Tag: prospects

Red Sox select Liberty High School infielder Cutter Coffey with second-round pick in 2022 MLB Draft

With the 41st overall pick in the 2022 MLB first-year player draft, the Red Sox have selected Liberty High School (Bakersfield, Calif.) shortstop Cutter Coffey.

The Red Sox were rewarded with the 41st selection in this year’s amateur draft after failing to sign second-round pick Jud Fabian out of the University of Florida last summer.

Coffey, 18, is regarded by Baseball America as the No. 65 prospect in this year’s draft class, 11 spots behind first-rounder Mikey Romero, who hails from California himself.

Unlike Romero, though, Coffey hits from the right side of the plate. In his senior season with the Patriots, Coffey batted a stout .442/.581/1.021 to go along with 13 doubles, three triples, 12 home runs, 32 RBIs, 42 runs scored, 13 stolen bases, 28 walks, and 17 strikeouts over 31 games spanning 129 trips to the plate.

Per his Baseball America scouting report, Coffey “made significant improvements as a hitter this spring” and is an “excellent athlete.” He “has average raw power to his pull side and began making more contact this spring to tap into it, but whether he’ll make enough contact remains an open question. At times he flashes the bat speed, strength and ability to make adjustments to project to be an above-average hitter, while at others he takes long, jagged swings that lack timing and balance and invite questions about whether he will be even a below-average hitter.”

On the other side of the ball, it should be noted that Coffey was a two-way player who also pitched in high school, though it seems like he is fully focused on being a position player now. According to Baseball America, the 6-foot-2, 190-pounder “has the natural actions for shortstop and a good internal clock. He has plenty of arm strength for the position and demonstrates an advanced feel for manipulating his arm stroke. His lateral range is a tick below-average, but he has a chance to stay at shortstop and projects to be an impact defender at either second or third base if he has to move.”

Coffey, who does not turn 19 until next May, is currently committed to play college baseball at the University of Texas. On that note, Baseball America’s Kyle Glaser reports that the infielder is “widely expected to sign for significantly above slot.” Glaser also relays that Romero is “expected to be an under-slot signing.”

The recommended slot value for the 41st overall pick in this year’s draft comes in at roughly $1,905,500 million. The Red Sox will make one more selection at No. 79 on Sunday before Day 1 of the draft comes to a close.

(Picture of Cutter Coffey: Daniel Shirey/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Red Sox select Orange Lutheran High School shortstop Mikey Romero with top pick in 2022 MLB Draft

With the 24th overall pick in the 2022 MLB first-year player draft, the Red Sox have selected Orange Lutheran High School (Calif.) shortstop Mikey Romero.

Romero, 18, is regarded by Baseball America as the 54th-ranked prospect in this year’s draft class. The California native is currently committed to play college baseball at Louisiana State University.

In 30 games with the Lancers this spring, the left-handed hitting Romero batted .372/.419/.659 with five doubles, five triples, four home runs, 26 RBIs, 24 runs scored, one stolen base, eight walks, and seven strikeouts over 105 trips to the plate.

Per his Baseball America scouting report, Romero “has a pretty, natural left-handed swing and an advanced feel for hitting. He identifies pitches well and frequently gets the barrel to the ball to make consistent contact, including against high-end velocity and quality breaking stuff. Though Romero makes lots of contact, it’s often soft contact. He has a slender build and lacks the strength to do damage even when he squares balls up. He needs to make substantial strength gains to reach his potential as an above-average hitter with below-average power, with opinions sharply divided on whether he will be able to.”

Defensively, the 6-foot-1, 175-pound infielder is “an instinctive defender” at shortstop, though there are some questions surrounding his future at the position. According to Baseball America, Romero possesses “sure hands and a quick transfer, but his range is limited by his fringe-average speed and his fringy arm strength makes it difficult for him to make throws moving to his right. He is likely to move to second base or play a utility role.”

Romero, who does not turn 19 until January, attended the same high school as Yankees ace Gerrit Cole and Brewers top prospect Garrett Mitchell. Under chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and amateur scouting director Paul Toboni, the Red Sox have made a habit of taking California-born prepsters in the first round of the draft.

