Tag: red sox

Red Sox designate Ryan Brasier for assignment

The Red Sox have designated Ryan Brasier for assignment, the veteran reliever told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith) following Sunday night’s 9-1 loss to the Cardinals at Fenway Park.

Brasier allowed three earned runs on four hits, no walks, and two strikeouts over a career-high 2 1/3 innings on Sunday. The right-hander gave up a run-scoring ground-rule double to Nolan Gorman and followed that up by serving up a 396-foot two-run home run to Nolan Arenado with one out in the top of the eighth.

Following Sunday’s performance, Brasier’s ERA on the season rose from 6.75 to 7.29 and his WHIP rose from 1.55 to 1.57 in 20 relief appearances (21 innings) for Boston this season. Needing to clear a roster spot for lefty reliever Joely Rodriguez, who is expected to be activated from the injured list on Monday, the Red Sox elected to move on from Brasier.

“Honestly, a new start might not be bad,” said Brasier, who was informed of the decision shortly after Sunday’s game ended. “Obviously getting to play at Fenway every day is a dream come true. Two parks you want to play at growing up are Yankee Stadium and Fenway. And I got to do both a lot. So grateful. It sucks obviously but new start.”

Brasier, 35, first joined the Red Sox organization as a minor-league free agent shortly before the start of the 2018 season. After spending the previous year pitching for the Hiroshima Carp of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, the righty impressed in spring training and was called up by Boston for the first time that July.

Having gone nearly five years between big-league appearances, Brasier proved to be a major contributor out of the bullpen for the Red Sox during their historic World Series run. He compiled a 1.60 ERA in the regular season and allowed just one earned run over nine postseason outings (8 2/3 innings) in his first taste of October baseball.

Over the next two seasons (2019-2020), Brasier pitched to a 4.57 ERA in 87 total appearances (80 2/3 innings). He was limited to just 13 games in 2021 after missing the start of spring training due to a broken hand, beginning the season on the injured list due to a calf strain, and then being struck in the head by a line drive during a simulated game in Fort Myers.

Brasier was effective down the stretch in 2021 but that success did not carry over into 2022. He instead struggled to a 5.78 ERA in 68 appearances (62 1/3 innings). Though he made his fourth Opening Day roster this spring, it became increasingly clear that Brasier’s roster spot was in jeopardy as his struggles only continued.

“Walked a few guys early on, some bad luck,” Brasier said of his performance up until this point in the season. “A ton of (expletive) singles. This is what it is. I get it. It’s a business. And luck aside, I’ve gotta still have results to be at this level. And it just didn’t work out.”

Brasier does have a point as it pertains to bad luck. That much is made evident by his 4.39 FIP as opposed to his 7.29 ERA this year. Still, the majority of his other peripherals look far less encouraging and that likely played a role in Sunday’s decision.

Now that he has been designated for assignment, the Red Sox will have the next seven days to either trade, release, or waive Brasier, who is in the final year of arbitration eligibility (carries a $2 million salary) and was slated to reach free agency for the first time at the end of the season.

“Obviously, no hard feelings,” Brasier said. “Like I said, I know it’s a business. And things happen. But hopefully get picked up in a day or two and try to go win somewhere else.

“A couple tweaks, maybe somebody sees something that they think they can build on,” he added. “That’s all you can really ask for.”

Brasier, who turns 36 in August, forged a 4.55 ERA and 3.79 FIP with 211 strikeouts to 65 walks in 222 career appearances (one start) spanning 209 2/3 innings of work in a Red Sox uniform. He currently ranks 37th on the club’s all-time list for appearances.

With Brasier out of the picture, left-hander Chris Sale and third baseman Rafael Devers are the only players who remain from Boston’s 2018 World Series championship roster.

“Like I said, you grow up wanting to play at places like Fenway,” said Brasier. “And having a chance to do it for five years has been kind of surreal, honestly.”

(Picture of Ryan Brasier: Adam Glanzman/Getty Images)

Kenley Jansen records 400th career save as Red Sox cap off road trip with 5-2 win over Braves

The Red Sox salvaged a series split and a winning road trip with a hard-fought win over the Braves on Wednesday night. Boston defeated Atlanta by a final score of 5-2 at Truist Park to put an end to a two-game losing streak and improve to 22-16 on the season.

Having just placed Max Fried on the injured list with a left forearm strain, the Braves went with a bullpen game in Wednesday’s series finale. Atlanta relievers held Boston’s offense in check through three innings, but the Sox broke through against Collin McHugh in the fourth.

