Tag: 2022 season

Red Sox ace Chris Sale’s MRI shows ‘some healing,’ Alex Cora says

Red Sox ace Chris Sale underwent an MRI on Thursday to evaluate how he is recovering from the stress fracture in his right rib cage. On Friday, Sox manager Alex Cora revealed that Sale’s MRI showed “some healing” when speaking with reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) at Charlotte Sports Park.

While there has been “some healing,” Cora also noted that there is still no timetable for when Sale could start throwing again. Rather than establishing a timetable, the next step will be to see how Sale feels symptom-wise in the coming days. From there, the Red Sox can then determine when exactly the veteran left-hander can get back on the mound.

Sale, who turned 33 on Wednesday, has been sidelined since suffering the rib injury while throwing at his alma mater, Florida Gulf Coast University, on February 24.

When speaking with reporters at the Fenway South complex on Tuesday, Sale indicated that he was in better spirits and was hopeful that he could begin his throwing program at some point next week.

“I think they want to get me past a certain point numbers-wise with weeks because with bones, it’s probably scheduled out,” Sale said. “I think they want to get me to a certain number before I start doing that just to really give it some time.”

Regardless of when Sale starts throwing again, the southpaw will still need a considerable amount of time to build back up before he is deemed ready to pitch at the major-league level.

With that, it might not be until May or later when Sale takes the mound for the Red Sox again. There are still plenty of hurdles he needs to clear before that can happen.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Rich Hill gets shelled, Kevin Plawecki homers as Red Sox fall to Rays, 9-3

The Red Sox fell to 9-6 in Grapefruit League play on Friday following a 9-3 loss to the Rays at Charlotte Sports Park.

Despite losing by six runs, it was actually the Sox who got on the board first in their half of the third inning. With starter Ryan Yarbrough on the mound for the Rays, Rob Refsnyder led off with a single, advanced to second base on a Jonathan Arauz walk, and advanced to third on a Christian Arroyo groundout.

Trevor Story, who made the trip to Port Charlotte for Friday’s contest, then drove in Refsnyder on a sacrifice fly to left field. Story’s second RBI of the spring gave Boston an early 1-0 lead, though it did not last long.

Red Sox starter Rich Hill began his afternoon by retiring each of the six batters he faced, but immediately ran into trouble in the bottom of the third when he issued a leadoff single to Taylor Walls. A double from Brett Phillips to follow put runners at second and third for Harold Ramirez, who put the Rays up 2-1 on a two-run single to left field.

Wander Franco moved Ramirez up to second base with another single and both runners scored on back-to-back run-scoring hits from Brandon Lowe and Manuel Margot to make it a 4-1 game.

Having recorded just one out in the third, Hill was temporarily pulled in favor of Jacob Wallace out of the Red Sox bullpen. Wallace, in turn, allowed both runners he inherited to score on a two-run double off the bat of Austin Meadows.

After getting through the third, Wallace made way for Hill once more. The veteran left-hander rebounded by facing the minimum three batters in the fourth, but got shelled for three more runs on three more hits in the fifth.

All told, Hill surrendered nine runs — all of which were earned — on 11 hits and no walks to go along with one strikeout over 3 2/3 total innings of work. The 42-year-old southpaw should be making one more start before the regular season begins.

In relief of Hill, Brendan Nail came on for Hill in the fifth and recorded the final two outs of the frame via swinging strikeout. From there, Jake Diekman maneuvered his way around a hit batsman and walk in a scoreless sixth, Austin Davis sat down the side in order in the seventh, and Tyler Danish did the same in the eighth.

Down to their final three outs in the ninth, Nick Sogard led the inning off by reaching first base on a fielding error. Kevin Plawecki then took Rays reliever Christopher Gau deep to left-center field for his first home run of the spring.

Plawecki’s two-run blast made it a 9-3 game in favor of Tampa Bay, which would go on to be Friday’s final score.

Some notes from this loss:

Rafael Devers went 1-for-1 with a double and was also hit by a pitch. He is now batting .450 this spring.

Franchy Cordero doubled in his only at-bat of the day after being used as a defensive replacement in the sixth inning. He is now batting .476 this spring.

