Tag: promotions

Red Sox to promote pitching prospects Isaac Coffey, Hunter Dobbins to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox are promoting pitching prospects Isaac Coffey and Hunter Dobbins from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, according to MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith.

Coffey, who turns 23 on Wednesday, has posted a 2.83 ERA and 3.92 FIP with a South Atlantic League-leading 83 strikeouts to just 10 walks in 11 starts (60 1/3 innings) for the Drive this season. The right-hander fanned eight over 5 2/3 frames in his last time out against the Greensboro Grasshoppers at Fluor Field this past Thursday.

Among qualified pitchers in the South Atlantic League, Coffey ranks third in strikeouts per nine innings (12.38), second in strikeout rate (34.4 percent), second in walks per nine innings (1.49), second in walk rate (4.1 percent), 10th in batting average against (.222), third in WHIP (1.01), seventh in swinging-strike rate (14.8 percent), 10th in ERA, 13th in FIP, and first in xFIP (2.78), per FanGraphs.

Coffey was selected by the Red Sox in the 10th round of last year’s draft out of Oral Roberts. The California native signed with the club for a mere $7,500 yet is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 51 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks 22nd among pitchers in the organization.

Standing at 6-foot-1 and 205 pounds, Coffey throws from a sidearm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of an 88-90 mph fastball that tops out at 91 mph, a 77-79 mph slider that features 10-to-4 break, and an 83-84 mph changeup that is considered to be a work in progress. He becomes the second member of the Sox’ 2022 draft class to make the jump from Greenville to Portland this season, joining fourth-rounder Chase Meidroth.

Dobbins, meanwhile, has forged a 2.63 ERA and 2.52 FIP with 44 strikeouts to just five walks in seven starts (41 innings) for the Drive this season. The 23-year-old righty also struck out eight across six two-run frames in his last time out against Greensboro this past Friday.

Among the 57 South Atlantic League pitchers who have accrued at least 40 innings to this point in the 2023 campaign, Dobbins ranks first in walks per nine innings (1.10) and walk rate (3.1 percent). He also ranks 20th in strikeout rate (27.3 percent), fourth in WHIP (0.95), and sixth in swinging-strike rate (16.8 percent) after not making his first start of the year until May 7.

Dobbins was selected by the Red Sox in the eighth round of the 2021 amateur draft out of Texas Teach. After undergoing Tommy John surgery earlier that spring, the Lone Star State native signed with Boston for $197,500 and did not make his professional debut until last July. He currently is not rated by SoxProspects.com as one of the top pitching prospects in the system.

Listed at 6-foot-2 and 185 pounds, Dobbins — who turns 24 in August — throws from a high-three-quarters arm slot and works with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 91-94 mph fastball that tops out at 96 mph, a 74-78 mph curveball, an 83-85 mph circle changeup, and a high-80s slider that is rarely used.

Both Coffey and Dobbins figure to join a starting rotation mix in Portland that includes C.J. Liu, Brian Van Belle, Sterling Sharp (who is currently on the injured list), Grant Gambrell, and Wyatt Olds. The Sea Dogs open a six-game series against the Reading Fightin Phils at Hadlock Field on Tuesday night.

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

Red Sox to call up top pitching prospect Chris Murphy, per report

The Red Sox are calling up top pitching prospect Chris Murphy from Triple-A Worcester, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo. To make room for Murphy on the active roster, right-handed reliever Kaleb Ort was optioned back to Worcester following Monday’s 4-1 loss to the Rays at Fenway Park.

Murphy, who is celebrating his 25th birthday on Monday, will be active and available out of the bullpen for Tuesday’s series opener against the Guardians in Cleveland. Depending on how things play out, the left-hander could get the start in Thursday’s series finale at Progressive Field since the Red Sox have not yet named a starter for that contest.

In 10 outings (9 starts) for the WooSox this season, Murphy has posted a 7.71 ERA and 5.56 FIP with 42 strikeouts to 25 walks in 39 2/3 innings of work. His last appearance came out of the bullpen, as he struck out three and did not issue a walk over three scoreless, one-hit frames in an 8-6 loss to the Louisville Bats on June 1.

