Tag: pitcher of the month

Red Sox’ Yhoiker Fajardo named Carolina League Pitcher of the Month for August

Red Sox pitching prospect Yhoiker Fajardo has been named the Carolina League Pitcher of the Month for August, Minor League Baseball announced on Thursday.

Fajardo dominated Carolina League hitters to the tune of a 1.14 ERA (1.67 FIP) with 36 strikeouts to eight walks in six starts (23 2/3 innings) for Low-A Salem last month. Opponents batted just .159 against the 18-year-old right-hander, who was recognized as the Carolina League Pitcher of the Week on two separate occasions.

In 12 starts for Salem this season, Fajardo has forged a 2.79 ERA (2.43 FIP) with 53 strikeouts to 16 walks over 48 1/3 innings in which opposing hitters batted .230 against him. That comes after he posted a 0.44 ERA (2.41 FIP) with 24 strikeouts to seven walks in six outings (four starts) spanning 20 2/3 innings for the rookie-level Florida Complex League Red Sox to open the 2025 campaign before being promoted on June 17.

Among the 107 pitchers who entered play Thursday having thrown at least 45 innings in the Carolina League this year, Fajardo ranked second in FIP, fourth in swinging-strike rate (16.5 percent), sixth in line-drive rate (16.1 percent), 11th in xFIP (3.08), 14th in groundball rate (51.6 percent), 17th in strikeout rate (26.9 percent), 23rd in ERA, 25th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.87) and walks per nine innings (2.98), 26th in walk rate (8.1 percent) and WHIP (1.18), and 53rd in batting average against, per FanGraphs.

Fajardo has been nothing short of a revelation this season after being acquired from the White Sox for left-handed reliever Cam Booser last December. The native Venezuelan had originally signed with Chicago for $400,000 as an international free agent in February 2024 and was fresh off earning Dominican Summer League All-Star honors in his professional debut. He is currently ranked by Baseball America as Boston’s No. 22 prospect (12th among pitchers), while MLB Pipeline has him at No. 25 (14th among pitchers) and SoxProspects.com has him at No. 18 (11th among pitchers), respectively.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 181 pounds, Fajardo throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a high leg kick into his delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the young righty features a 93-95 mph fastball that can reach 96-97 mph depending on what variation (two-seam or four-seam) he throws, a tight 82-85 mph slider, and an 85-88 mph kick changeup.

Fajardo, who turns 19 in October, was also named SoxProspects.com’s Pitcher of the Month and the Red Sox’ Minor League Pitcher of the Month for August in recent days. He is slated to make one more start for Salem in the back half of its series against Fayetteville this weekend before the 2025 Carolina League regular season draws to a close on Sunday.

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

Red Sox’ Wuilliams Rodriguez named Florida Complex League Pitcher of the Month for July

Red Sox pitching prospect Wuilliams Rodriguez has been named the Florida Complex League Pitcher of the Month for July, Minor League Baseball announced on Tuesday.

In four outings (three starts) for the rookie-level FCL Red Sox last month, Rodriguez allowed one earned run on six hits, four walks, and 15 strikeouts over 15 1/3 innings. Opposing hitters batted just .122 against him.

On the 2024 campaign as a whole, Rodriguez posted a 3.82 ERA and 3.56 FIP with 30 strikeouts to 11 walks over 12 appearances (four starts) spanning 30 2/3 innings of work. The 18-year-old right-hander closed out his first season stateside by firing 8 1/3 consecutive scoreless frames against the FCL Orioles and FCL Rays on July 16 and July 23, respectively.

Among the 76 FCL pitchers who threw at least 30 innings this year, Rodriguez ranked ninth in WHIP (1.14), 12th in FIP, 17th in walks per nine innings (3.23) and walk rate (8.8 percent), 20th in xFIP (4.04), 21st in line-drive rate (13.8 percent), 24th in batting average against (.216), 29th in strikeout rate (24 percent), 33rd in groundball rate (46.3 percent), and 34th in swinging-strike rate (14.9 percent) and ERA, per FanGraphs.

Rodriguez, who turns 19 in November, originally signed with the Red Sox for $50,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in January 2023. The 6-foot-2, 199-pound Barquisimeto native made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League last June and was recognized as a DSL mid-season All-Star. He is not currently ranked among Boston’s top 60 prospects by SoxProspects.com but is projected to make the jump to Low-A Salem in 2025.