Flash back to 2020, Boston selected Archbishop Mitty High School (San Jose, Calif.) second baseman Nick Yorke with the 17th overall pick. Last year, Eastlake High School (Chula Vista, Calif.) shortstop Marcelo Mayer was taken with the fourth overall selection.

Yorke wound up signing an under-slot deal with the Sox at $2.7 million, while Mayer signed at the recommended slot value of $6.664 million. This year, the slot value attached to the 24th overall pick in the draft comes in at roughly $2.975 million.

The Red Sox will have until August 1 to reach an agreement with Romero, as well as the rest of their draft picks. They will make two more selections (No. 41 and No. 79) before Day 1 of the MLB Draft concludes.

(Picture of Mikey Romero via his Instagram)

How did Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela fare in All-Star Futures Game?

Versatile Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela made his debut in the MLB All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium on Saturday night.

Representing the Red Sox alongside top pitching prospect Brayan Bello (who was replaced on the American League roster earlier this week), Rafaela was used as a pinch-hitter in the AL’s 6-4 victory over the National League in the seven-inning showcase.

The right-handed hitter came on for Yankees outfielder Jasson Dominguez in the top of the fourth inning and wound up going 0-for-2 with two strikeouts. Defensively, Rafaela took over at shortstop for another Yankees prospect in Anthony Volpe. He had one ball hit to him — a 74 mph grounder off the bat of Logan O’Hoppe — and fielded it cleanly to record the first out of the seventh inning.

Athletics catching prospect Shea Langeliers was named the game’s Most Valuable Player after going 1-for-2 with a solo home run. Blue Jays pitching prospect Yosver Zulueta earned the winning decision.

Rafaela, meanwhile, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 5 prospect in Boston’s farm system and the 84th-ranked prospect in all of baseball.

After beginning the 2022 season at High-A Greenville, Rafaela earned a promotion to Double-A Portland on June 7. Since then, the 21-year-old has batted a stout .282/.331/.564 to go along with six doubles, three triples, seven home runs, 19 RBIs, 21 runs scored, five stolen bases, five walks, and 23 strikeouts in his first 29 games (128 plate appearances) with the Sea Dogs.

On the other side of the ball, Rafaela has experience at six different positions. So far with Portland, the 5-foot-8, 152-pounder has logged nine innings at second base, 36 innings at shortstop, and 202 innings in center field, which is his best position.

Originally signed by the Red Sox for just $10,000 as an international free-agent coming out of Curacao a little more than five years ago, Rafaela — who turns 22 in September — can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the second time in his career this winter.

The Red Sox would need to add Rafaela to their 40-man roster by late November in order to prevent that from happening, which now seems all but guaranteed to happen.

(Picture of Ceddanne Rafaela: Rob Tringali/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Red Sox prospect Nick Northcut sets new single-season home run record for High-A Greenville

Red Sox power-hitting prospect Nick Northcut etched his name into Greenville Drive history on Wednesday afternoon.

In the fourth inning of High-A Greenville’s 9-4 win over Hudson Valley in Wappingers Falls, N.Y., Northcut clubbed a two-run home run off Renegades starter Blas Castano to left-center field.

It was Northcut’s 25th big fly of the year, meaning he had surpassed Tyler Dearden for the most single-season home runs in Drive history. Dearden (now with Double-A Portland) needed 91 games to hit 24 home runs last year.

Northcut, on the other hand, only needed 72 games to mash 25 homers for Greenville this season. Following Wednesday’s two-hit, two-RBI performance, the right-handed hitting infielder is now batting .221/.283/.529 with 10 doubles, 25 runs driven in, 40 runs scored, 19 walks, and 108 strikeouts across his first 300 plate appearances at the High-A level.

Among qualified South Atlantic League hitters, Northcut currently ranks first in home runs, third in RBIs, second in slugging percentage, 15th in OPS (.812), first in isolated power (.308), and first in at-bats per home run (11.04), per MiLB.com’s leaderboards.

Defensively, Northcut made his 39th start of the season at third base on Wednesday. The 6-foot-1, 205-pounder has logged 337 1/3 innings at the hot corner as well as 228 innings at first base and six innings at shortstop.