Top prospect Marcelo Mayer came on as a defensive replacement in the eighth inning and went 0-for-1 with the game-ending flyout.

Next up: Brubaker vs. Eovaldi

The Red Sox return to Fort Myers to take on the Pirates at JetBlue Park on Saturday afternoon. Nathan Eovaldi will be making one final tune-up before Opening Day and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander J.T. Brubaker.

First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised on NESN.

(Picture of Kevin Plawecki: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Latest Baseball America mock draft has Red Sox selecting prep infielder Cole Young with top pick

In their latest 2022 mock draft, Baseball America has the Red Sox selecting North Allegheny Senior High School shortstop Cole Young with their first-round (24th overall) pick.

Young, 18, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 21 draft-eligible prospect, ranking ninth among high schoolers in this year’s class. At present, the Pennsylvania native is committed to play college baseball at Duke University.

Listed at 6-feet and 180 pounds, Young is in the midst of his senior season with North Allegheny, which only just began on Wednesday. Last year, the left-handed hitting infielder batted .437/.594/.859 with four doubles, four triples, six home runs, 23 RBIs, 33 runs scored, 19 stolen bases, 25 walks, and five strikeouts over 27 games (101 plate appearances) for the Tigers.

Per his Baseball America scouting report, Young “separated himself over the summer as the best shortstop in the 2022 prep class and perhaps the best pure hitter not named Termarr Johnson. … Young does most things on the field well, headlined by a sound offensive approach and a clean, flat bat path that he uses to spray the ball all over the field. He handles 90-plus mph velocity well and he has a solid understanding of the strike zone, tracking the ball well and keeping his barrel in the hitting zone for a long time.”

Defensively, Young “has a chance to stick at shortstop, where he’s a capable and fluid defender, if not an explosive one. He plays low to the ground, has a solid first step—and above-average speed underway—with above-average arm strength and good instincts.”

As for why he has the Red Sox taking Young off the board with the 24th overall selection, Baseball America’s Carlos Collazo writes that Young “would represent solid value” for Boston since he is a pure hitter who possesses sound tools all the way around.

MLB Pipeline, on the other hand, has Young ranked as their No. 14 draft-eligible prospect. They note that Young “is the kind of player who needs to be seen more than once to be truly appreciated, as his feel for the game is greater than any jump off the page tools.”

Since he plays the infield and hits from the left side of the plate, Young — who turns 19 in July — has drawn comparisons to former Red Sox shortstop Stephen Drew and current Mariners second baseman Adam Frazier.

The Red Sox, in recent years, have not shied away from taking high school infielders early in the draft. Since Chaim Bloom took over as chief baseball officer in October 2019, Boston has selected Marcelo Mayer (2021, fourth overall) and Nick Yorke (2020, 17th overall) with their last two first-round picks.

(Picture of Cole Young: Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Who is Oddanier Mosqueda? Red Sox relief prospect made his Grapefruit League debut on Thursday

Red Sox pitching prospect Oddanier Mosqueda made his Grapefruit League debut in Thursday’s 4-3 win over the Twins at JetBlue Park.

The left-hander came on in relief of Michael Wacha in the fifth inning and struck out three of the six batters he faced while working in and out of a bases-loaded jam.

Mosqueda, 22, was originally signed by the Sox as an international free agent out of Venezuela in 2015. The Caracas native made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League and progressed as far as Low-A before the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the 2020 minor-league season.

After making 10 appearances for Caribes de Anzoategui of the Venezuelan Winter League that off-season, Mosqueda came into 2021 and broke minor-league camp with High-A Greenville.

Spending the entirety of the 2021 campaign with the Drive, Mosqueda posted a 3.61 ERA and 3.43 FIP to go along with 66 strikeouts to 25 walks over 32 relief appearances spanning 47 1/3 innings of work. He spent some time away from the team in late May/early June to pitch for Venezuela in the 2021 Americas Olympic Qualifier.

As of August 10 of last year, Mosqueda’s ERA on the season stood at 5.29. From that point forward, though, the lefty strung together 10 consecutive scoreless outings (15 innings) in which he struck out 21 and walked just four to end his season on a high note.

