSL Mid-Season All-Star honors en route to posting a 3.91 ERA (2.50 FIP) with 64 strikeouts to eight walks in 13 starts (50 2/3 innings) for Chicago’s rookie-level affiliate. Opposing hitters batted .260 against him.

Among the 19 Dominican Summer League pitchers who eclipsed the 50-inning mark in 2024, Fajardo ranked first in FIP and xFIP (2.33), third in strikeouts per nine innings (11.37), strikeout rate (30.2 percent), and swinging-strike rate (43.4 percent), and fourth in walks per nine innings (1.42), walk rate (3.8 percent), and groundball rate (55.6 percent), per FanGraphs. He also produced the highest BABIP (.365) of that group, which suggests that luck may not have necessarily been on his side.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 181-185 pounds, Fajardo has been described by Baseball America’s Ben Badler as “a good athlete with an easy delivery that he repeats well from a consistent release point on all of his pitches.” The projectable righty still has plenty of room to grow physically but currently sits between 90-95 mph with his fastball while mixing in a low-80s slider and an occasional hard changeup.

Barring a surprise, Fajardo — who does not turn 19 until next October — will likely open the 2025 season in the Florida Complex League.

(Picture of Cam Booser: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)