Tag: yoeilin cespedes

Red Sox promote power-hitting IF prospect Yoeilin Cespedes to Double-A Greenville

The Red Sox have promoted power-hitting infield prospect Yoeilin Cespedes from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, as first reported by Andrew Parker of SoxProspects.com.

Cespedes is currently regarded as Boston’s No. 14 prospect by SoxProspects.com, while Baseball America and MLB Pipeline both rank him 16th. With 18 home runs this season, the 20-year-old slugger trails only No. 1 prospect and fellow infielder Franklin Arias (21) for the organizational lead.

In addition to crushing a team-leading 18 homers, Cespedes batted .249/.310/.477 (92 wRC+) with 57 RBIs, 58 runs scored, two stolen bases, 29 walks, and 94 strikeouts over 82 games (378 plate appearances) for Greenville this season. The right-handed hitter fared particularly well against lefties, slashing .328/.382/.590 in 68 plate appearances. He slashed .231/.294/.452 in 310 plate appearances against righties.

Among 68 qualified hitters in the hitter-friendly South Atlantic League entering play Saturday, Cespedes ranked 12th in isolated power (.228), 15th in slugging percentage, 18th in line-drive rate (24.7%), 30th in OPS (.787), and 33rd in batting average, according to FanGraphs.

Defensively, Cespedes split most of his playing time with Greenville between shortstop and second base. In 41 starts at short, the compact 5-foot-8, 181-pounder (listed height and weight) committed seven errors in 186 chances over 365 2/3 innings. In 31 starts at second, he committed five errors in 133 chances over 276 1/3 innings. He also made 10 starts at DH.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Cespedes originally signed with the Red Sox for $1.4 million as a highly-regarded international free agent in January 2023. In his professional debut that season, he earned Dominican Summer League All-Star honors and was recognized as Boston’s Latin Program Position Player of the Year. He then arrived stateside in 2024 and shined in the Florida Complex League before earning a late-June promotion to Low-A Salem.

Due to lingering soreness in his left hand, however, Cespedes did not make his full-season debut in 2024. Instead, he was diagnosed with a broken hamate bone that ultimately required season-ending surgery. He returned to action with Salem in 2025 and proved durable, playing in 110 of the team’s 130 games. That said, he did so while struggling to a .227/.292/.376 line with 10 home runs and 54 RBIs over 477 plate appearances.

Coming off a down year, Cespedes was identified by Baseball America as a potential bounce-back candidate entering 2026. He certainly came out of the gates firing, slashing .317/.365/.567 with 10 home runs and 34 RBIs over his first 42 games (200 plate appearances) for Greenville this season. Since the calendar flipped from May to June, however, he batted just .173/.247/.377 with eight homers and 23 RBIs across his last 40 games (178 plate appearances) before Saturday’s promotion.

Overall, it has very much been an up-and-down season for Cespedes, who is arriving in the upper minors a month-plus shy of his 21st birthday in early September. Assuming he is not traded between now and Monday’s deadline, he should provide Portland with additional power from the right side of the plate as well as middle infield depth.

(Picture of Yoeilin Cespedes: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Is Red Sox IF prospect Yoeilin Cespedes primed to bounce back in 2026?

Earlier this month, Baseball America identified one prospect from each organization in need of a bounce-back 2026 season after a disappointing 2025.

Their pick from the Red Sox? Infielder Yoeilin Cespedes, who celebrated his 20th birthday on September 8.

Originally signed for $1.4 million as a highly-touted international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in January 2023, Cespedes made great strides to begin his professional career. Out of the gate, the Azua native was recognized as a Dominican Summer League All-Star and the Red Sox’ Minor League Latin Program Position Player of the Year. He followed that up by setting fire to the rookie-level Florida Complex League to kick off his 2024 campaign.

After batting .319/.400/.615 with five home runs and 24 RBIs in 25 FCL games, Cespedes received a promotion to Low-A Salem last June. Due to lingering soreness in his left hand, however, Cespedes was placed on the injured list before appearing in a game for Boston’s Carolina League affiliate. He was then ultimately diagnosed with a broken hamate bone and underwent season-ending surgery in July as a result.

On the heels of a frustrating end to an otherwise promising first season stateside, Cespedes rehabbed through the winter and entered 2025 as Baseball America’s sixth-ranked Red Sox prospect. He broke camp with Salem in the spring and made his long-awaited Low-A debut in early April. In his first 70 games, he batted just .213/.264/.350 with 15 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 33 RBIs, 31 runs scored, six stolen bases, 21 walks, and 65 strikeouts over 303 plate appearances leading up to the MLB All-Star break in mid-July.