After Alex Verdugo walked and Justin Turner singled to simultaneously break up the Braves’ combined no-hit bid and lead off the inning, Enrique Hernandez and Jarren Duran went back-to-back on a pair of one-out RBI singles to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead.

Brayan Bello, meanwhile, was in the midst of his fifth start of the season for Boston. The young right-hander was lights out out of the gate. He retired the first six batters he faced, escaped a jam (two on, no outs) in the third, and continued to keep Atlanta off the scoreboard through five.

In the sixth inning, though, Bello ran into trouble as the Braves lineup turned over for a third time. Ronald Acuna Jr. led things off by crushing a 470-foot solo shot to deep left field to cut the deficit in half. Austin Riley then ripped a one-out single and came into score the tying run on Eddie Rosario’s RBI single. Rosario, however, was thrown out at second base by Connor Wong for the final out of the inning.

All told, Bello allowed two earned runs on six hits and one walk to go along with five strikeouts over six strong innings of work. The 23-year-old induced 18 swings-and-misses on exactly 100 pitches (67 strikes). He topped out at 97.4 mph with his sinker and picked up his second win of the season while lowering his ERA to 5.01.

Although they had just seen their two-run lead disappear, the Red Sox wasted little time in getting back on the board. Duran and Triston Casas each drew a walk off A.J. Minter to lead off the seventh. After Wong and the pinch-hitting Rafael Devers each struck out, manager Alex Cora went back to his bench by having Raimel Tapia pinch-hit for Rob Refsnyder. Tapia then came through by lacing a two-out double down the right field line to bring in Duran from second and put Boston up, 3-2.

With Bello’s night done, Josh Winckowski received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from Cora and worked a 1-2-3 seventh. Chris Martin followed by maneuvering his way around a one-out single to toss a scoreless eighth and pave the way for Kenley Jansen in the ninth.

Before Jansen took the mound, Casas provided the veteran closer with some breathing room in the top of the ninth. After Duran laced a leadoff double, Casas launched a 442-foot two-run blast off Raisel Iglesias for his fifth home run of the year.

Jansen then came on with a three-run lead to protect and did just that by getting Sean Murphy to fly out, allowing a one-out double to Rosario, getting Ozzie Albies to fly out, and striking out Travis d’Arnaud to end the game and notch the 400th save of his career.

Jansen becomes the seventh pitcher in major-league history to record 400 saves, joining Mariano Rivera (652), Trevor Hoffman (601), Lee Smith (478), Francisco Rodriguez (437), John Franco (424) and Billy Wagner (422) as members of the exclusive club.

Next up: Wainwright vs. Paxton

Coming off a 3-2 road trip, the Red Sox will enjoy an off day back in Boston on Thursday. They will then open a three-game weekend series against the Cardinals at Fenway Park on Friday night.

Left-hander James Paxton is slated to make his season debut for Boston in Friday’s series opener. St. Louis will counter with right-hander Adam Wainwright.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Kenley Jansen: Rich von Biberstein/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox designate Zack Littell for assignment

The Red Sox have designated right-hander Zack Littell for assignment, the club announced prior to Wednesday’s series finale against the Braves.

Littell, 27, was acquired from the Rangers in exchange for cash considerations on Friday and was added to the major-league roster the following afternoon. He appeared in two games for the Red Sox, allowing three earned runs on three hits and three walks to go along with two strikeouts over three innings of work.

After yielding two runs in the eighth inning of 6-1 loss to the Phillies on Sunday, Littell gave up one run on one hit, two walks, and two strikeouts in the final two innings of a 9-3 loss to the Braves on Tuesday night.

Littell is out of minor-league options, so the Red Sox had no choice but to designate the righty for assignment and expose him to waivers. They will have the next seven days to either trade, release, or pass Littell through waivers if he goes unclaimed. In that scenario, though, Littell would have the ability to reject an assignment to the minor-leagues in favor of free agency since he has previously been outrighted.

As noted by MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, though, Littell may elect to stick with the Red Sox as a non-40-man roster player since they were the only organization willing to give him a guaranteed major-league roster spot. Prior to Friday’s trade, Littell had opened the 2023 season with Texas’ Triple-A affiliate, posting a 2.25 ERA with 16 strikeouts to two walks in eight relief appearances (12 innings) for the Round Rock Express.