Among all High-A East pitchers who accrued at least 40 innings on the mound in 2021, Mosqueda ranked 20th in strikeouts per nine innings (12.55), 13th in strikeout rate (33.8%), ninth in batting average against (.182), and 13th in FIP, per FanGraphs.

While his strikeout numbers are undoubtedly impressive, Mosqueda also struggled with his command at times and gave up his fair share of walks as a result. The fact he averaged 4.75 walks per nine innings and walked nearly 13% of the batters he faced last year speaks to this.

At the conclusion of the 2021 minor-league season, Mosqueda returned to his home country to suit up for Caribes de Anzoategui once more, though he struggled to the tune of a 11.05 ERA in 11 outings (7 1/3 innings pitched) with the club.

Listed at 5-foot-10 and 190 pounds, Mosqueda operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a 92-94 mph fastball, a 79-81 mph curveball, and an 83-84 mph changeup, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

Mosqueda, who turns 23 in May, is not regarded by any major publication as one of the top prospects in Boston’s farm system coming into the 2022 season, including SoxProspects.com.

That being said, the Venezuelan-born southpaw is projected by the site to begin the year with Double-A Portland. Should Mosqueda prove capable of handling a more advanced level of competition, he has the chance rise through the organization’s relief prospect ranks.

(Picture of Oddainier Mosqueda via his Instagram)

Bobby Dalbec and Rafael Devers stay hot as Red Sox hold off Twins in 4-3 win

The Red Sox improved to 9-5 in Grapefruit League on Thursday with a 4-3 win over the Twins at JetBlue Park. Boston now leads Minnesota three games to two in the race for the 2022 Chairman’s Cup.

Matched up against Twins starter Dylan Bundy to begin things on Thursday afternoon, the Sox got on the board almost immediately. With one out in the bottom of the first inning, Rafael Devers crushed a booming solo shot over everything in right-center field.

Devers’ team-leading fifth home run of the spring gave Boston an early 1-0 lead. Bobby Dalbec doubled it an inning later by taking Bundy deep to left field on a solo homer of his own. His third of the spring made it a 2-0 game.

Those two home runs provided Red Sox starter Michael Wacha with a comfortable cushion to work with out of the gate. Making his third start of the spring, the veteran right-hander retired six of the first seven batters he faced before running into some trouble in the top half of the third.

There, a one-out double off the bat of Jake Cave put a runner in scoring position for Luis Arraez, who ripped a groundball single off Wacha to plate his side’s first run of the day.

An inning later, Alex Kirilloff led things off with a line-drive single that deflected off Wacha. After striking out Miguel Sano for the first out of the frame, the righty served up a two-run blast to Ryan Jeffers to give Minnesota their first lead of the afternoon at 3-2.

Wacha did bounce back and end his outing on a positive note by sitting down the final two Twins he faced. All told, the 30-year-old hurler allowed three earned runs on five hits and zero walks to go along with five strikeouts over four innings of work.

In relief of Wacha, Oddanier Mosqueda received the first call out of the Boston bullpen beginning in the fifth. The young left-hander loaded the bases with two outs, but escaped the jam by fanning Sano.

Shortly after Mosqueda ended the top of the fifth, Jackie Bradley Jr. led off the bottom of the inning with a hard-hit single off newly-inserted Twins reliever Jharel Cotton.

Bradley Jr. advanced to second before Enrique Hernandez drew a one-out walk. Travis Shaw then came on to pinch-hit for Dalbec, and he delivered with his first hit of the spring: an RBI single to right field that scored Bradley Jr. and knotted things up at three runs apiece.

From there, John Schreiber retired the side in order in the sixth and then made way for Derek Holland in the seventh. Holland, making his spring debut after signing a minor-league deal with the Sox on March 21, impressed by tossing a pair of scoreless, 1-2-3 frames.

That paved the way for Boston to attempt to break the tie in the bottom of the eighth. With Cody Laweryson on the mound for Minnesota, Shaw — representing the potential go-ahead run — began the inning with a flyball double.