Northcut, 23, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the 11th round of the 11th round of the 2018 amateur draft out of William Mason High School. The Ohio native forwent his commitment to Vanderbilt University by signing with the club for $565,000.

Despite the impressive power numbers he has put up this year, Northcut is not regarded by industry publications such as Baseball America, MLB Pipeline, or SoxProspects as one of the top-ranked prospects in Boston’s farm system.

That likely has to do with Northcut’s low on-base percentage, low walk rate (6.3%), and high strikeout rate (36%). If Northcut can improve upon those tendencies, perhaps he could earn garner more recognition and even earn a promotion to Portland before season’s end.

(Picture of Nick Northcut: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox top prospect Triston Casas begins rehab assignment in Florida Complex League

Top Red Sox prospect Triston Casas began a rehab assignment in the Florida Complex League on Tuesday afternoon.

Batting third and starting at first base for the FCL Red Sox in their game against the FCL Braves at JetBlue Park, Casas went 0-for-1 with two walks and a strikeout. He was replaced at first base by Lyonell James in the top of the sixth inning.

Tuesday’s outing marked Casas’ first in-game action at any level since May 17, when he suffered a high right ankle sprain while running the basepaths at Polar Park. He was placed on Triple-A Worcester’s injured list five days later and has been rehabbing in Fort Myers since early June.

Due to the nature of his sprain, the left-handed hitting 22-year-old struggled to put any weight on his landing foot, which prevented him from swinging a bat pain-free until just recently.

Prior to spraining his ankle, Casas was batting .248/.359/.457 with nine doubles, six home runs, 22 RBIs, 22 runs scored, 23 walks, and 35 strikeouts in his first 36 games (156 plate appearances) of the season with the WooSox.

Regarded by Baseball America as the No. 2 prospect in Boston’s farm system and the No. 29 prospect in all of baseball, Casas very well could have been on the cusp of making his major-league debut right about now had he stayed healthy.

Instead, the former first-round pick out of American Heritage High School has lost nearly two months of development time. With that, it seems unlikely that Casas will be getting called up anytime soon, though a late-season promotion certainly cannot be ruled out depending on where the Red Sox are at later in the year.

(Picture of Triston Casas: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox’ Ceddanne Rafaela enters Baseball America’s top 100 prospects rankings

In the midst of a breakout season, Ceddanne Rafaela has entered Baseball America’s top-100 prospect rankings. Previously unranked, Rafaela is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 84 prospect in all of baseball.

The Red Sox at present have five of the top 100-prospects in the game, as Rafaela joins the likes of shortstop Marcelo Mayer (No. 14), right-hander Brayan Bello (No. 24), first baseman Triston Casas (No. 29), and second baseman Nick Yorke (No. 50). Outfielder Jarren Duran was previously in the top-100 but has since graduated from his prospect status.

Boston’s reigning Minor League Defensive Player of the Year, Rafaela began the 2022 season with High-A Greenville. After posting a .729 OPS with Low-A Salem last season, the 21-year-old batted a stout .330/.368/.594 in 45 games with the Drive (he also hit for the cycle on May 17) before earning a promotion to Double-A Portland on June 7.

Since then, the right-handed hitting Rafaela has slashed a steady .287/.331/.574 to go along with six doubles, three triples, seven home runs, 19 RBIs, 21 runs scored, five stolen bases, five walks, and 23 strikeouts across his first 28 games (125 plate appearances) with the Sea Dogs. Among Eastern League hitters who have made at least 120 plate appearances to this point in the season, Rafaela ranks 13th in batting average, second in slugging percentage, ninth in OPS (.905), third in isolated power (.287), second in speed score (8.8), and 16th in wRC+ (141), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Rafaela has continued to impress defensively while playing several positions. So far in Portland, the versatile 5-foot-8, 152 pounder has logged 36 innings at shortstop and 197 innings in center field. He showed off his athleticism by robbing Mets prospect Brandon McIlwain of a game-tying home run in the fifth inning of Portland’s 7-4 win over the Binghamton Rumble Ponies on Friday.

