Tag: prospects

Red Sox’ Franklin Arias named Florida Complex League Player of the Week

Red Sox infield prospect Franklin Arias has been named the Florida Complex League Player of the Week for the week of June 24-30, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Arias went 7-for-15 (.467) with three doubles, one home run, six RBIs, four runs scored, five stolen bases, three walks, and three strikeouts in five games for the FCL Red Sox last week. The 18-year-old then went 4-for-7 (.571) with two doubles, one RBI, three runs scored, one stolen base, one walk, and one strikeout between Games 1 and 2 of Monday’s doubleheader against the FCL Braves at the JetBlue Park complex in Fort Myers.

Following Monday’s performance, Arias is now batting a stout .308/.432/.513 with 13 doubles, one triple, three home runs, 20 RBIs, 26 runs scored, 17 stolen bases, 23 walks, and 31 strikeouts in 35 games (146 plate appearances) for the FCL Red Sox after a relatively slow start to the season. The right-handed hitter leads Boston’s rookie-level affiliate in doubles, runs scored, stolen bases, extra-base hits (17), and total bases (60), per MiLB.com.

Defensively, Arias has seen all of his playing time on the field this season come at either shortstop or second base. The projectable 5-foot-11, 170-pounder has made 23 starts at short, where he has committed five errors in 98 chances, and eight at second, where he has yet to commit an error. He has also served as the FCL Red Sox’ designated hitter three times, including Game 2 of Monday’s twin bill.

Arias is currently regarded by both Baseball America and SoxProspects.com as the No. 21 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The native Venezuelan originally signed with the Red Sox for $525,000 as an international free agent coming out of Caracas in January 2023. He made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League last June and slashed .350/.440/.453 over 37 games while impressing with his defense.

Arias, who does not turn 19 until November, is the second member of this year’s FCL Red Sox to earn Player of the Week honors, joining fellow infielder and 2023 signee Yoeilin Cespedes (June 3-9). Cespedes has since received a promotion to Low-A Salem but has yet to appear in a game there due to left-hand soreness, according to SoxProspects.com Chris Hatfield.

As part of a new scheduling quirk, the 2024 Florida Complex League regular season will end on July 25. Barring a trade or other sort of surprise, it seems more likely than not that Arias will be joining Cespedes in Salem before the end of the summer.

(Picture of Franklin Arias: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox power-hitting prospect Cutter Coffey earns South Atlantic League Player of the Week honors

Red Sox power-hitting prospect Cutter Coffey has been named the South Atlantic League Player of the Week for the week of June 10-16, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Coffey put on quite the power display in High-A Greenville’s last series against the Asheville Tourists at Fluor Field. The right-handed hitting infielder went 8-for-19 (.421) with one double, six home runs, 15 RBIs, eight runs scored, five walks, and just one strikeout.

After going deep in Hickory last Sunday, Coffey homered in all five games he appeared in this past week. The 20-year-old slugger clubbed solo shots on Tuesday and Wednesday, a three-run blast on Thursday, a grand slam and another three-run homer on Friday, and a two-run bomb on Saturday before getting Sunday’s series finale off.

With his grand slam on Friday, Coffey became the first player in Greenville Drive history to hit a home run in five consecutive games. His three-run home run later that night helped him notch the first multi-homer game of his professional career.

Since returning from Greenville’s 7-day injured list on May 22, Coffey has batted .240/.337/.627 with two doubles, nine home runs, 24 RBIs, 13 runs scored, one stolen base, 10 walks, and 17 strikeouts in his last 19 games (86 plate appearances). On the 2024season as a whole, he has slashed .232/.313/.507 with six doubles, 11 homers, 33 runs driven in, 26 runs scored, four stolen bases, 15 walks, and 37 strikeouts over 35 games (160 plate appearances) for the Drive.

Among 83 hitters in the South Atlantic League who have made at least 160 trips to the plate to this point in the year, Coffey ranks 10th in slugging percentage, 17th in OPS (.820), second in isolated power (.275), 15th in swinging-strike rate (9.2 percent), and 20th in wRC+ (122), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Coffey has seen playing time at every infield position besides first base for Greenville this season. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder has logged 140 1/3 innings at third base, 113 innings at shortstop, and 17 innings at second base, committing 13 errors in 91 total defensive chances. He has also started four games as the Drive’s designated hitter.