Among 87 International League pitchers who have accrued at least 30 innings to this point in the year, Murphy ranks 21st in strikeouts per nine innings (9.53), 77th in walks per nine innings (5.67), 37th in strikeout rate (21.6 percent), 70th in walk rate (12.9 percent), 27th in swinging-strike rate (12.1 percent), 78th in batting average against (.309), 84th in WHIP (1.91), 82nd in ERA, 61st in FIP, and 52nd in xFIP (5.33), per FanGraphs.

A native of California, Murphy was originally selected by the Red Sox in the sixth round of the 2019 amateur draft out of San Diego. He signed with Boston for $200,000 and was added to the club’s 40-man roster last November in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

Standing at 6-foot-1 and 175 pounds, Murphy throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 91-96 mph four-seam fastball, an 84-89 mph slider, an 83-85 mph changeup, and a 73-76 mph curveball.

Despite the struggles he has endured with Worcester this season, Murphy is still regarded by Baseball America as the No. 13 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks fourth among pitchers in the organization. MLB Pipeline, on the other hand, places the southpaw 14th on its list.

Assuming he gets into a game this week, Murphy will become the third player to make their major-league debut with the Red Sox this season, joining second baseman Enmanuel Valdez and outfielder Masataka Yoshida. He is also in line to become the 22nd different non-position player pitcher to be used by the club so far this year.

Ort, meanwhile, was initially recalled from Worcester over the weekend and appeared in each of Boston’s last two games against Tampa Bay. The 31-year-old righty pitched well, striking out three in two perfect innings on Sunday and tossing a scoreless ninth inning on Monday.

On the 2023 campaign as a whole, Ort has forged a 5.87 ERA and 5.31 FIP with 16 strikeouts to seven walks over 14 appearances (15 1/3 innings) for the Red Sox. With the WooSox, he has put up a 2.45 ERA and 5.29 FIP with nine punchouts to six walks in eight outings spanning 7 1/3 innings of relief.

 (Picture of Chris Murphy: Cliff Welch/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox promote infield prospect Christian Koss to Triple-A Worcester

To accommodate the addition of shortstop Marcelo Mayer to Double-A Portland’s roster, the Red Sox have promoted fellow infield prospect Christian Koss to Triple-A Worcester, per the club’s minor-league transactions log.

Koss, 25, batted .224/.283/.336 with seven doubles, one triple, two home runs, 10 RBIs, 18 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 10 walks, and 33 strikeouts in 38 games (147 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs this season.

Considering how much better he did in Portland last year (.739 OPS in 125 games), those numbers may seem underwhelming on a broader scope. Still, Koss has been more productive at the plate as of late. Dating back to May 21, for instance, the right-handed hitter has gone 7-for-23 (.304) with two doubles, one homer, three RBIs, five runs scored, two stolen bases, zero walks, and seven strikeouts over his last seven games. That homer came as part of a two-hit effort in Sunday’s 10-8 loss to the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Hadlock Field.

On the other side of the ball, Koss has seen the majority of his playing time this season come at shortstop, where he has committed just one error in 281 1/3 innings. The versatile 6-foot-1, 182-pounder has also made two starts at second base, one start at third base, and one start in left field.

“He loves to play the game,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said of Koss back in March. “He’s made some great plays at shortstop, very athletic, versatile. He’s a good one.”

A former 12th-round draft selection of the Rockies coming out of UC Irvine in 2019, Koss was dealt to the Red Sox for left-hander Yoan Aybar in December 2020. The Riverside, Calif. native is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 34 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

With the WooSox, Koss is slated to join a crowded infield mix that already includes Bobby Dalbec, Ryan Fitzgerald, Niko Goodrum, David Hamilton, and Nick Sogard. It is worth mentioning that he can once again become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter if he is not added to the Sox’ 40-man roster by the protection deadline in November.

(Picture of Christian Koss: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox promote relief prospect Theo Denlinger to Triple-A Worcester

As part of a slew of minor-league roster moves, the Red Sox promoted relief prospect Theo Denlinger from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday.

Denlinger, 26, was acquired from the White Sox back in February in exchange for fellow right-hander Franklin German.