Rafaela, who turns 22 in September, has come a long way from a development standpoint since signing with the Red Sox for just $10,000 as an international free agent coming out of Curacao in July 2017. Taking that into consideration, the Willemstad native is all but a lock to be added to Boston’s 40-man roster this fall in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

Both Rafaela and Bello, who also signed with Boston in 2017, will be representing the Red Sox organization in next weekend’s All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium. Bello, of course, may not be able to attend if he is still on the big-league roster.

(Picture of Ceddanne Rafaela: Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

Ceddanne Rafaela to represent Red Sox in All-Star Futures Game

Ceddanne Rafaela will represent the Red Sox in the All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium later this month, Major League Baseball announced on Wednesday.

Full rosters for the American and National League squads will be revealed on Thursday, but eight participants — including Rafaela — were unveiled earlier Wednesday morning on MLB Network Radio.

Rafaela, 21, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the 22nd-ranked prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox originally signed the versatile infielder/outfielder for just $10,000 as an international free-agent coming out of Curacao in July 2017.

After earning Minor League Defensive Player of the Year honors within the organization in 2021, Rafaela began the 2022 campaign at High-A Greenville. In 45 games with the Drive, the speedy right-handed hitter batted a stout .330/.368/.594 (155 wRC+) with 17 doubles, four triples, nine home runs, 36 RBIs, 37 runs scored, 14 stolen bases, 10 walks, and 51 strikeouts over 209 plate appearances. He even hit for the cycle on May 17.

That level of production at High-A earned Rafaela a promotion to Double-A Portland on June 7. Since then, the Willemstad native has slashed .278/.333/.578 (143 wRC+) with five doubles, two triples, six homers, 18 RBIs, 14 runs scored, three stolen bases, five walks, and 20 strikeouts in his first 23 games (100 plate appearances) with the Sea Dogs.

Listed at 5-foot-8 and 152 pounds, Rafaela has experience at all three outfield positions and every infield position besides first base. This season alone between Greenville and Portland, he has seen playing time at second base, third base, and (primarily) center field.

Rafaela, who turns 22 in September, can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the second time in his career this winter. And, unlike last year, he now appears to be a slam dunk to be added to Boston’s 40-man roster in order to receive Rule 5 protection.

While Rafaela may not be alone in representing the Red Sox at the All-Star Futures Game, he will definitely be heading to Los Angeles on July 16 to participate in the seven-inning showcase.

(Picture of Ceddanne Rafaela: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox top prospect Marcelo Mayer earns Carolina League Player of the Week honors

Top Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer has been named the Carolina League Player of the Week for the week of June 27 – July 3, Minor League Baseball announced on Tuesday.

In Low-A Salem’s last series on the road against the Lynchburg Hillcats, Mayer went 10-for-23 (.435) across five games with five doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, seven runs scored, one stolen base, three walks, and six strikeouts. On the 2022 season as a whole, the left-handed hitting shortstop is slashing a robust .291/.376/.522 with 21 doubles, seven homers, 29 runs driven in, 32 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 25 walks, and 58 strikeouts over 44 games spanning 210 trips to the plate.

Among qualified Carolina League hitters, Mayer ranks eighth in batting average, 10th in on-base percentage, third in slugging percentage, third in OPS (.898), fifth in isolated power (.231), and third in wRC+ (145), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Mayer has unsurprisingly seen all his playing time on the field this season come at shortstop. The 6-foot-3, 190 pounder has logged 336 1/3 innings at the position and has committed a total of six errors.

Mayer, 19, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 1 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox originally selected the California-born infielder with the fourth overall pick in last year’s draft out of Eastlake High School in Chula Vista.

As encouraging as Mayer’s first full season in pro ball has been thus far, it has not come without its bumps. A sprained right wrist required a stint on Salem’s 7-day injured list and resulted in Mayer being limited to just five games in the month of May.

Since returning from the IL on May 30, though, Mayer has posted a .903 OPS over his last 27 games. He also becomes the third consecutive Red Sox prospect to earn Carolina League Player of the Week honors, joining the likes of Niko Kavadas (now in Greenville) and Blaze Jordan.