By designating Littell for assignment, Boston reduced the size of its 40-man roster from 40 to 39 players. The Red Sox removed Littell from their 26-man roster in order to activate left-hander James Paxton from the 15-day injured list.

Paxton, who began the season on the injured list due to a left hamstring strain, will make his Red Sox debut in Friday’s series opener against the Cardinals at Fenway Park.

(Picture of Zack Littell: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Top Red Sox pitching prospect Bryan Mata heads to Triple-A Worcester’s injured list with shoulder inflammation

Red Sox pitching prospect Bryan Mata has been placed on Triple-A Worcester’s 7-day injured list with right shoulder inflammation, according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo.

Mata exited his start against the Rochester Red Wings early on Tuesday. The right-hander appeared to be in visible discomfort after delivering a 1-0, 86.2 mph fastball to Franklin Barreto with one out and one runner on in the bottom of the third inning at Innovative Field.

After WooSox catcher Jorge Alfaro motioned to the visitor’s dugout, a conference on the mound ensued. Mata then left the field with a trainer and was replaced by Jake Faria, who allowed both runners he inherited to score in what would go down as a 7-3 loss to the Red Wings.

Up until that point in the contest, Mata had yielded six runs (four earned) on six hits and three walks to go along with five strikeouts over 2 1/3 innings of work. The 24-year-old finished with 49 pitches (29 strikes). He topped out at 99.1 mph with his slider, an offering that accounted for four of the five swings-and-misses he induced.

Following Tuesday’s injury-shortened outing, Mata now owns an 0-3 record and 5.61 FIP with 27 walks to 26 strikeouts in seven starts (25 2/3 innings) for the WooSox so far this season. Despite those unimpressive numbers, the native Venezuelan is still regarded by publications such as Baseball America as the top pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Originally signed as an international free agent coming out of Maracay for just $25,000 in January 2016, Mata was added to the Sox’ 40-man roster in November 2020 to receive protection from Rule 5 Draft eligibility. He tore the UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) in his right elbow the following March and underwent Tommy John surgery shortly thereafter.

After missing all of the 2021 season, Mata returned to action last June as part of a rehab assignment with Low-A Salem. He made one start for Salem, three starts for High-A Greenville, and nine starts (10 total appearances) for Double-A Portland before earning a promotion to Worcester in late August.

Since then, Mata has forged a 4.59 ERA with 52 strikeouts to 46 walks in 12 starts (49 innings) with the WooSox. Alongside the likes of lefties Brandon Walter and Chris Murphy, who are also on the 40-man roster, Mata represents legitimate big-league pitching depth for the Red Sox at the club’s top affiliate.

With that being said, though, Mata has just one minor-league option remaining, meaning this is the final year the Red Sox can freely shuttle the righty between Boston and Worcester without having to first expose him to waivers.

Even before this latest setback, there were signs that Mata could transition to a bullpen role in the near future since he has power stuff but has had difficulty in harnessing it effectively. Depending on how long he is out for (the hope is the issue isn’t too serious), that scenario could become a reality if the Red Sox want to get a look at Mata at the major-league level before season’s end.

(Picture of Bryan Mata: Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta gets shelled for season-high 7 runs as Red Sox drop opener to Braves, 9-3

The Red Sox suffered their second straight defeat in a series-opening loss to the Braves on Tuesday night. Boston fell to Atlanta by a final score of 9-3 at Truist Park to drop to 21-16 on the season.

Nick Pivetta struggled in his seventh start of the year for the Sox. The right-hander went just four innings, allowing a season-high seven earned runs on eight hits, three walks, and one hit batsman to go along with two strikeouts.

The Braves got to Pivetta right away in the bottom of the first. Following a leadoff single from Ronald Acuna Jr., Matt Olson opened the scoring by crushing a 426-foot two-run home run to deep right field. Pivetta then walked Austin Riley and plunked Sean Murphy before fanning Eddie Rosario.

A wild pitch allowed Riley and Murphy to advance an additional 90 feet. Ozzie Albies then drove in Riley with a run-scoring single through the right side of the infield before Marcell Ozuna gave Atlanta a 4-0 lead with an RBI groundout that brought in Murphy.

An inning later, Murphy singled in Acuna Jr. with two outs to extend the lead to five runs. The Red Sox got one of those runs back in the top of the third. After being held in check by Braves starter Charlie Morton to that point, Alex Verdugo ripped a leadoff double and took third base on a balk. Justin Turner then drove him in on a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to four runs at 5-1.