To begin his first season as a member of the Red Sox organization, Denlinger posted a 2.29 ERA and 3.10 FIP with 20 strikeouts to seven walks in 14 relief appearances (19 2/3 innings) for the Sea Dogs. Opponents only hit .149 against him while his 6.4 percent line-drive rate and 57.4 percent groundball rate would rank among the best in the Eastern League if he was qualified.

Denlinger, who turns 27 in July, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 48 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks 19th among pitchers in the organization. The Iowa native was originally selected by Chicago in the seventh round of the 2021 amateur draft out of Bradley College (Peoria, Ill.) and signed with the club for just $10,000.

Standing at a burly 6-foot-3 and 240 pounds, Denlinger primarily operates with a two-pitch mix that consists of a 93-96 mph fastball that tops out at 97 mph and a 79-82 mph slider that features long, 11-to-5 break. He has also shown the ability to throw a two-seam fastball and cutter, both of which he first implemented last year.

Denlinger becomes the second member of the White Sox’ 2021 draft class to make the jump to Worcester this season, joining fellow righty reliever Taylor Broadway. Broadway, of course, was acquired from Chicago as the player to be named later in last August’s Reese McGuire/Jake Diekman trade. He currently owns a 5.40 ERA (6.91 FIP) in 15 outings (23 1/3 innings) for the WooSox.

Troye, Bell also promoted

Denlinger was not the only Red Sox relief prospect to receive a promotion on Tuesday. Righties Christopher Troye and Brock Bell were also moved up to Portland and Greenville, respectively.

Troye, 24, forged a 1.96 ERA and 3.60 FIP with 37 strikeouts to nine walks in 14 appearances (18 1/3 innings) for Greenville. The 2021 12th-round draft pick out of UC Santa Barbara has struck out nearly 49 percent of the batters he has faced so far this season.

Bell, 25, produced a 4.58 ERA and 4.64 FIP with 15 strikeouts to five walks in 11 appearances (19 2/3 innings) for Low-A Salem. The 2019 seventh-round selection out of State College of Florida, Manatee–Sarasota is the son of former All-Star infielder Jay Bell.

(Picture of Theo Denlinger: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox to promote top prospect Marcelo Mayer to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox are promoting top prospect Marcelo Mayer from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Mayer will join the Sea Dogs in New Jersey this week for their upcoming series against the Somerset Patriots, the Double-A affiliate of the Yankees. The 20-year-old shortstop would then be on track to make his Hadlock Field debut on June 6, when the Sea Dogs return home to host the Akron RubberDucks (Guardians affiliate) in the first of a six-game set.

The promotion comes at a time when Mayer has been absolutely raking with Greenville. In 18 games with the Drive this month, the left-handed hitter has slashed a stout .321/.357/.641 with seven doubles, six home runs, 23 RBIs, 14 runs scored, two stolen bases, four walks, and 17 strikeouts over 84 plate appearances.

On the 2023 campaign as a whole, Mayer has batted .290/.366/.524 with 11 doubles, one triple, seven homers, 34 runs driven in, 23 runs scored, five stolen bases, 17 walks, and 34 strikeouts in 35 games (164 plate appearances) for Greenville. He missed some time earlier this month due to some left shoulder soreness, but now appears to be fully healthy.

Among qualified hitters in the South Atlantic League, Mayer currently ranks 15th in batting average, 11th in slugging percentage and OPS (.890), seventh in extra-base hits (19), ninth in total bases (76), and 11th in isolated power (.234), per MiLB.com.

On the other side of the ball, Mayer has unsurprisingly seen all of his playing time on the field this season come at shortstop. The 6-foot-2, 188-pounder served as Greenville’s designated hitter on Sunday, but has otherwise logged 279 innings at short while committing a total of seven errors in 99 defensive opportunities.

A native of California, Mayer was originally selected by the Red Sox with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft out of Eastlake High School. He became Boston’s highest-drafted player since 1967 and signed with the club for $6.664 million.

Less than two full years after signing, Mayer now finds himself one step closer to the major-leagues. As noted by Speier, he is the youngest Red Sox draftee to reach Double-A since 2010, when both Anthony Rizzo and Casey Kelly made the jump to Portland.

