Tag: spring breakout

Kleyver Salazar among 7 unranked prospects to make Red Sox ‘Spring Breakout’ roster

On Thursday, the Red Sox unveiled their roster for their upcoming ‘Spring Breakout’ matchup against the Rays next week.

While Boston will be sending a plethora of top talents from a loaded farm system to Port Charlotte for the second annual prospects showcase next Thursday, several unheralded Red Sox minor-leaguers will be making the trip from Fort Myers as well.

Of the 27 players on the Red Sox ‘Spring Breakout’ roster, seven are not currently ranked among the organization’s top 30 prospects by MLB Pipeline. Of those seven, 18-year-old catcher Kleyver Salazar stands out as someone who has yet to suit up for a full-season affiliate.

Salazar, who turns 19 in May, is the younger brother of former Red Sox (and current Cardinals minor-leaguer) Johnfrank Salazar. The native Venezuelan originally signed with Boston for $175,000 as an international free agent in January 2023 and made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League before moving up to the Florida Complex League in 2024.

In 49 games (183 plate appearances) for the FCL Red Sox, Salazar batted .226/.333/.374 with seven doubles, two triples, four home runs, 31 RBIs, 22 runs scored, two stolen bases, 25 walks and 40 strikeouts. The right-handed hitter ended his season on a particularly high note by slashing .313/.389/.500 with three home runs and 15 RBIs over 20 games (72 plate appearances) in July.

Though a .708 OPS (95 wRC+) on the year is far from eye-popping, Salazar did rank 21st in isolated power (.148) and 32nd in walk rate (13.7 percent) among 71 qualified FCL hitters, per FanGraphs. He also led the way in fly-ball rate (55.7 percent), which suggests that he may have gotten under the ball quite a bit.

Defensively, Salazar split his playing time on the field between catcher and first base last year. The 6-foot-1, 187-pound backstop logged a team-high 168 2/3 innings behind the plate for the FCL Red Sox, allowing eight passed balls and throwing out 14 of 49 possible base stealers. In 16 starts as a first baseman, he committed just two errors in 98 chances.

Salazar joins Brooks Brannon and Ronald Rosario to make up the catching contingent on Boston’s ‘Spring Breakout’ roster. He is currently projected by SoxProspects.com to return to the FCL for the start of the 2025 season, though his assignment could change to Low-A Salem if fellow backstop Johanfran Garcia (who underwent season-ending ACL surgery last May) is not fully ready to go when camp breaks next month.

(Picture of Kleyver Salazar: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox catching prospect Ronald Rosario a late addition to Boston’s Spring Breakout roster

Ronald Rosario was a late addition to the Red Sox’ roster for Saturday’s inaugural Spring Breakout showcase against the Braves at JetBlue Park.

As a result of fellow catching prospect Brooks Brannon being removed from the roster for an undisclosed reason, Rosario was officially added to Boston’s roster on Thursday, per his MiLB.com player profile page. The 21-year-old did not get into the game itself on Saturday, with Kyle Teel and Johanfran Garcia handling things behind the plate in the seven-inning exhibition, but it was surely a nice distinction for a lesser-known minor-leaguer such as Rosario.

Unlike Brannon, Teel, Garcia, and Nathan Hickey (who started at DH on Saturday), Rosario is not regarded by outlets such as SoxProspects.com as one of the top catching prospects in Boston’s farm system. The native Venezuelan originally signed with the Red Sox for $50,000 as an international free agent coming out of Palo Negro in July 2019 and was sparingly used after making his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League two years later.

On the heels of the COVID-19 pandemic wiping out the 2020 minor-league campaign, Rosario appeared in just six Dominican Summer League games as an 18-year-old in 2021. He saw more playing time the following season in the Florida Complex League, but was still limited to 20 games and 51 plate appearances with Boston’s Fort Myers-based affiliate.

It was not until last season that Rosario began to establish himself as more of a regular. The right-handed hitter broke camp last spring as Low-A Salem’s Opening Day catcher and batted .250/.389/.429 with five doubles, one triple, one home run, 11 RBIs, 10 runs scored, 12 walks, and 22 strikeouts over his first 17 games (72 plate appearances) before earning a promotion to High-A Greenville in early May.