Pivetta made quick work of the Braves in the bottom half of the frame, but ran into more trouble in the fourth. Orlando Arcia, Acuna Jr., and Olson all reached to fill the bases with no outs. Murphy then broke it open by plating both Arcia and Acuna Jr. on a two-run single to left field that put Atlanta back up, 7-1.

Though Pivetta did retire the final two batters he faced in the fourth, the damage had already been done. The 30-year-old hurler finished with 90 pitches (52 strikes) and induced 11 swings-and-misses. He was charged with the losing decision and his ERA on the season now sits at an unsightly 6.23.

In relief of Pivetta, Brennan Bernardino received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The lefty beaned Michael Harris II to put runners at first and second with no outs and then yielded an RBI ground-rule double to Arcia to give the Braves an 8-1 advantage.

Turner struck again in the sixth, this time taking Morton 389 feet deep to the opposite field for a leadoff home run (his third of the season). That was all the Red Sox could do off Morton, though, as the veteran righty allowed just two runs over six innings on exactly 100 pitches before being lifted for reliever Kirby Yates.

Following a pair of scoreless frames from Ryan Brasier and Zack Littell, Turner laced a one-out double off A.J. Minter in the top of the eighth for the 300th two-base hit of his career. He then moved up to third and scored his side’s third run of the night on a line-drive RBI single off the bat of Enrique Hernandez.

After Littell surrendered an RBI double to Murphy in the bottom of the eighth, the Red Sox went down quietly in the ninth to end it. Masataka Yoshida grounded out for the final out of the game. He went 0-for-5 on the night, meaning his 16-game hitting streak has ended.

As a team, the Red Sox tallied eight hits and went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position while leaving eight runners on base. Verdugo went 3-for-5 with a run scored and Turner went 2-for-3 with two RBIs and two runs scored to lead the way offensively.

Next up: Bello gets the start in finale

The Red Sox will look to salvage a split in the finale of this quick two-game set against the Braves on Wednesday night. Right-hander Brayan Bello is slated to start for Boston while Atlanta will go with a bullpen game after placing projected starter Max Fried on the injured list.

First pitch from Truist Park is scheduled for 7:20 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox outfield prospect Roman Anthony ‘has shown a lot of positive markers in his first full season as a pro’

The numbers might not be there quite yet, but Red Sox outfield prospect Roman Anthony is still drawing the attention of talent evaluators in the Carolina League.

To kick off his first full season in affiliated ball, Anthony has batted just .221/.378/.294 with five doubles, nine RBIs, 12 runs scored, seven stolen bases, 17 walks, and 18 strikeouts in 18 games (90 plate appearances) for Low-A Salem. The left-handed hitter broke out of an 0-for-17 rut by doubling twice and driving in three runs as part of a three-hit performance on Sunday.

While a slash line of .221/.378/.294 is not exactly eye-popping, there is a lot to like about Anthony’s offensive approach. Among qualified Carolina League hitters, Anthony currently ranks 15th in walk rate (18.9 percent), 24th in strikeout rate (20 percent), 30th in on-base percentage, 15th in line-drive rate (28.3 percent), and fourth in swinging-strike rate (5.7 percent), per FanGraphs.

To that end, Baseball America’s Josh Norris recently identified Anthony as a prospect who could be on the rise.

“Anthony’s numbers this season might not jump off the page, but scouts who have seen him believe the ingredients are there for a potentially special player,” Norris wrote on Tuesday.  “He has a gorgeous swing from the left side, an outstanding knowledge of the strike zone and raw power that belies his meager slugging output this year at Low-A Salem.

“That raw juice also shows up in his 90th percentile exit velocity, which hovers around 108 mph,” added Norris. “For that power to really begin manifesting itself on the stat sheet, he’ll need to get the ball in the air much more often. Nonetheless, the 18-year-old Anthony has shown a lot of positive markers in his first full season as a pro.”

Anthony, who turns 19 this weekend, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 9 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Red Sox selected the Stoneman Douglas High School (Parkland, Fla.) with the 79th overall pick in last year’s draft. They swayed him away from his commitment to Mississippi by signing him for an over-slot $2.5 million.

After debuting in the rookie-level Florida Complex League last August, Anthony has since compiled a .264/.376/.329 line in 38 minor-league games. He is still in search of his first professional home run. Defensively, the 6-foot-2, 200-pounder has seen playing time at all three outfield positions for Salem this season. He has logged nine innings in left, 45 innings in center, and 64 innings in right.