(Picture of Marcelo Mayer: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Blaze Jordan named Carolina League Player of the Week for second time this season

For the second time this season, Red Sox power-hitting prospect Blaze Jordan has been named the Carolina League Player of the Week. He first took home the award for the week of May 9-15 and does so again for the week of June 20-26, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

In Low-A Salem’s latest series against the Fredericksburg Nationals at Carilion Clinic Field, Jordan went 12-for-24 (.500) at the plate with two doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, five runs scored, three walks, and just one strikeout over the course of six games.

On the 2022 season as a whole, the right-handed hitting corner infielder is batting a stout .311/.364/.502 (139 wRC+) with 20 doubles, two triples, eight homers, 42 runs driven in, 39 runs scored, two stolen bases, 19 walks, and 44 strikeouts across 63 games (275 plate appearances) with the Salem Sox.

Among qualified Carolina League hitters, Jordan ranks seventh in strikeout rate (16%), seventh in batting average, 25th in on-base percentage, fifth in slugging percentage, sixth in OPS (.866), 17th in isolated power (.191), and eighth in wRC+, per FanGraphs.

Defensively, the 6-foot-2, 220 pounder has logged 164 1/3 innings at first base and 315 innings at third base so far this season. He has committed a total of seven fielding errors and has also appeared in seven games as a designated hitter.

Jordan, 19, was selected by the Red Sox in the third round of the 2020 amateur draft out of DeSoto Central High School. The Southaven, Miss. native forwent his commitment to Mississippi State University by signing with Boston for $1.75 million. He is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 8 prospect and the top power hitter in the organization’s farm system.

It is believed that the Red Sox will take a deliberate approach with Jordan’s development given that he does not turn 20 until December. He therefore could spend the rest of the year in Salem, though a late-season promotion to High-A Greenville is certainly possible under the right circumstances.

(Picture of Blaze Jordan: Gary Streiffer/Flickr)

Red Sox power-hitting prospect Blaze Jordan continues to stay hot for Low-A Salem

Somewhat fittingly, Red Sox infield prospect Blaze Jordan was included in Baseball America’s latest Hot Sheet for his performance in Low-A Salem’s series against the Delmarva Shorebirds last week.

In six games at Carilion Clinic Field, Jordan went 13-for-26 (.500) at the plate with one triple, three home runs, nine RBIs, six runs scored, one stolen base, one walk, and two strikeouts.

The right-handed hitter is now riding a 10-game hitting streak and, on the 2022 season as a whole, is batting a respectable .291/.343/.467 (124 wRC+) with 18 doubles, two triples, six homers, 37 runs driven in, 34 runs scored, two stolen bases, 16 walks, and 43 strikeouts over 57 games spanning 248 trips to the plate.

Among qualified Carolina League hitters, Jordan currently ranks eighth in strikeout rate (17.3%), 10th in batting average, 12th in slugging percentage, 19th in OPS (.810), 19th in isolated power (.176), and 21st in wRC+, per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Jordan has seen playing time at both corner infield spots so far this season. Coming into play on Tuesday, the 6-foot-2, 220 pounder has logged 297 innings and committed three errors at the hot corner and has logged 136 1/3 innings at first while committing four errors there.

Still just a teenager who does not turn 20 until late December, Jordan is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 8 prospect — as well as the best power hitter — in Boston’s farm system. The Mississippi native was originally taken by the Sox in the third round of the 2020 amateur draft out of DeSoto Central High School. He forewent his commitment to Mississippi State University by signing with the club for $1.75 million.

While Jordan has the potential to emerge as a top-100 prospect for years to come, the Red Sox are likely to take their time when it comes to his development given his age. With that, it would not be surprising if he were to spend the rest of the 2022 campaign in Salem, though a late-season promotion to High-A Greenville certainly cannot be ruled out.

In addition to Jordan, fellow Red Sox prospects Niko Kavadas and Eddinson Paulino were also named to Baseball America’s Hot Sheet since they, too, had monster series against Delmarva.

(Picture of Blaze Jordan: Gary Streiffer/Flickr)