Mayer, who does not turn 21 until December, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 1 prospect in Boston’s farm system and the No. 12 prospect in the sport. Barring a surprise, he will likely spend the rest of the season with the Sea Dogs, which could — in theory — put him on track to garner big-league consideration at some point in 2024.

For the time being, though, Mayer will join a talented Sea Dogs roster that includes No. 3 prospect Ceddanne Rafaela, No. 7 prospect Nick Yorke, No. 15 prospect Nathan Hickey, No. 18 prospect Matthew Lugo, No. 23 prospect Niko Kavadas, and No. 27 prospect Chase Meidroth.

Mayer, Meidroth, and Hickey were all on Greenville’s Opening Day roster.

(Picture of Marcelo Mayer: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox promote pitching prospect Dalton Rogers to High-A Greenville

The Red Sox have promoted pitching prospect Dalton Rogers from Low-A Salem to High-A Greenville, per the club’s minor-league transactions log.

In six starts for Salem to begin the 2023 season, Rogers posted a 2.49 ERA and 2.18 FIP with 38 strikeouts to 13 walks over 21 2/3 innings of work in which he held opposing hitters to a .139 batting average against.

Among 84 Carolina League pitchers who have accrued at least 20 innings coming into play on Wednesday, Rogers ranks first in strikeouts per nine innings (15.78), first in strikeout rate (41.3 percent), third in opponents’ batting average, 22nd in WHIP (1.11), 30th in swinging-strike rate (13.6 percent), 20th in ERA, second in FIP, and seventh in xFIP (2.83), per FanGraphs.

As is the case with most young hurlers, though, Rogers has proven to be vulnerable to ball four at times. The 22-year-old averaged more than five walks per nine innings in his six starts with Salem, which is certainly suboptimal. Still, he managed to avoid any serious damage thanks to his ability to miss bats.

Rogers is in the midst of his first full professional season after being selected by Boston in the third round (99th overall pick) of last year’s draft out of Southern Mississippi. The Brandon, Miss. native, who spent part of his summer pitching for the Cotuit Kettleers of the Cape Cod Baseball League, signed with the club for $447,500 and made two relief appearances for the rookie-level Florida Complex League Red Sox in his pro debut.

Coming into the 2023 campaign, Rogers was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 29 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The publication noted that the 5-foot-11, 172-pound lefty “hides the ball well while driving down the mound to create good extension and a low release height. That combination, along with the ride and arm-side run on his 93-94 mph fastball (which tops out at 96), has given hitters fits at the top of the zone. He’s leaned heavily on his fastball to this point, though he has two secondaries — a low-80s changeup and low-80s slider — with the shape to develop into weapons if he can control them.”

As things stand now, Rogers is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the Red Sox’ No. 37 prospect, which ranks 11th among pitchers in the organization. Like Baseball America, SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall notes that the southpaw possesses a deceptive delivery and operates with a three-pitch mix that is headlined by a mid-90s heater that has the potential to be a “plus pitch.”

Both Baseball America and SoxProspects.com are relatively high on Rogers, which likely reflects how the Red Sox feel about him. With that being said, though, Rogers will need to continue improving his control and command if he intends on developing as a starter. If not, he could eventually head to the bullpen as a multi-inning threat.

Rogers, who does not turn 23 until next January, becomes the second member of Boston’s 2022 draft class to make the jump from Salem to Greenville this season. Fellow lefty Nathan Landry, who was taken in the 15th round out of Missouri, was promoted earlier this month.

(Picture of Dalton Rogers: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox to promote top pitching prospect Shane Drohan to Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox are promoting top pitching prospect Shane Drohan from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester, according to Chris Henrique of Beyond the Monster.

Drohan, 24, has gotten his 2023 season off to a blistering start. In six starts for Portland to begin the year, the left-hander posted a miniscule 1.32 ERA and 2.26 FIP with 36 strikeouts to nine walks over 34 innings of work.

After earning Eastern League Pitcher of the Month honors in April, Drohan tossed six scoreless innings in his first start of May and then allowed a season-high three earned runs over five innings in his last time out against the Somerset Patriots this past Wednesday.