Coming out of the break on July 18, though, Cespedes began to produce more encouraging results. The aggressive right-handed hitter ended the year by slashing .252/.341/.424 with nine doubles, one triple, five home runs, 21 RBIs, 25 runs scored, five stolen bases, 20 walks, and 36 strikeouts in his final 40 games (174 plate appearances) for Salem.

Overall, Cespedes hit .227/.292/.376 with 24 doubles, five triples, 10 home runs, 54 RBIs, 56 runs scored, 11 stolen bases, 41 walks, and 101 strikeouts over 110 games (477 plate appearances) as a 19-year-old in Low-A this season. That includes a .222/.292/.351 line in 381 plate appearances against right-handed pitching and a .244/.292/.477 line in 96 plate appearances against left-handed pitching.

Among 47 qualified hitters in the Carolina League this year, Cespedes notably ranked first in pull rate (59.8 percent), seventh in isolated power (.150), eighth in line-drive rate (25.2 percent), ninth in fly-ball rate (42.6 percent), and 14th in slugging percentage, per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Cespedes saw all of his playing time on the field this season come at either second base or shortstop. The compact 5-foot-8, 181-pounder logged 773 2/3 innings at the former and 54 innings at the latter, committing 17 errors in 43o total chances. Interestingly, he did not play any shortstop after May 7. He also made 12 starts at DH.

Cespedes now finds himself ranked as Boston’s No. 14 prospect by Baseball America, which theorizes that he will “need to harness his bat-to-ball skills and ample bat speed more consistently” to take a step forward in 2026. Barring a trade or other surprise move this winter, he is expected to make the jump to High-A Greenville to start next season.

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

Red Sox prospect Yoeilin Cespedes taking swings after undergoing hand surgery this summer

Red Sox infield prospect Yoeilin Cespedes posted a video of himself taking some swings in a batting cage to his Instagram story earlier Thursday afternoon.

Cespedes, the No. 9 prospect in Boston’s farm system according to Baseball America, is approximately four months removed from undergoing season-ending surgery to repair a broken hamate bone in his left hand. The issue first popped up for the 19-year-old after he was promoted from the Florida Complex League to Low-A Salem in late June.

Though he was initially considered day-to-day, the soreness in Cespedes’ left hand lingered and led to further testing being done. Those tests ultimately resulted in the diagnosis of a hamate fracture, as Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham explained to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier in July.

Because of the surgery, Cespedes will have to wait until next April at the earliest to make his Low-A debut. Still, there is no denying that the Dominican native put together a strong first season stateside in 2024 after originally signing with the Red Sox for $1.4 million as a highly-touted international free agent last January. He then kicked off his professional career by earning 2023 Dominican Summer League All-Star honors and being named Boston’s Latin Program Position Player of the Year.

After being slowed by a quadriceps strain in spring training, Cespedes debuted for the rookie-level FCL Red Sox on May 9 and took off from there. In 25 games, the young right-handed hitter batted stout .319/.400/.615 with 10 doubles, one triple, five home runs, 24 RBIs, 20 runs scored, three stolen bases, 12 walks, and 19 strikeouts in 25 games (105 plate appearances). That includes a .317/.374/.622 slash line against right-handed pitching and a .333/.571/.556 slash line against lefties.

Among the 139 hitters who made at least 100 trips to the plate during the FCL season, Cespedes ranked first in slugging percentage and isolated power (.297), second in OPS (1.015), fourth in wOBA (.464) and wRC+ (163), 11th in batting average, 34th in on-base percentage, and 42nd in strikeout rate (18.1 percent), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Cespedes saw most of his playing time in the FCL come at either shortstop or second base. In 10 starts at short, the projectable 5-foot-8, 181-pounder committed five errors in 36 defensive chances. In seven starts at second, he did not commit a single error in 30 defensive chances. He also started eight games at DH, five of which came in succession to ease him back into things out of the gate in May.

Cespedes, who just turned 19 last month, has already shown that he has top-100 prospect potential when healthy. Given the breadth of position-playing prospects the Red Sox have in their system at the moment, it would not be surprising if Cespedes emerged as a possible trade candidate as the club looks to address other areas of need this winter. Assuming he remains in the organization, though, Cespedes seems likely to open the 2025 campaign at Salem.