Coffey, who just turned 20 last month, is currently ranked by SoxProspects.com as the No. 35 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The California native was originally selected by the Red Sox with the 41st overall pick in the 2022 amateur draft out of Liberty High School in Bakersfield. He signed with the club for $1.85 million and forwent his commitment to the University of Texas by doing so.

After making his professional debut in the Florida Complex League that summer, Coffey spent the first four months of the 2023 campaign with Low-A Salem before first arriving in Greenville last August. He has since hit .202/.293/.399 in 53 games (239 plate appearances) with the Drive, though the results as of late have certainly been more encouraging.

Coffey is the second member of the Drive to earn South Atlantic League Player of the Week honors this season, joining fellow infielder Tyler Miller (April 22-28). On the flip side, right-hander Juan Daniel Encarnacion was named South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week for the week of May 6-12.

Miller and Encarnacion have since been promoted to Double-A Portland. As such, it will be interesting to see if Coffey joins them on the Sea Dogs before the season draws to a close.

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

Red Sox’ Kristian Campbell named Eastern League Player of the Week

Rising Red Sox prospect Kristian Campbell has been named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the week of June 10-16, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Campbell enjoyed a productive week in Double-A Portland’s series against the Reading Fightin Phils. Appearing in all six games at FirstEnergyStadium, Campbell went 12-for-28 (.429) with four doubles, two home runs, seven RBIs, nine runs scored, one stolen base, one walk, and eight strikeouts.

After collecting six hits in the first two games of the series, Campbell went 0-for-5 on Thursday to snap a nine-game hitting streak. He then went deep twice on Friday to mark the first multi-homer game of his professional career and closed out the weekend by stroking three more hits on Sunday.

Since being promoted on June 4, Campbell has batted .392/.456/.667 with six doubles, one triple, two home runs, 10 runs driven in, 13 runs scored, two stolen bases, five walks, and 10 strikeouts in his first 12 games (57 plate appearances) with Portland. This comes after he slashed .306/.418/.558 with 13 doubles, eight homers, 25 RBIs, 29 runs scored, three stolen bases, 26 walks, and 47 strikeouts in 40 games (177 plate appearances) with Greenville to begin his first full season as a pro.

Defensively, Campbell has seen playing time at two different positions since joining the Sea Dogs earlier this month. The 6-foot-3, 210-pounder has started four games at second base and six in center field after being used in a similar capacity with the Drive. He has also started two games as Portland’s designated hitter after serving as Greenville’s DH on eight separate occasions.

Campbell, who turns 22 later this month, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 30 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Georgia Tech product was taken by the Red Sox with the 132nd overall selection in last year’s draft, which is the pick the club received as compensation for losing Xander Bogaerts to the Padres in free agency the previous winter.

After signing with the Red Sox for $492,700 last summer, Campbell made his professional debut in the Florida Complex League but quickly worked his way up to Greenville, skipping Low-A Salem altogether, in late August. He then played a major role in helping the Drive take home their first South Atlantic League title since 2017.

As highlighted by The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, Campbell spent most of the offseason in Fort Myers to work on his strength and conditioning as well as his swing. He added some bulk to his wiry frame and proceeded to turn heads in his first spring training by displaying eye-opening exit velocity at the plate on the back fields of the Fenway South complex.

“He hits the crap out of the ball,” Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham recently told Speier. “His swing is incredibly fast. He drives the ball to all fields. He has really good plate discipline. He’s a hitter that does a lot of things really well. It’s exciting to see what he could potentially do and already what he’s done.”

Cambell is the fourth member of the Sea Dogs to earn Eastern League Player of the Week honors this season, joining Matthew Lugo (April 15-21), Blaze Jordan (April 22-28), and Kyle Teel (May 27-June 2). On the flip side, left-hander Zach Penrod was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the week of May 13-19.