With Greenville, Rosario slashed .260/.344/.377 with 12 doubles, two triples, three homers, 33 runs driven in, 35 runs scored, one stolen base, 27 walks, and 74 strikeouts in 62 games (247 plate appearances) to close out the regular season. He then capped off a strong playoff run by clubbing the go-ahead home run in the sixth inning (and catching the final out) of the Drive’s South Atlantic League title-clinching victory over the Hudson Valley Renegades at Fluor Field on September 19.

All told, Rosario produced at a .258/.354/.388 clip (108 wRC+) with 17 doubles, three triples, four home runs, 44 RBIs, 45 runs scored, one stolen base, 39 walks, and 96 strikeouts in 79 total regular season games (319 plate appearances) between Salem and Greenville last year. Defensively, the 6-foot, 175-pound backstop logged 610 2/3 innings behind the plate in 2023 and threw out 30 of 160 possible base stealers while allowing 14 passed balls and committing 19 errors.

As highlighted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, Rosario can best be described as a “fringe-average” defender who “doesn’t have the softest hands and can be error prone.” Last June, FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen wrote that Rosario “is a good receiver/framer with a 40 arm and ground game.”

Given that he is prone to making mistakes behind the plate, one has to wonder if a position change could be in store for Rosario at some point. He got into eight games as a first baseman for the FCL Red Sox in 2022, but would really need to hit in order to stick there moving forward.

Rosario, who just turned 21 in January, is expected to return to Greenville for the start of the upcoming 2024 minor-league season. Depending on how he fares in his second stint with the Drive, he could put himself in position to make the jump to Double-A Portland before year’s end.

(Picture of Ronald Rosario: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Despite being unranked by MLB Pipeline, Kristian Campbell earns spot on Red Sox’ Spring Breakout roster

Of the 18 position-playing prospects on the Red Sox’ roster for this weekend’s inaugural Spring Breakout matchup against the Braves at JetBlue Park, Kristian Campbell is the only one who is not currently ranked by MLB Pipeline.

Campbell is one of four 2023 draftees to make the cut for Boston, joining the likes of first-rounder Kyle Teel, second-rounder Nazzan Zanetello, and third-rounder Antonio Anderson. The 21-year-old was, of course, taken by the Red Sox with the 132d overall selection last July, which is the pick the club received as compensation for losing Xander Bogaerts to the Padres in free agency the prior offseason.

As a result of being redshirted his freshman year, Campbell played just one season at Georgia Tech before going pro as a draft-eligible sophomore. The Chattanooga, Tenn. native signed with Boston for $492,700 and made his professional debut in the rookie-level Florida Complex League.

In eight games with the FCL Red Sox, Campbell went 9-for-23 (.391) with two doubles, one triple, two RBIs, four runs scored, two stolen bases, three walks, and five strikeouts. The right-handed hitter then received a promotion to High-A Greenville on August 24, meaning he would be skipping the Low-A level altogether.

With Greenville, Campbell batted .267/.400/.422 with two more doubles, one more triple, the first home run of his young career, three runs driven in, five runs scored, one stolen base, and seven strikeouts over 14 games (55 plate appearances) to close out the regular season. He then recorded a pair of three-hit games in the playoffs while helping the Drive take home their first South Atlantic Title since 2017.

“The lights were not too bright for him,” Greenville manager Iggy Suarez said of Campbell last September. “First year in pro ball, first season, and he’s in the thick of things. The bigger the moment, he embraced it and he wanted it. It’s almost a veteran approach.”

Including the postseason, Campbell slashed a stout .350/.469/.538 with five doubles, two triples, two homers, 11 RBIs, 12 runs scored, three stolen bases, 11 walks, and 21 strikeouts across 26 total games between the FCL and Greenville last year. The versatile 6-foot-3, 191-pounder put up those numbers while making starts at second base and both corner outfield spots.

“I was listed as an infielder, mainly a middle infielder, but I can also play the outfield,” Campbell told MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith last fall. “At Georgia Tech, I just played second base. I’ve always taken reps in the outfield during batting practice and stuff. So it’s always come kind of natural.”

Campbell, who does not turn 22 until late June, got into his first big-league spring training game on February 25 and struck out in his only plate appearance after taking over in center field for top prospect Roman Anthony. He is expected to return to Greenville for the start of the 2024 minor-league campaign.