A single from Yolmer Sanchez allowed Shaw to advance to third and a walk drawn by Elih Marrero filled the bases with no outs for Alex Verdugo. Verdugo, in turn, came through with a sacrifice fly to left field that brought in Shaw from third.

Verdugo’s late RBI put the Red Sox up, 4-3, heading into the ninth. There, Phillips Valdez was dispatched from the bullpen and immediately walked the first batter he faced in Edouard Julien.

Valdez then punched out Mark Contreras before Marrero gunned down Julien at second base from behind home plate. With one out to get, Valdez put the tying run on again by plunking Stevie Berman, but rebounded by getting Roy Morales to ground out to Nick Sogard at second base to secure the save.

Some notes from this win:

Rafael Devers this spring is batting .421/.455/1.211 with five home runs, nine RBIs, and seven runs scored through eight games and 22 plate appearances.

Bobby Dalbec this spring is batting .370/.414/.815 with three home runs, nine RBIs, and five runs scored over 10 games and 29 plate appearances.

John Schreiber has yet to allow a run in three appearances (five innings) this spring. The right-hander has struck out seven of the 17 batters he has faced.

Derek Holland, in his 2022 debut on Thursday: 2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K, and the winning decision.

Next up: Hill vs. Yarbrough

Friday’s starting pitching matchup between the Red Sox and Rays in Port Charlotte will feature a pair of left-handers going at it, with Rich Hill getting the ball for Boston and Ryan Yarbrough doing the same for Tampa Bay.

First pitch from Charlotte Sports Park is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Kutter Crawford in the mix for spot in Red Sox bullpen, Alex Cora says: ‘Stuff-wise, he’s one of the best that we have’

Although the Red Sox have optioned a number of their top prospects to the minor-leagues in recent days, Kutter Crawford remains at major-league camp and in the mix for an Opening Day bullpen spot, manager Alex Cora said Wednesday.

Crawford, who turns 26 on Friday, enters the 2022 season regarded by Baseball America as the No. 15 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks eighth among pitchers in the organization.

A former 16th-round draft pick out of Florida Gulf Coast University in 2017, Crawford made his major-league debut under unique circumstances with the Red Sox last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

When Nick Pivetta was scratched from his start against the Guardians on September 5, Crawford was called up and started in his place. The right-hander had a forgettable debut, allowing five runs in two-plus innings.

The Red Sox removed Crawford from their 40-man roster and returned him to Triple-A Worcester the following day. Since he was filling in for a player on the COVID-19 related injured list, though, they did not have to expose him to waivers.

After closing out his 2021 season with the WooSox, Crawford was added to Boston’s 40-man roster in November in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft, which wound up getting cancelled due to the lockout. He then spent part of his off-season pitching in the Dominican Winter League and posted a 0.42 ERA in five starts (21 1/3 innings pitched) for Estrellas Orientales.

Coming into the spring with his first invite to major-league camp in tow, Crawford has made the most of his time in Fort Myers thus far by pitching to the tune of a 2.25 ERA and striking out eight of the 16 batters he has faced over three Grapefruit League appearances.

In the Red Sox’ 6-2 loss to the Pirates in Bradenton on Tuesday, Crawford offered a glimpse of what could make him effective as a reliever at the big-league level. Over two scoreless innings of relief, the 25-year-old righty scattered just one hit and one walk while recording five strikeouts. Of the 38 pitches he threw, 24 went for strikes with his four-seam fastball hovering around 95-97 mph.

“He has good stuff,” Cora said. “He’s throwing 97 mph with a good cutter, good split. He’s in the mix.”

Crawford has primarily been a starter throughout his pro career; only one of his 67 appearances in the minors have been in relief. The Sox, however, believe Crawford can make the transition from starting rotation to the bullpen because of the arsenal he has.

“We’re trying to win ballgames, right?” said Cora. “And we’re going to try to take the best 28 [players] that fit the program right now. Let’s put it that way because, as you guys know, this isn’t the final product.”