(Picture of Wuilliams Rodriguez: Bryan Green/Flickr)

Red Sox’ Elmer Rodriguez named Carolina League Pitcher of the Month for June

Red Sox pitching prospect Elmer Rodriguez has been named the Carolina League Pitcher of the Month for June, Minor League Baseball announced on Wednesday.

Rodriguez, 20, went 1-1 with a 0.00 ERA (2.29 FIP) in four June starts for Salem. The right-hander allowed just two unearned runs on 11 hits and four walks with 19 strikeouts over 20 innings in which he held opposing hitters to a .155 batting average. He struck out nine across a season-high six scoreless frames in his last time out against the Fredericksburg Nationals this past Sunday.

On the 2024 campaign as a whole, Rodriguez has posted a 2.44 FIP and 2.61 FIP with 68 strikeouts to two walks over 13 outings (12 starts) spanning 55 1/3 innings of work for the Red Sox. Opponents are slashing just .205/.282/.267 against him.

Among 45 Carolina League pitchers who had accrued at least 50 innings through Wednesday, Rodriguez ranked fourth in FIP, sixth in strikeouts per nine innings (11.06), seventh in ERA and xFIP (2.91), ninth in strikeout rate (29.1 percent), 11th in batting average against, 12th in groundball rate (47.0 percent), 16th in swinging-strike rate (13.7 percent), and 17th in WHIP (1.16), per FanGraphs.

Rodriguez, who turns 21 next month, has spent parts of three seasons with Salem dating back to August 2022. Compared to last year, in which he forged a 2.61 ERA in 14 starts, the righty has lowered his walk rate by nearly three percent and raised his strikeout rate by almost seven percent. He is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 16 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks fifth among pitchers in the organization.

A former 2021 fourth-round draft selection out of Leadership Christian Academy in Puerto Rico, Rodriguez now stands at 6-foot-3 and 160 pounds. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, Rodriguez throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a high leg kick into his delivery. He operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a mid-90s fastball that has touched 98 mph this year, a 77-79 mph curveball, an 87-90 mph changeup, and an 85-87 mph slider.

Given the amount of success he has enjoyed at Low-A as of late, it stands to reason that Rodriguez will soon be the recipient of a promotion to High-A Greenville. He is not the only Salem hurler in that boat, but a new challenge featuring more advanced competition could be in store on the other side of the All-Star break later this month.

(Picture of Elmer Rodriguez: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Shane Drohan named Eastern League Pitcher of the Month for April

Red Sox pitching prospect Shane Drohan has unsurprisingly been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Month for the month of April, Minor League Baseball announced on Thursday.

In his first four starts of the season for Double-A Portland, Drohan has posted a miniscule 0.78 ERA and 1.53 FIP to go along with 26 strikeouts to just four walks over 23 innings of work. The left-hander is currently holding opposing hitters to a .163 batting average against.

Among 32 qualified Eastern League pitchers, Drohan ranks 10th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.17), second in walks per nine innings (1.57), fourth in strikeout rate (30.6 percent), second in swinging-strike rate (17.3 percent), second in walk rate (4.7 percent), first in batting average against, first in WHIP (0.74), second in ERA, first in FIP, and fourth in xFIP (2.79), per FanGraphs.

Drohan, 24, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the fifth round of the COVID-shortened 2020 amateur draft out of Florida State. The Fort Lauderdale native signed with the club for $600,000 and has since emerged as one of the more intriguing pitching prospects in the organization.

After closing out the 2022 campaign in Portland, Drohan made an effort to put on weight during the offseason. He came into the spring listed at 6-foot-2, 190 pounds and impressed at camp by displaying a newly-implemented cutter as well as a fastball with increased velocity.

Per SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall, Drohan now sits between 92-94 mph and tops out at 96 mph with his heater after averaging 90.8 mph with the offering last year. In addition to the cutter, the southpaw also operates with an 83-76 mph changeup and 75-89 mph curveball.

Given the uptick in velocity and strong start to the season, Drohan is now regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 5 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks tops among all of the club’s young pitchers. He is slated to make his fifth start of the year for the Sea Dogs in Erie on Thursday night.

With that being said, Drohan could soon be in line for a promotion to Triple-A Worcester if he continues to impress with Portland. Although he does not turn 25 until next January, Drohan can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career later this year. As things stand now, he has already made a legitimate case to be added to the Sox’ 40-man roster in November.

(Picture of Shane Drohan: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)