Despite not being ranked by MLB Pipeline at the moment, Campbell did receive some attention from Baseball America last month. The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, who also compiles the Red Sox’ organizational rankings for BA, wrote that Campbell was drafted where he was “based not only on his combination of bat-to-ball skills, strike-zone discipline, and plus speed but also a sense that he could add to his profile with strength gains and by getting exposure to the outfield, where his speed is an asset.”

To that end, Campbell should get the opportunity to showcase such skills when he and his fellow Red Sox prospects take on their peers from the Braves in Fort Myers on Saturday afternoon. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time and the seven-inning exhibition will be broadcasted on NESN.

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

Red Sox’ David Sandlin tabbed by MLB Pipeline as ‘under-the-radar’ prospect on Boston’s Spring Breakout roster

It has not even been a full month since David Sandlin was traded by the Royals to the Red Sox, yet the pitching prospect already finds himself in a unique position with his new organization.

Dealt by Kansas City in exchange for veteran reliever John Schreiber on February 17, Sandlin was included in the initial roster last week for the Sox’ inaugural Spring Breakout game against top prospects from the Braves organization at JetBlue Park this coming Saturday.

Sandlin, 23, was originally selected by the Royals in the 11th round of the 2022 amateur draft out of the University of Oklahoma. The right-hander signed with Kansas City for $397,500 and marked his professional debut by making one appearance in the rookie-level Arizona Complex League that August.

Last year, Sandlin went 4-2 with a 3.51 ERA (3.68 FIP) and 87 strikeouts to 18 walks in 14 starts (66 2/3 innings) between Low-A Columbia and High-A Quad Cities. He spent much of the season with Columbia, posting a 3.38 ERA (3.45 FIP) in 12 starts (58 2/3 innings) for the Fireflies before receiving a promotion to Quad Cities in late June.

After making just two starts, in which he allowed four earned runs over eighth innings, for the River Bandits, Sandlin was placed on the injured list due to a oblique strain that would ultimately cut his season short. Still, the righty showed enough promise in that stretch to stick out to interested clubs such as the Red Sox.

“He was someone we had identified early on as someone that we think is on the rise, has the makings of a legitimate starting pitcher,” chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said of Sandlin when speaking with reporters (including MLB.com’s Ian Browne) after the trade was made. “And I think we’ve talked for a while about our right-handed relief depth. That’s something we feel strongly about, something we feel confident in. We talked about the need — when the opportunity exists — to create more starting pitching depth. So I think this was one example of a chance to do that.”

Standing at 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Sandlin operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a fastball, slider, curveball, and splitter. As Breslow noted last month, Sandlin has added significant velocity to his heater since entering the pro ranks nearly two years ago.

“[His] fastball as an amateur was kind of low 90s,” explained Breslow. “In pro ball, it’s been up to 98, 99. He pitches at probably 95 to 97. He has a good breaking ball and a change that we see room to optimize. So it was a combination of kind of raw stuff, projection and a chance to maybe tweak the usage a little bit and improve performance.”

To that end, Sandlin is now regarded by MLB Pipeline as the No. 16 prospect in Boston’s farm system, which ranks fourth among pitchers in the organization. On Wednesday, he was identified by the outlet as an “under-the-radar” prospect on the Red Sox’ Spring Breakout roster, though his status there could soon change.

When asked by Beyond the Monster’s Chris Henrique last weekend about the significance behind making the Sox’ Spring Breakout roster, Sandlin said that “it means the world to him.”

“Especially being with the team for just over a couple weeks now,” he continued. “It truly is an honor to have the chance to go out in an atmosphere that has so much talent for all the teams, to represent the Boston Red Sox organization.”

Sandlin has yet to pitch in a Grapefruit League game for the Red Sox this spring, so Saturday’s showcase against the Braves represents an opportunity for him to pitch on a major-league mound in front of a sizable crowd for the first time in his young career.

“I think what I am looking forward to the most out of this game is just being in a great atmosphere with fans in a big-league spring training park,” Sandlin told Henrique. “Playing against and with some of the most talented prospects in baseball.”

Looking beyond this weekend and assuming all goes well throughout the rest of the spring in Fort Myers, Sandlin is expected to begin the 2024 minor-league season at High-A Greenville.