With just over a week to go until Opening Day on April 7, Crawford still has some work to do before knowing if he will be traveling with the Red Sox to the Bronx or meeting up with the WooSox in Jacksonville for their first series of the season.

“We do believe that he’s good, really good,” Cora said. “Last year, that outing, he was ahead in the count 0-2 a lot of times and it just happened. But, stuff-wise, he’s one of the best that we have. So, we still have a week, he still has a few innings, and we’ll make decisions when we have to.”

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Hansel Robles set to join Red Sox on Thursday; veteran reliever could make Boston’s Opening Day roster, Alex Cora says

Nearly two weeks after signing a minor-league deal to return to the Red Sox, Hansel Robles could finally be joining the team in Fort Myers as soon as Thursday night.

Robles, 31, inked a minors pact with Boston that included an invite to major-league spring training on March 19. Due to visa issues, however, the right-handed reliever has yet to report to camp and has instead been stuck in the Dominican Republic.

When speaking with reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) at JetBlue Park on Wednesday, Sox manager Alex Cora indicated that Robles could make the club’s Opening Day roster by saying he “wouldn’t assume anything.”

The Red Sox originally acquired Robles from the Twins in exchange for pitching prospect Alex Scherff before last year’s trade deadline. After a shaky start, the Dominican-born righty settled in and became one of Cora’s most trusted options out of the bullpen.

From the time he made his Red Sox debut on August 1 through the end of the regular season, Robles led the team in relief appearances (27) while posting a 3.60 ERA and 3.37 FIP to go along with 33 strikeouts to 13 walks over 25 innings of work. He also produced a 5.06 ERA (6.73 FIP) in the postseason, though four of his six outings were scoreless.

Since he gained Cora’s trust so quickly last year, it would be interesting to see if Robles could earn a spot on Boston’s Opening Day roster. If Robles does indeed arrive at the Fenway South complex on Thursday night, he would have less than a full week to prepare for the Sox’ season opener against the Yankees in the Bronx on April 7.

That being said, Cora seems to be confident in Robles’ abilities. On top of that, the Red Sox — as noted by Browne — are lacking in right-handed bullpen depth as things stand now.

“We’ll see where he’s at,” Cora said of Robles. “One thing about him, he’s a workaholic. He gets here hopefully Thursday, and maybe you’ll see him [throw live] on Saturday. He’ll let us know where he’s at physically and stuff-wise.”

(Picture of Hansel Robles: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox crush 3 home runs, top Braves, 10-7, in Trevor Story’s Grapefruit League debut

The Red Sox improved to 8-5 in Grapefruit League play on Wednesday afternoon with a 10-7 victory over the Braves at JetBlue Park.

Using a lineup that is likely to mirror the one they feature on Opening Day, the Sox got things going right away against Braves starter Ian Anderson. Before recording an out in the first inning, Enrique Hernandez drew a leadoff walk and Rafael Devers clubbed a towering two-run homer over the Fenway South Green Monster.

Devers’ fourth home run of the spring jolted Boston to an early 2-0 lead, but they were not done there. Not with Alex Verdugo ripping a two-out double off Anderson, advancing to third to load the bases, and scoring from third when Jackie Bradley Jr. was hit by a pitch to make it a 3-0 game.

An inning later, the top of the Red Sox lineup struck once more when Hernandez led off with an infield single and scored on a one-out RBI single off the bat of J.D. Martinez.

Christian Vazquez added on to his side’s lead in the bottom of the third. Following a leadoff double from Bobby Dalbec, Vazquez crushed a two-run shot to left field off Anderson. The veteran backstop’s first big fly of the spring made it a 6-0 game in favor of Boston.

That sequence provided Sox starter Tanner Houck with a sizable cushion to operate with out of the gate. Making his third start of the Grapefruit League campaign, the right-hander began his day by retiring eight of the first 13 batters he faced heading into the fourth inning.

That is where things began to get a bit shaky for Houck. The 25-year-old yielded back-to-back singles to Ozzie Albies and Eddie Rosario to begin the frame before spiking a wild pitch that allowed both runners to advance an additional 90 feet.

