Tag: stephen scott

Nick Yorke headlines group of 8 Red Sox prospects who will play in Arizona Fall League

For the second consecutive year, the Red Sox will send eight prospects to play in the Arizona Fall League next month.

Catcher Stephen Scott, first baseman Niko Kavadas, second baseman Nick Yorke, outfielder Wilyer Abreu, and right-handers Thaddeus Ward, Aaron Perry, Jacob Webb, and Ryan Zeferjahn will join fellow minor-leaguers from the Braves, Orioles, Angels, and Giants organizations in suiting up for the Scottsdale Scorpions.

Of the eight, Yorke (No. 4), Abreu (No. 22), Ward (No. 25), and Kavadas (No. 30) all crack Baseball America’s Top 30 Red Sox prospects list. Abreu, Perry, Ward, and Zeferjahn can all become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft at the end of the year as well.

Yorke, Boston’s top pick in the 2020 draft, had a tough season at High-A Greenville. Limited to just 80 games due to a number of injuries (including turf toe, back stiffness, and left wrist soreness), the right-handed hitting 20-year-old batted .231/.303/.365 (84 wRC+) with 10 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 45 RBIs, 48 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 33 walks, and 94 strikeouts over 373 plate appearances. If there’s any consolation, he did hit .320 with a 148 wRC+ in the month of September.

Abreu, one of two prospects acquired from the Astros in last month’s Christian Vazquez, has been on an absolute tear with Double-A Portland. Going back to the start of September, the left-handed hitting 23-year-old has slashed .300/.492/.550 (184 wRC+) with one double, three home runs, 11 RBIs, 10 runs scored, six stolen bases, 17 walks, and 13 strikeouts in his last 13 games (59 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs. He has also played all three outfield positions.

Ward, 25, is regarded by Baseball America as the ninth-ranked pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Florida-born right-hander underwent Tommy John surgery last June and has been limited to just 51 1/3 innings this season as a result.

Since making the jump from Greenville to Portland in early August, Ward has posted a 2.43 ERA and 3.57 FIP to go along with 41 strikeouts to 14 walks over seven starts spanning 33 1/3 innings of work for the Sea Dogs. He was placed on the 7-day injured list on Wednesday because of back stiffness but is not expected to be sidelined for long, according to SoxProspects.com’s Chris Hatfield.

Kavadas, who turns 24 next month, was selected by the Red Sox in the 11th round of last year’s draft out of the University of Notre Dame. In his first full professional season, the burly left-handed hitter has made it all the way to Portland after batting a combined .295/.460/.603 (186 wRC+) with 24 home runs and 76 RBIs in 96 games (415 plate appearances) between Low-A Salem and Greenville.

Though his production has dipped with the Sea Dogs (117 wRC+ in 22 games), Kavadas still represents one of the more intriguing prospects in the Red Sox farm system given his power potential and plate discipline.

As for the other four prospects Boston will be sending out west, Scott was originally drafted as an outfielder out of Vanderbilt University in 2019 but has since become a full-time catcher. The 25-year-old has thrown out 23 of 83 base stealers between Greenville and Portland this season.

Perry, 23, made just three relief appearances for the Drive this season and did not allow a run over three innings. Webb, also 23, was recently promoted to Portland after pitching to a 3.72 ERA (3.24 FIP) in Greenville. Zeferjahn, 24, has yielded just one run in his first five relief outings with the Sea Dogs after being promoted in late August.

The 2022 Arizona Fall League season kicks off on Monday, October 3 and concludes with the AFL Championship Game on Saturday, November 12. The Scorpions will play their home games at Scottsdale Stadium.

(Picture of Nick Yorke: Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox promote prospects Alex Binelas, Stephen Scott to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox have promoted infielder Alex Binelas and catcher Stephen Scott from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, per the club’s minor-league transactions log.

Binelas, 22, was one of three players the Sox acquired from the Brewers in the trade that sent outfielder Hunter Renfroe to Milwaukee last December. The Wisconsin native was originally selected by the Brewers in the third round of last year’s draft out of the University of Louisville and is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 17 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

In 58 games with the Drive this season, the right-handed hitting Binelas batted .245/.355/.495 (127 wRC+) with 10 doubles, one triple, 14 home runs, 43 RBIs, 41 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 38 walks, and 69 strikeouts over 259 plate appearances.