(Picture of David Sandlin: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

After injury-shortened 2023 season, Red Sox catching prospect Brooks Brannon set to take part in inaugural Spring Breakout

When looking at the Red Sox’ roster for next weekend’s inaugural Spring Breakout game against the Braves, one of the names that sticks out is Brooks Brannon.

Brannon was one of four catching prospects to make the Red Sox’ 28-man roster, joining Kyle Teel, Nathan Hickey, and fellow 19-year-old Johanfran Garcia. He is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 29 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Brannon, who turns 20 in May, is coming off an injury-shortened 2023 campaign in which he was limited to just 17 total games between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem. The right-handed hitter flashed intriguing power in that brief sample, however, as he slashed .264/.303/.583 with three doubles, one triple, six home runs, 23 RBIs, 12 runs scored, four walks, and 20 strikeouts over 77 plate appearances.

After returning to the FCL for the start of his first full professional season, Brannon slashed .250/.294/.542 with three doubles, one triple, three homers, 14 runs driven in, eight runs scored, three walks, and 12 strikeouts in 11 games (52 plate appearances) for Boston’s rookie-level affiliate. He then received a promotion to Salem in late June and went 7-for-24 (.292) with three more home runs, nine RBIs, four runs scored, one walk, and eight strikeouts across six games.

Following the major-league All-Star break, Brannon started at designated hitter for Salem in its matchup against the Delmarva Shorebirds on July 14 and went 0-for-3 with a walk and three strikeouts. Due to a lingering back strain, though, that would ultimately prove to be his final game of the season.

Brannon was placed on Salem’s 7-day injured list on July 29 and then transferred to the 60-day injured list on August 8. He took part in the Red Sox’ fall performance program in September. There, at the Fenway South complex in Fort Myers, Brannon told MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith that his top priority in 2024 is to stay healthy.

“The No. 1 goal is just to be healthy the whole year,” Brannon said. “I just want to play the whole year. That’s the No. 1 goal. Outside of that, I’ll be looking to improve everything about my game until I’m done playing.”

Brannon was originally selected by the Red Sox in the ninth round of the 2022 amateur draft out of Randleman High School in North Carolina. On the heels of leading all high schoolers with 20 home runs as a senior, Brannon forwent his commitment to the University of North Carolina by signing with Boston for an above-slot for $712,500, which is more in line with what a third-round pick typically receives.

As noted in his Baseball America scouting report, Brannon “has plenty of pull power when he connects,” but his career 6.5 percent walk rate thus far “points to the need to control his aggressiveness and refine his swing decisions.”

Brannon, for his part, acknowledged that he is working to improve on his approach and swing decisions when speaking with Smith last fall.

“Getting into pro ball, I definitely matured as a hitter,” he said. “Guys just don’t throw 85 down the middle with an average breaking ball anymore. Guys throw gas and they can put it wherever they want. It sinks and it runs and it rises. Part of maturing was picking certain zones to hit depending on the pitcher and playing to my strengths. I’d say another part of maturing was I’m naturally a high energy, aggressive person and having to tone that back a bit because it worked against me. So having to calm down a bit.”

On the other side of the ball, Brannon unsurprisingly saw all of his playing time on the field last year come at catcher. Between the FCL and Salem, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound backstop logged 75 innings behind the plate and committed just one error while throwing out seven of 28 possible base stealers.

Both Baseball America and MLB Pipeline, which ranks Brannon as the Red Sox’ No. 23 prospect, laude the Tar Heel State native for his “plus arm strength and quick feet behind the plate.” They also praise him for having strong hands and relentless work ethic, but acknowledge that he is “overly active as a catcher and his framing and blocking skills will have to improve” if he intends on sticking behind the plate moving forward.

To that end, Brannon told Smith in September that improving defensively was “going to be a focus in every aspect of catching this offseason” after he struggled “a lot” in that area last year.

Barring a surprise and assuming he remains healthy, Brannon is expected to return to Salem for the start of the 2024 minor-league season. In the more immediate future, Brannon should get the chance to showcase his skills when he and his fellow Red Sox prospects host the Braves’ top prospects at JetBlue Park next Saturday afternoon.

(Picture of Brooks Brannon: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)