A sacrifice fly from Alex Dickerson brought in Albies from third for the Braves’ first run of the afternoon. Houck then plunked Guillermo Heredia, but escaped any further damage by fanning Dansby Swanson, who would turn out to be the last hitter he would face on Wednesday.

All told, Houck allowed just one earned run on five hits, no walks, and three hit batsman to go along with four strikeouts over four erratic innings of work. He should be in line to make one more start before the regular season begins.

Shortly after Houck recorded the final out in the top half of the fourth, the Boston bats continued to pound Atlanta pitching in the bottom half of the frame.

With reliever Dylan Lee on the mound for the Braves, Jonathan Arauz provided some more leadoff pop by mashing his first home run of the spring. A J.D. Martinez walk and opposite-field double for Franchy Cordero then put runners at second and third for Trevor Story, who came through with a line-drive RBI single to plate Martinez. Cordero himself scored on another RBI base hit courtesy of Bobby Dalbec.

Despite having a commanding 9-1 lead going into the fifth, the Red Sox bullpen struggled a bit in relief of Houck. Kaleb Ort received the first call from manager Alex Cora and proceeded to serve up a solo homer to Travis d’Arnaud and a three-run blast to Adam Duvall while only managing to record two outs.

Ryan Fernandez then came on for Ort and surrendered a solo home run of his own to Dickerson, though he was able to end the inning with Boston still in possession of a three-run lead at 9-6.

It did not take long for the Sox to get one of those runs back, though, as Yolmer Sanchez followed up a scoreless sixth inning from Hirokazu Sawamura by plating the pinch-running Christin Stewart on a sacrifice fly to right field off Allan Winans.

From there, Ryan Brasier got himself in and out of a bases-loaded jam in the seventh, Matt Barnes gave up one run on two hits and one walk in the eighth, and newcomer Matt Strahm closed things out by stranding a pair of base runners in a shutout ninth inning.

Some notes from this win:

In his Grapefruit League debut, Trevor Story went 1-for-2 with an RBI single, a walk, and a strikeout. The 29-year-old started at second base, batted out of the six-hole, and was pinch-ran for by Yolmer Sanchez in the fourth inning.

Franchy Cordero replaced Alex Verdugo in left field in the third inning. He went 2-for-3 with a pair of doubles, one RBI, and one strikeout.

Through seven games this spring, Rafael Devers is slashing .389/.400/1.056 with four home runs, eight RBIs, six runs scored, one walk, and six strikeouts over 20 plate appearances.

Next up: Bundy vs. Hill

The Red Sox will take on the Twins at JetBlue Park on Thursday afternoon, with the race for the 2022 Chairman’s Cup currently tied at two games apiece.

Rich Hill is slated to get the start for Boston and Garrett Whitlock will also pitch. Hill will be opposed by right-hander Dylan Bundy for Minnesota.

First pitch Thursday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will not be televised.

(Picture of Trevor Story: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox prospect Cedanne Rafaela hits first home run of spring

Versatile Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela hit his first home run of the spring in Tuesday’s 6-2 loss to the Pirates at LECOM Park in Bradenton. He actually accounted for Boston’s only two runs on one swing of the bat.

After pinch-running for Christian Arroyo in the top half of the seventh, Rafaela registered his first and only plate appearance two innings later. With one out and one runner on in the ninth, the right-handed hitter took Pirates reliever Austin Brice 399 feet deep to right-center field to make it a 6-2 game.

Rafaela, 21, has made the most out of his limited playing time this spring. Following Tuesday’s performance, the young infielder/outfielder is batting .273 (3-for-11)/.273/.636 with one double, one homer, two RBIs, four runs scored, and one stolen base over five Grapefruit League appearances.

Originally signed out of Curacao for just $10,000 in July 2017, Rafaela comes into the 2022 season regarded by Baseball America as the best defensive outfielder and No. 22 overall prospect in Boston’s farm system.

As that superlative suggests, Rafaela is known more for his defense than his offense. With Low-A Salem last year, the 5-foot-8, 152 pounder saw playing time at six different positions (2B, 3B, SS, LF, CF, RF) en route to being named the Sox’ Minor League Defensive Player of the Year in September.