(Picture of Kristian Campbell: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Yoeilin Cespedes named Florida Complex League Player of the Week

Red Sox infield prospect Yoeilin Cespedes has been named the Florida Complex League Player of the Week for the week of June 3-9, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Cespedes, 18, appeared in four games for the FCL Red Sox last week. The right-handed hitter went 7-for-16 (.438) with two doubles, two home runs, six RBIs, six runs scored, three stolen bases, one walk, and one strikeout. He homered in back-to-back games (June 4 and 7) and is now riding a seven-game hitting streak as well as a 10-game on-base streak.

On the 2024 season — his first in the United States — as a whole, Cespedes is batting a stout .315/.393/.616 with eight doubles, one triple, four homers, 22 RBIs, 16 runs scored, three stolen bases, nine walks, and 13 strikeouts over 20 games (84 plate appearances) for Boston’s rookie-level affiliate.

Among 81 qualified hitters in the Florida Complex League coming into play on Monday, Cespedes ranked 12th in strikeout rate (15.5 percent), 14th in batting average, 29th in on-base percentage, second in slugging percentage, fifth in OPS (1.009), third in isolated power (.301), and 10th in wRC+ (157), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Cespedes has effectively seen his playing time split between second base and shortstop so far this year. The 5-foot-10, 181-pounder has made five starts at the former and seven at the latter, committing three errors (all at short) and turning three double plays. He has also started eight games at DH, though five of those starts came in the early stages of the FCL season since he was still working his way back from a quadriceps strain.

Cespedes, who does not turn 19 until September, is currently regarded by both Baseball America and SoxProspects.com as the No. 6 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Dominican Republic native originally signed with the Red Sox for $1.4 million as a highly-touted international free agent coming out of Azua in January 2023.

As part of his professional debut last season, Cespedes was named a Dominican Summer League All-Star and the Red Sox’ Minor League Latin Program Position Player of the Year. He is not yet viewed as a top-100 prospect in the sport but may not be too far off from garnering that kind of consideration.

Unlike past years, the 2024 Florida Complex League season will end in late July as part of a new scheduling quirk. Even if it looks like he is ready for a new challenge, the Red Sox will be sure to exhibit patience when it comes to Cespedes’ development. Still, it will be interesting to see if he makes the jump to Low-A Salem — and therefore gets his first taste of full-season ball — before or after the FCL Red Sox play their final game of the summer.

(Picture of Yoeilin Cespedes: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox promote top outfield prospect Miguel Bleis to High-A Greenville

The Red Sox are promoting top outfield prospect Miguel Bleis from Low-A Salem to High-A Greenville, as was first reported by The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Bleis, 20, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The right-handed hitter batted .257/.349/.398 with 10 doubles, one triple, four home runs, 22 RBIs, 24 runs scored, 16 stolen bases, 21 walks, and 38 strikeouts over 43 games (195 plate appearances) for Salem to begin the 2024 season.

After undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a left shoulder subluxation last summer, Bleis unsurprisingly got off to a slow start in his return to Salem this spring. He struggled to a .573 OPS through the end of April before turning a corner offensively in May by slashing .318/.408/.506. He then missed some time at the beginning of the month while recovering from a root canal but extended his hitting streak to 16 games and on-base streak to 25 games upon returning to action last week.

Among 79 qualified hitters in the Carolina League to this point in the year, Bleis ranks 18th in strikeout rate (19.5 percent), 25th in batting average, 30th in on-base percentage, 26th in slugging percentage and OPS (.747), 24th in isolated power (.140), fourth in line-drive rate (30.2 percent), and 27th in swinging-strike rate (10.9 percent) and wRC+ (121), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Bleis saw the majority of his playing time in Salem this season come in center field. The 6-foot-2, 203-pounder logged 272 innings in center while committing two errors and recording two outfield assists. He also started six games in right field, where notched an additional assist, and six at designated hitter.

Bleis, who just turned 20 in March, originally signed with the Red Sox for $1.5 million as a highly-touted international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in January 2021. The San Pedro de Macoris native made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League that July and followed that by turning heads in the 2022 Florida Complex League.

On the heels of an exciting stateside debut, Bleis came into the 2023 campaign ranked by Baseball America as the No. 88 prospect in the sport. He had a tough time of things in his first go-around with Salem and slashed .230/.282/.325 over 31 games before straining his shoulder and ultimately going under the knife last June.