Among qualified Eastern League pitchers, Drohan ranks 15th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.53), third in walks per nine innings (2.38), ninth in strikeout rate (28.1 percent), fourth in walk rate (7 percent), second in batting average against (.161), second in WHIP (0.82), sixth in swinging-strike rate (14.7 percent), first in ERA, third in FIP, and seventh in xFIP (3.03) per FanGraphs.

Drohan is in his third full season with the Red Sox organization after originally being selected in the fifth and final 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 risen through the prospect ranks.

After closing out the 2022 campaign in Portland, Drohan made an effort to put on weight during the offseason. The lefty came into the spring listed at 6-foot-3 and 195 pounds and impressed at camp by displaying a newly-implemented cutter as well as a fastball with increased velocity.

As noted by 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 a 75-78 mph curveball.

Given the kind of season he has put together thus far, Drohan is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 6 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks first among pitchers in the organization. He is now slated to join a WooSox starting rotation that includes fellow left-handed pitching prospects Brandon Walter and Chris Murphy.

It should be interesting to see how Drohan adjusts to facing more advanced competition moving forward. Although he does not turn 25 until next January, Drohan can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft or the first time in his career later this year. Even before Monday’s promotion, he had already made a strong case to be added to the Sox’ 40-man roster in November.

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

Red Sox promote prospects Nathan Hickey, Chase Meidroth to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox have promoted catching prospect Nathan Hickey and infield prospect Chase Meidroth from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, per the club’s minor-league transactions log.

Hickey, 23, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 15 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks first among catchers in the organization. The Red Sox originally selected the Florida product in the fifth round of the 2021 amateur draft and signed him for exactly $1 million.

After closing out his first full professional season with the Drive, Hickey returned to Greenville for the start of the 2023 campaign. Leading up to Monday’s promotion, the left-handed hitter was batting a stout .294/.402/.588 with six doubles, one triple, four home runs, nine RBIs, 13 runs scored, 12 walks, and 20 strikeouts in his first 18 games (82 plate appearances) of the year.

For as impressive as those numbers may be, Hickey has been struggling on the other side of the ball. Defensively, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound backstop logged 146 innings behind the plate for Greenville. He allowed three passed balls and was 0-for-37 when it came to throwing out base stealers, though that might not have been all on him.

To that end, as noted by SoxProspects.com’s Chris Hatfield, Hickey could benefit from this promotion since Sea Dogs manager Chad Epperson previously served as Boston’s catching coordinator for 12 season. With Elih Marrero on the injured list and Matt Donlan on the development list, Hickey will form a catching tandem in Portland with fellow SEC product Stephen Scott for the time being.

Meidroth, meanwhile, is ranked by Baseball America as the No. 27 prospect in the Red Sox’ farm system. The 21-year-old was taken by Boston in the fourth round of last summer’s draft out of San Diego. He signed with the club for $272,500.

After showing signs of promise between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem in his pro debut, Meidroth broke camp with Greenville this spring. In 20 games with the Drive, the stocky right-handed hitter batted .338/.495/.459 with three doubles, two home runs, 14 RBIs, 19 runs scored, four stolen bases, 21 walks, and 20 strikeouts across 97 trips to the plate.

Defensively, Meidroth has seen the majority of his playing time come at either second or third base. While in Greenville, the 5-foot-9, 170 pounder logged 92 innings at second and 73 innings at third and committed a total of two errors in 51 chances.

Meidroth, who turns 22 in July, is now slated to join a Sea Dogs infield mix that includes Alex Binelas, Niko Kavadas, Christian Koss, Matthew Lugo, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Nick Yorke. It should be interesting to see how he adjusts to more advanced competition at the Double-A level.

Other moves:

In addition to promoting Hickey and Meidroth to Portland, the Red Sox made several other minor-league roster moves. Infielder Edwin Diaz was promoted from Portland to Triple-A Worcester and catcher Ronaldo Rosario was promoted from Salem to Greenville.