Defensively, the 6-foot-3, 225 pounder saw playing time at both corner infield spots for the Drive this year. He logged 253 2/3 innings at first base and 196 innings at third.

Scott, on the other hand, was originally taken by the Red Sox in the 10th round of the 2019 amateur draft out of Vanderbilt University. Drafted and signed as an outfielder, the North Carolina native has since become a full-time catcher.

With the Drive this season, the left-handed hitting Scott slashed just .188/.305/.336 to go along with eight doubles, one triple, three homers, 14 RBIs, 17 runs scored, two stolen bases, 23 walks, and 28 strikeouts over 37 games spanning 154 trips to the plate.

On the other side of the ball, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound 25-year-old logged 286 2/3 innings behind the plate in Greenville and threw out 12 of a possible 42 base stealers. He will join a catching group in Portland that includes Kole Cottam and Elih Marrero.

(Picture of Alex Binelas: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Stephen Scott identified by Baseball America as ‘unheralded young minor-league hitter’ within Red Sox organization

Stephen Scott was recently identified by Baseball America’s Matt Eddy as an “unheralded young minor-league hitter” within the Red Sox organization who “succeeded in 2021 and is looking to build on that success this season.”

Scott — an outfielder, first baseman, and catcher — was originally selected by the Sox in the 10th round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the baseball powerhouse that is Vanderbilt University. As a senior coming out of college, the North Carolina native signed with Boston for a modest $50,000.

After spending the remainder of the 2019 season with the Lowell Spinners, Scott had his first full season as a pro taken away from him due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. He did, however, participate in fall instructs and subsequently opened the 2021 campaign with Low-A Salem.

While living in a trailer with teammate Joe Davis, Scott batted .259/.381/.453 with 17 doubles, eight home runs, 42 RBIs, 49 runs scored, two stolen bases, 39 walks, and 46 strikeouts across his first 61 games (257 plate appearances) for the Salem Sox.

On July 29, the Red Sox promoted Scott to High-A Greenville, where the left-handed hitter turned it up a notch offensively. In his final 39 games (165 plate appearances) with the Drive, Scott slashed an astounding .338/.430/.606 to go along with 12 doubles, one triple, eight homers, 29 RBIs, 24 runs scored, one stolen base, 23 walks, and 32 strikeouts.

Among all High-A East hitters who made at least 160 trips to the plate last year, Scott ranked 12th in walk rate (13.9%), 23rd in strikeout rate (19.4%), second in batting average, first in on-base percentage, fourth in slugging percentage, second in OPS (1.036), 13th in isolated power (.268), and second in wRC+ (173), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Scott is more versatile than his 5-foot-11, 207 pound frame might suggest. Last season alone, the 24-year-old logged 321 1/3 innings at first base, 78 in left field, 156 1/3 in right field, and 163 2/3 behind home plate while making his professional debut as a catcher.

As noted by Eddy, Scott’s “best path forward involves a large share of time behind the plate, where he made just 18 starts last year.” That being said, SoxProspects.com’s Ian Cundall writes that scouts are skeptical Scott can stick behind the plate long-term given his lack of mobility and lack of experience at the position.

Scott, who turns 25 in May, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 51 prospect in Boston’s farm system. After participating in the Sox’ Winter Warm-Up program in January, he is projected by the site to return to Greenville for the start of the 2022 minor-league season, though it should not take him long to get to Double-A Portland if he can replicate what he did at the plate last summer.

(Picture of Stephen Scott via the Greenville Drive’s Twitter)

New Podding the Red Sox episode: outfield prospect Wil Dalton joins the show

On this week’s installment of Podding the Red Sox: A BloggingtheRedSox.com Podcast, I am joined by Red Sox outfield prospect Wil Dalton.

Dalton, 23, was drafted by Boston in the eighth round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the University of Florida.

Among the topics we discussed in this episode, which is available on iTunes and Spotify, were Dalton’s path from junior college to Florida, takeaways from his first professional season in Lowell in 2019, his performance at the fall instructional league in 2020, and his personal expectations for the 2021 minor-league season.

Thanks to Wil for taking time out of his Monday evening to answer some questions.

Thank you for listening and we will see you next time! Make sure to subscribe and leave a five-star review if you can!

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