As such, Bleis saw his prospect stock fall somewhat over the winter but is starting to gain some of it back. A new challenge in the form of a promotion to Greenville, where he will be tasked with facing more advanced pitching, could help him further elevate his profile and get back on top-100 prospects lists.

In making the jump from Salem, Bleis is now slated to join an outfield mix in Greenville that — at the moment — includes the likes of Allan Castro, Juan Chacon, Jhostynxon Garcia, Bryan Gonzalez, Eduardo Lopez, and Miguel Ugueto, among others. He will likely make his High-A debut in the Drive’s upcoming series against the Asheville Tourists at Fluor Field this week.

(Picture of Miguel Bleis: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox top catching prospect Kyle Teel named Eastern League Player of the Week

Top Red Sox catching prospect Kyle Teel has been named the Eastern League Player of the Week for the week of May 27-June 2, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Teel enjoyed a productive week in Double-A Portland’s latest series on the road against the Altoona Curve. Appearing in all six games, the left-handed hitting 22-year-old went 10-for-24 (.417) with one double, three home runs, 11 RBIs, six runs scored, two stolen bases, three walks, and five strikeouts.

After going deep in Tuesday’s opener and going hitless on Wednesday, Teel went 3-for-4 on Thursday before coming through in the clutch on back-to-back nights. With his side trailing and down to their final strike on Friday, Teel crushed a game-tying three-run homer. He followed that up by clubbing a go-ahead grand slam in the ninth on Saturday. The Sea Dogs won both contests and are riding a three-game winning streak after taking Sunday’s series finale.

On the heels of another strong road trip, Teel is now batting a stout .307/.411/.497 with 11 doubles, six home runs, 34 RBIs, 34 runs scored, three stolen bases, 24 walks, and 40 strikeouts over 40 games (180 plate appearances) for Portland this season. That is especially encouraging when considering he was slashing just .213/.333/.344 through the end of April.

Among 88 qualified Eastern League hitters, Teel ranks 16th in walk rate (13.3 percent) and isolated power (.190), fourth in batting average and on-base percentage, sixth in slugging percentage, third in OPS (.908), ninth in line-drive rate (28.3 percent), and second in wRC+ (159), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Teel has unsurprisingly seen all of his playing time on the field this season come at catcher. The 6-foot, 190-pound backstop has logged 232 1/3 innings behind the plate for Portland thus far, allowing just two passed balls while throwing out five of 36 possible base stealers. He has also started 13 games as the Sea Dogs’ designated hitter.

Teel, who turned 22 in February, is in the midst of his first full professional season after being selected by the Red Sox with the 14th overall pick in last summer’s draft out of Virginia. The New Jersey native signed with the club for $4 million and made it up to Portland before the 2023 campaign drew to a close. He is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 3 prospect (and best defensive catcher) in Boston’s farm system and the No. 47 prospect in the sport.

Teel joins Matthew Lugo (April 15-21) and Blaze Jordan (April 22-28) as the third member of the Sea Dogs to earn Eastern League Player of the Week honors this season. On the flip side, left-hander Zach Penrod was named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the week of May 13-19.

Lugo and Penrod have since earned promotions to Triple-A Worcester after getting off to impressive starts in Portland. Teel, one-third of Boston’s ‘Big Three’ alongside fellow top prospects Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony, may not be too far behind.

(Picture of Kyle Teel: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox promote hard-hitting prospect Kristian Campbell to Double-A Portland

With Matthew Lugo making the jump to Triple-A Worcester, the Red Sox are promoting fellow prospect Kristian Campbell from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Campbell, who turns 22 later this month, is enjoying a productive first full season in pro ball after being drafted by the Red Sox out of Georgia Tech last summer. The right-handed hitter batted .306/.418/.558 with 13 doubles, eight home runs, 25 RBIs, 29 runs scored, three stolen bases, 26 walks, and 47 strikeouts over 40 games (177 plate appearances) for the Drive to begin the 2024 campaign.

Among 70 qualified hitters in the South Atlantic League, Campbell ranks seventh in batting average and total bases (82), third in on-base percentage and extra-base hits (21), second in slugging percentage, first in OPS (.976), fourth in isolated power (.252), and 15th in walk rate (14.7 percent), per MiLB.com’s leaderboards.