Considering his youth, it would not be too surprising if Anthony spent the majority — if the not the entirety — of the 2023 campaign with Salem as he continues to mature. That being said, a late-season promotion to High-A Greenville should not be ruled out.

(Picture of Roman Anthony: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

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)

First MLB Pipeline mock draft of 2023 has Red Sox taking Florida righty Hurston Waldrep

The Red Sox have not used a first-round draft pick on a college pitcher since 2017. Could that change this summer?

In his first mock draft of the year for MLB.com, Jim Callis of MLB Pipeline has the Red Sox taking Florida right-hander Hurston Waldrep with the 14th overall pick in the 2023 amateur draft.

Waldrep, 21, is currently regarded by MLB Pipeline as the No. 11 draft-eligible prospect, which ranks fourth among pitchers in this year’s class. The junior righty owns a 5.07 ERA and 1.45 WHIP with 102 strikeouts to 40 walks in 12 starts (65 2/3 innings) for the Gators so far this season. Opponents are batting .227 against him.

A native of Georgia, Waldrep began his college career at Southern Mississippi after going undrafted out of Thomasville High School in 2020. He compiled a 3.22 ERA in two seasons with the Golden Eagles before transferring to Florida last July.

Standing at 6-foot-2 and 210 pounds, Waldrep operates with “a legitimate three-pitch power mix, with all three offerings having the potential to be at least above-average,” per his MLB Pipeline scouting report. He sits between 95-99 mph with his four-seam fastball, which is complemented by a whiff-inducing split-changeup and an upper-80s slider.

Mechanically, there are some concerns when it comes to Waldrep’s delivery. MLB Pipeline notes that “while Waldrep is generally around the strike zone, there is a little effort in his up-tempo delivery, causing some inconsistencies with his command and control, which led to an uptick in his walk rate this spring.”

To that end, Waldrep had an uneven start for the Gators on Saturday. Going up against Texas A&M on the road, he allowed four earned runs on two hits and five walks to go along with a season-high six walks over three innings of work in a 15-2 loss to the Aggies.

Because of those aforementioned command issues, Waldrep could project as a reliever as opposed to a starter in the long-run. Even so, Waldrep will almost certainly come off the board early on account of his potential and arsenal. Whichever team drafts him will probably do so with the idea that they can help him throw strikes more consistently.

The last time the Red Sox took a college pitcher in the first round of a draft was 2017, when righty Tanner Houck was selected out of Missouri at No. 24 overall. Since Chaim Bloom took over as Boston’s chief baseball officer in late 2019, the club has exclusively drafted high school infielders (Nick Yorke, Marcelo Mayer, and Mikey Romero) with their top pick.

The Red Sox landed the 14th overall pick in this year’s draft in the first-ever MLB Draft Lottery back in December. It did not come as much of a surprise since Boston finished with the 14th-worst record in baseball last season.

The 14th overall pick in the 2023 draft, which takes place from July 9-11, comes with a slot value of $4,663,100 (up from $4,243,800 last year). The Red Sox as a team have a bonus pool of $10,295,100.

(Picture of Hurston Waldrep: James Gilbert/Getty Images)

Top Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer earns South Atlantic League Player of the Week honors

Top Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer has been named the South Atlantic League Player of the Week for the week of May 1-7, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Mayer went 16-for-31 (.516) at the plate with six doubles, three home runs, 12 RBIs, eight runs scored, one stolen base, zero walks, and four strikeouts in all six of High-A Greenville’s games on the road against the Asheville Tourists last week.

After going 2-for-5 with a pair of singles in Tuesday’s series opener at McCormick Field, Mayer finished a triple shy of the cycle as part of a four-hit effort on Wednesday. The left-handed hitting shortstop then had one hit on Thursday, two hits on Friday and three hits on Saturday before closing out the weekend with another four-hit performance on Sunday afternoon.

As noted by SoxProspects.com’s Chris Hatfield, McCormick Field is considered to be one of the more hitter-friendly ballparks in all of Minor League Baseball given its favorable dimensions. That being said, it was nonetheless an impressive week of work for Mayer.

Though his first full season in Greenville got off to a slow start, Mayer has picked things up as of late. He is now batting a stout .337/.414/.582 (161 wRC+) with 10 doubles, one triple, four home runs, 23 RBIs, 17 runs scored, four stolen bases, 13 walks, and 24 strikeouts over 23 games (111 plate appearances) with the Drive in 2023.