Furthermore, catcher Enderso Lira was added to Salem’s roster from extended spring training while right-hander Ryan Zeferjahn was activated from Portland’s injured list. Like Donlan, left-hander Sylar Arias was transferred to the Sea Dogs’ development list.

(Picture of Nathan Hickey: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox make promotions within amateur scouting department by elevating Paul Toboni, Devin Pearson

The Red Sox have promoted Paul Toboni from director of amateur scouting to a vice president role in charge of amateur scouting and player development, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Toboni, 32, has spent the last three seasons as Boston’s amateur scouting director after being named to the position in September 2019. The native Californian oversaw the 2020, 2021, and 2022 drafts, which saw the Red Sox select (and sign) the likes of top prospects Nick Yorke, Blaze Jordan, Marcelo Mayer, Niko Kavadas, and Mikey Romero, among others.

After playing baseball and graduating from The University of California, Berkeley in 2012, Toboni went on to earn his Masters of Business Administration from The University of Notre Dame two years later. He got his start in professional baseball by interning with the Oakland Athletics during the 2013 season.

Before the start of the 2015 campaign, Toboni joined the Red Sox’ baseball operations department in a similar capacity. He then served as an area scout who was responsible for covering northern Texas and northern Louisiana from October 2015 until November 2016. From 2017-2019, he operated as the club’s assistant director of amateur scouting under Mike Rikard.

Rikard was named Boston’s vice president of scouting towards the end of the 2019 season, allowing Toboni to assume the role of amateur scouting director. Now a vice president himself, Toboni is slated to join Rikard and vice president of scouting development and integration Gus Quattlebaum in that regard.

With Toboni’s elevation, Speier also reports that assistant director of amateur scouting Devin Pearson has been promoted to director of amateur scouting.

Pearson, 28, was originally taken by the Blue Jays in the 30th round of the 2012 draft out of Carmel High School. Rather than go pro, though, he elected to go to college and — like Toboni — graduated from UC Berkeley in 2016.

The following February, Pearson began an internship within the Red Sox’ professional scouting department. He moved on to the amateur side of things that October before being elevated to assistant amateur scouting director in Sept. 2019.

The son of former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Dennis Pearson, Devin is set to turn 29 in January. He and Toboni will presumably play a key role in overseeing Boston’s amateur scouting efforts moving forward.

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

Red Sox promote infield prospect Matthew Lugo to Double-A Portland

In a series of minor-league transactions made on Friday, the Red Sox promoted infield prospect Matthew Lugo from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland.

Lugo, 21, will start at second base and bat sixth in his Double-A debut as the Sea Dogs go up against the Somerset Patriots at TD Bank Ballpark on Friday night.

Originally selected in the second round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy in Puerto Rico, Lugo — the nephew of the former All-Star outfielder — forwent his commitment to the University of Miami by signing with the Red Sox for $1.1. million. He is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 13 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

In 114 games with the Drive this season, Lugo batted a stout .288/.344/.500 to go along with 25 doubles, 10 triples, 18 home runs, 78 RBIs, 76 runs scored, 20 stolen bases, 35 walks, and 100 strikeouts over 512 plate appearances. He was named South Atlantic League Player of the Month in August.

Among qualified South Atlantic League hitters, the right-handed hitting Lugo ranked 12th in strikeout rate (19.5%), sixth in batting average, 27th in on-base percentage, third in slugging percentage, 10th in OPS (.844), sixth in isolated power (.212), sixth in speed score (7.4), and 10th in wRC+ (126), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Lugo will be making just his eighth start of the season at second base on Friday. In Greenville, the 6-foot-1, 187-pounder logged 58 innings at second, 216 1/3 innings at third, and 628 2/3 innings at shortstop, where he committed 20 errors.

As noted by SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall, though, Lugo moved from short to third in early August. There, the Manati native looked “a lot more comfortable defensively” while also being “more consistent” at the plate.

Lugo, who does not turn 22 until next May, should provide the Sea Dogs with a late-season boost after fellow infielder Alex Binelas was placed on the 7-day injured list because of a hamstring issue.

Beyond Lugo, the Red Sox also promoted right-hander Wyatt Olds and left-hander Brendan Cellucci to Portland on Friday.

(Picture of Matthew Lugo: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)