Defensively, Campbell has mainly split his playing time this season between second base and center field. The versatile 6-foot-3, 191-pounder did not commit an error at either position with Greenville and made one start at third base. He has prior experience at both corner outfield spots as well.

A Georgia native himself, Campbell was taken by the Red Sox with the 132nd overall selection in the 2023 amateur draft. That was the same pick the club received as compensation for losing Xander Bogaerts to the Padres in free agency the previous winter.

Campbell signed with the Red Sox for $492,700 last July and, after a brief stop in the Florida Complex League, played a pivotal role in Greenville taking home the 2023 South Atlantic League title. The 21-year-old spent most of this past offseason in Fort Myers and drew plenty of praise during spring training thanks in part to displaying eye-popping exit velocity at the plate. To that end, he is currently ranked by Baseball America as the No. 30 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

As is the case with Lugo in Worcester, it should be interesting to see how Campbell adjusts to more advanced competition in Portland. He nonetheless joins a stacked Sea Dogs roster that — at the moment — includes the likes of Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, Kyle Teel, Luis Perales, Wikelman Gonzalez, Nick Yorke, and Eddinson Paulino, among others.

(Picture of Kristian Campbell: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox promote prospects Jhostynxon Garcia, Jedixson Paez to High-A Greenville

The Red Sox have promoted outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia and right-hander Jedixson Paez from Low-A Salem to High-A Greenville, according to the club’s MiLB.com transactions log.

Garcia and Paez are currently ranked by SoxProspects.com as the Nos. 35 and 47 prospects in Boston’s farm system. The pair of Venezuelans originally signed with the Red Sox as international free agents in July 2019 and January 2021, respectively.

Garcia, 21, batted .258/.365/.517 with six doubles, one triple, a team-leading five home runs, 19 RBIs, 20 runs scored, 14 stolen bases, 15 walks, and 25 strikeouts over 24 games (104 plate appearances) for Salem to begin the 2024 season. The right-handed hitter was sidelined for over two weeks (from late April through early May) with a left hamstring strain but still maintained his status as one of the Red Sox’ top power threats upon returning to action.

Among 109 Carolina League hitters who have made at least 100 trips to the plate this year, Garcia ranks 21st in walk rate (14.4 percent), 34th in batting average, 28th in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging percentage and OPS (.882), first in isolated power (.258), third in speed score (8.2), and sixth in wRC+ (152), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Garcia made 12 starts in center field and nine starts in right field for Salem. The 6-foot, 163-pounder committed one error and recorded one outfield assist (both from center) in 39 total defensive chances between the two spots. He has past experience in left field as well.

Garcia, who does not turn 22 until December, will join an outfield mix in Greenville that already includes the likes of Allan Castro, Kristian Campbell, Miguel Ugueto, and Bryan Gonzalez. He should provide the Drive with additional depth in the absences of Juan Chacon and Caden Rose, who are both currently on the 7-day injured list.

Paez, meanwhile, posted a 2.53 ERA (2.28 FIP) with 35 strikeouts to four walks in seven appearances (five starts) spanning 32 innings for Salem this season. The 20-year-old righty was used as a bulk reliever in his last two times out and went four innings in each outing, allowing a total of three runs (two earned) on 11 hits, one walk, and five punchouts.

Among 48 pitchers in the Carolina League who have accrued at least 30 innings this year, Paez ranks 16th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.84), third in walks per nine innings (1.13), walk rate (3 percent), and swinging-strike rate (16.7 percent), 18th in strikeout rate (26.5 percent), 14th in groundball rate (47.2 percent), ninth in ERA, and second in FIP and xFIP (.251), per FanGraphs. He also leads that group with a .380 batting average on balls put in play, which suggests that the defense behind him has struggled at times.

Listed at 6-foot-1 and 170 pounds, Paez throws from a three-quarters arm slot and has some effort in his delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the young hurler operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of an 89-91 mph fastball that tops out at 92 mph, a 76-79 mph curveball, and an 82-84 mph changeup.

Paez, who does not turn 21 until next January, is slated to join a rotation mix in Greenville that includes the likes of the recently-activated Yordanny Monegro, Dalton Rogers, Juan Daniel Encarnacion, Cooper Adams, Connelly Early, and Hayden Mullins.