So far this spring, Rafaela has logged two innings at shortstop, five innings in left field, and 14 innings in center field. He has yet to commit an error at either of the three positions.

On the other side of the ball, Rafaela is coming off a 2021 campaign with Salem in which he batted .251/.305/.424 (95 wRC+) to go along with 20 doubles, nine triples, 10 home runs, 53 RBIs, 73 runs scored, 23 stolen bases, 25 walks, and 79 strikeouts across 102 games spanning 432 plate appearances.

Among qualified hitters in the Low-A East last season, Rafaela ranked 10th in strikeout rate (18.3%), 22nd in batting average, 12th in slugging percentage, 22nd in OPS (.729), 10th in isolated power (.173), second in speed score (9.0), and 29th in wRC+, according to FanGraphs.

Per his Baseball America scouting report, what makes Rafaela so dynamic defensively is his speed, which allows him to take “excellent routes and jumps on hard-to-reach contact to the outfield.” His arm strength also grades “as above-average to plus in both the infield and outfield.”

Considering that he does not turn 22 until September, there still may be some room for Rafaela to grow physically. Regardless of that, though, it would appear that the Willemstad native has the makings to be a super-utility player at the major-league level if he can reach his full potential.

Well before that happens, however, Rafaela still has to work his way up the organizational ladder. He is projected by SoxProspects.com to begin the 2022 minor-season with High-A Greenville.

(GIF of Ceddanne Rafaela via GIPHY)

Red Sox ace Chris Sale could restart throwing program early next week as left-hander continues to recover from rib cage injury

Red Sox ace Chris Sale will not be ready for the start of the 2022 season. That much we know. The veteran left-hander is, however, in good spirits as he continues to recover from a stress fracture in his right rib cage that he suffered last month.

In a conversation with reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) at the Fenway South complex in Fort Myers on Tuesday, Sale revealed that he is slated to restart his throwing program early next week.

As highlighted by Cotillo, the plan for Sale would be to start throwing on flat ground before doing so off a mound. From there, he would pitch in games at extended spring training or perhaps for one of Boston’s minor-league affiliates.

The Red Sox, for what it’s worth, are not providing a timetable for when Sale could potentially return to action at the major-league level. However, the fact that he is close to throwing again is certainly encouraging news for both player and club.

“For now, the plan is probably sometime early next week,” Sale said Tuesday. “I think they want to get me past a certain point numbers-wise with weeks because with bones, it’s probably scheduled out. I think they want to get me to a certain number before I start doing that just to really give it some time.”

Sale, who turns 33 on Wednesday, initially suffered the rib injury while throwing a live batting practice session at his alma mater, Florida Gulf Coast University, on February 24. Due to the nature of the lockout, the Florida could not alert Red Sox coaches and staff of the injury until the work stoppage ended in early March.

It has been nearly five weeks since Sale first started feeling significant pain in the vicinity of his rib cage. At that time, the 32-year-old felt great discomfort whenever he would cough, laugh, or sneeze. Now, as noted by Cotillo, it is more of an annoyance than anything.

With that, Sale said he has been moving around more recently in an attempt to convince the Red Sox to let him throw. While that is currently on tap for next week, there is one more hurdle for the seven-time All-Star to clear, per Cotillo: “A series of tests to see how quickly he can rotate the affected area.”

If Sale passes those tests, his unspecified timetable could then come into focus. While nothing is definite yet, it is worth mentioning that the lefty does not feel as though he would have to completely restart his throwing program since he was already in a good place prior to the injury. If anything, this could just be a roadblock.

“I was in too good of a spot before all of this happened for me to feel like I’m starting back at zero,” said Sale. “I’m not starting back at 100 like if I came in here full systems go, but I’ve felt it coming back pretty quick, even through this process. I had a really good work schedule this off-season.”

To that end, Cotillo predicts that Sale could return to the Red Sox at some point in May. Until then, though, Boston will have to rely on the likes of Nathan Eovaldi, Nick Pivetta, Tanner Houck, Michael Wacha, and either Rich Hill or Garrett Whitlock to fill the void left by Sale for the time being.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)