Among qualified South Atlantic League hitters, Mayer ranks eighth in batting average, 14th in on-base percentage, 10th in slugging percentage, ninth in OPS (.996), 17th in isolated power (.245), 23rd in strikeout rate (21.6 percent), and ninth in wRC+ (161), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Mayer has unsurprisingly seen all of his playing time on the field to this point in the season come at shortstop. The 6-foot-2, 188-pounder has logged 193 innings at short thus far and has committed six errors in 72 defensive chances.

Mayer, 20, is regarded by most publications as the No. 1 prospect in Boston’s farm system. As far as top-100 rankings are concerned, Baseball America has him at No. 13 while MLB Pipeline pegs him as the seventh-best prospect in the sport.

A native of Chula Vista, Calif., Mayer was originally selected by the Red Sox with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 amateur draft out of Eastlake High School. Though he grew up a Yankees fan, Mayer forwent his commitment to Southern California and signed with Boston for a lucrative $6.664 million that July

As the Sox’ highest-selected player since 1967, Mayer entered the professional ranks with plenty of hype surrounding him. In a relatively small sample size of 140 minor-league games between the Florida Complex League, Low-A Salem, and Greenville, Mayer has shown why he is worthy of such attention.

Mayer, who does not turn 21 until December, is bilingual and has shown leadership qualities in the clubhouse. He has the ability to connect with both English- and Spanish-speaking teammates on and off the field, which only adds to his value within the organization.

As the Drive prepare to open a 12-game homestand at Fluor Field on Tuesday, more people have begun to wonder when Mayer will make the jump from Greenville to Double-A Portland. For Mayer himself, he is focused on the present as well as the challenge at hand.

“For me, I’m going out there and playing and I’m being where my feet are,” Mayer recently told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier. “I’m not really going to be thinking about Fenway when I’m in Portland. If I’m in Portland, I’m thinking about being in Portland.

“Obviously, my goal is to be a big leaguer. I want to be there as soon as possible,” he added. “There’s a lot of great players in this organization. So it’s not as easy as just saying, ‘Oh, I want to be in the big-leagues this year.’ But I’m really excited. I worked my tail off in the offseason. I’m super excited for this season.”

Liu named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week

After tossing a seven-inning no hitter in Game 1 of a doubleheader against the Akron RubberDucks on Friday, Portland Sea Dogs right-hander C.J. Liu was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week.

Liu, 24, becomes the second Sea Dogs pitcher to earn the honor this season, joining lefty Shane Drohan. You can read more about Liu’s stellar outing — and his 2023 campaign as a whole — by clicking here.

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

Red Sox’ Masataka Yoshida named American League Player of the Week

Red Sox rookie outfielder Masataka Yoshida has been named the American League Player of the Week for the week of May 1-7, Major League Baseball announced on Monday.

In six games against the Blue Jays and Phillies last week, Yoshida went 12-for-25 (.480) at the plate with two doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs, seven runs scored, one walk, and zero strikeouts. The left-handed hitter is currently riding a league-leading 16-game hitting streak.

Following a 2-for-4 showing in Philadelphia on Sunday, Yoshida is now batting a stout .321/.403/.536 with six doubles, six homers, 24 runs driven in, 22 runs scored, two stolen bases, 13 walks, and 11 strikeouts in his first 29 games (129 plate appearances) with Boston this season.

Among qualified American League hitter coming into play on Monday, Yoshida ranks 14th in hits (36), fifth in batting average, sixth in on-base percentage, 11th in slugging percentage, seventh in OPS (.939), first in strikeout rate (8.5 percent), and ninth in wRC+ (155), per FanGraphs.

According to Baseball Savant, Yoshida has not swung and missed at a pitch since the start of May. Going back to April 20, when his hitting streak began, the 29-year-old out of Japan has slashed .438/.479/.750 with five doubles, five home runs, 18 RBIs, 14 runs scored, five walks, and six strikeouts over his last 16 games. His 16-game hitting streak is the longest active streak in the big-leagues and the third-longest of the season thus far.

Yoshida becomes the second member of the 2023 Red Sox to earn American League Player of the Week honors, joining fellow outfielder Adam Duvall, who won it for his performance during the first week of the season. Boston is now the first team this year to have multiple Player of the Week recipients.

On the other side of things, Braves catcher Sean Murphy took home National League Player of the Week honors. Fittingly, the Red Sox and Braves open a two-game series in Atlanta on Tuesday night.

(Picture of Masataka Yoshida: Mitchell Leff/Getty Images)