(Picture of Jedixson Paez: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox to promote infield prospect Tyler Miller to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox are promoting corner infield prospect Tyler Miller from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, according to Chase Ford of MiLB Central.

Miller, 24, had been with Greenville since the start of the 2023 season. In his first 36 games this year, the left-handed hitter batted .275/.321/.450 with nine doubles, one triple, four home runs, 17 RBIs, 16 runs scored, nine walks, and 28 strikeouts over 140 plate appearances for the Drive. He slashed .313/.365/.552 against right-handed pitching and just .171/.194/.171 against lefties.

Among 78 qualified hitters in the South Atlantic League this season, Miller ranks 23rd in strikeout rate (20 percent) and OPS (.771), 17th in batting average and slugging percentage, 21st in isolated power (.176), 20th in line-drive rate (26 percent), 28th in swinging-strike rate (10.7 percent), and 30th in wRC+ (119), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Miller has primarily split his playing time between first and third base in 2024. With Greenville, the 6-foot-1, 193-pounder made 18 starts at first and 16 at the hot corner while committing six errors in 211 total defensive chances. He also has limited experience at all three outfield spots.

Miller was originally selected by the Red Sox in the ninth round of the 2021 amateur draft out of Auburn. The Alabama native signed for $157,800 that July and has since posted a slash line of .252/.313/.400 with 29 homers and 61 RBIs in 268 career games (1,106 plate appearances) across three different minor-league levels. He is not currently viewed by SoxProspects.com as one of the top 60 prospects in Boston’s farm system.

By making the jump to Portland, Miller should provide the Sea Dogs with additional depth at first and third base in the absence of Blaze Jordan, who has been sidelined since May 12 after fracturing his left ring finger on a play at the plate. Besides Jordan, Alex Binelas has been the only Sea Dogs player to log innings at both corner infield positions this year.

Miller, who does not turn 25 until December, is the first position player from Greenville’s 2024 Opening Day roster to receive a promotion to Portland. As noted by SoxProspects.com’s Chris Hatfield, it appears as though the Red Sox opened a spot for Miller on the Sea Dogs’ roster by releasing reliever Cody Scroggins.

(Picture of Tyler Miller: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox prospect Blaze Jordan ‘expected to miss multiple weeks’ with fractured finger

Red Sox corner infield prospect Blaze Jordan is “expected to miss multiple weeks” after fracturing his left ring finger over the weekend, the club’s director of player development Brian Abraham told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Jordan suffered the injury in the first inning of Double-A Portland’s 10-7 loss to the Binghamton Rumble Ponies at Hadlock Field on Saturday afternoon. After drawing a two-out walk, the 21-year-old attempted to score from first on a Nick Yorke double. He was instead thrown out at home and fractured his finger while extending his left hand towards the plate.

Though he was taken out of the game and carted off the field, Jordan offered an optimistic take on the injury after the fact by tweeting “We’ll be back” with a heart emoji. He was placed on Portland’s 7-day injured list on Sunday but a more precise timetable for his return has not yet been revealed.

Jordan had been riding a 17-game hitting streak coming into play on Saturday, so this development certainly comes at an inopportune time. On the 2024 season as a whole, the right-handed hitter has batted .283/.342/.414 with seven doubles, two home runs, 16 RBIs, 12 runs scored, six walks, and 11 strikeouts in 26 games (111 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs.

Among qualified hitters in the Eastern League to this point in the year, Jordan boasts the lowest strikeout rate at 9.9 percent. He also ranks 17th in batting average, 37th in on-base percentage, 28th in slugging percentage, 33rd in OPS (.756), 21st in swinging-strike rate (9.9 percent), and 34th in wRC+ (116), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Jordan has unsurprisingly split time between first and third base with Portland this season. The 6-foot-1, 220-pounder has made nine starts at the former and 14 starts at the latter, committing a total of three errors in 97 defensive chances. He has also started three games at designated hitter.

A former third-round draft selection coming out of DeSoto Central High School in 2020, Jordan is currently ranked by Baseball America as the No. 17 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Mississippi native can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career later this year if he is not added to Boston’s 40-man roster by the protection deadline in November.

(Picture of Blaze Jordan: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)