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

Red Sox top prospect Yoeilin Cespedes likely requires surgery after breaking bone in left hand

Top Red Sox prospect Yoeilin Cespedes has a broken hamate bone in his left hand that will likely require surgery, as was first reported by Alex Speier of The Boston Globe.

Cespedes had yet to appear in a game for Low-A Salem after earning a promotion from the rookie-level Florida Complex League on June 25. The 18-year-old middle infielder was instead placed on the 7-day injured list last Wednesday due to what was initially believed to be left-hand soreness.

As noted by Speier, however, the issue lingered longer than expected. Further testing led to the diagnosis of a hamate fracture, according to Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham. Since surgery to remove a broken hamate typically sidelines players for approximately six to eight weeks, the rest of Cespedes’ season could be in jeopardy if he does indeed go under the knife.

Before being promoted to Salem late last month, the right-handed hitting Cespedes batted a stout .319/.400/.615 with 10 doubles, one triple, five home runs, 24 RBIs, 20 runs scored, three stolen bases, 12 walks, and 19 strikeouts in 25 games (105 plate appearances) for the FCL Red Sox to open the 2024 campaign.

Defensively, Cespedes split his playing time on the field between second base and shortstop. The 5-foot-8, 181-pounder made seven starts at the former and 10 at the latter. He also started eight games at DH, though five of those starts came in the early stages of the FCL season as he was still working his way back from a quadriceps strain that sidelined him during spring training.

Cespedes, who turns 19 in September, is currently ranked by Baseball America as the No. 7 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 last January. He made a positive first impression in his professional debut by being named a 2023 Dominican Summer League All-Star and the organization’s Latin Program Position Player of the Year.

Had he remained healthy upon making the jump to Salem, Cespedes could have put himself in the conversation to join fellow Red Sox prospects Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, Kyle Teel, and Kristian Campbell on Baseball America’s top-100 list this summer. He will now have to wait a bit until he is cleared to return to action.

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

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’ 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)

Why rising Red Sox prospect Yoeilin Cespedes figures to make stateside debut earlier than originally expected

Thanks to a scheduling update, one of the top prospects in the Red Sox farm system will likely make his stateside debut a little earlier than expected later this year.

Infielder Yoeilin Cespedes, who enjoyed a strong debut season in the Dominican Summer League last year, is expected to make the jump to the Florida Complex League in 2024.

In years past, the rookie-level Florida and Arizona Complex Leagues typically get underway in early June and wrap up in late August. As Baseball America’s JJ Cooper reported on Tuesday, though, both complex league seasons this year will begin on May 4 and finish on July 25.

According to Cooper, all 30 big-league clubs “discussed changes to the complex leagues with MLB all last season. Farm directors voted to move the season up after considering multiple proposals for different tweaks. In the end, the decision changes the leagues from ones heavily populated by new draftees to ones that will largely be filled with players making the jump from the Dominican Summer League.”

Cespedes, Boston’s top international signee out of the Dominican Republic in 2023, fits that description. After putting pen to paper and receiving a lucrative $1.4 million bonus, the Azua native made his professional debut for DSL Red Sox Blue last June and proceeded to put up impressive numbers at the plate.

In 46 games with Blue last season, Cespedes slashed a stout .346/.392/.560 with a team-high 15 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 38 RBIs, 37 runs scored, one stolen base, 14 walks, and 24 strikeouts over 209 plate appearances. The right-handed hitting 18-year-old earned DSL All-Star honors in July and was named the Red Sox’ Latin Program Position Player of the Year in September.

Among the 66 DSL hitters who made at least 200 trips to the plate in 2023, Cespedes ranked sixth in strikeout rate (11.5 percent), third in batting average, 27th in on-base percentage, fifth in slugging percentage, seventh in OPS (.953), eighth in isolated power (.215), first in line-drive rate (28.3 percent), 21st in swinging-strike rate (21.6 percent), and ninth in wRC+ (145), per FanGraphs.

“He’s put up some numbers we haven’t seen very much from that level,” Red Sox assistant general manager Eddie Romero said of Cespedes when speaking with MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith last July. “Obviously the numbers down there speak for themselves. A lot of contact. A lot of hard contact. I think he’s working on being a little bit more patient at the plate.

“He’s not pull-oriented,” added Romero. “He uses the whole field. He hits the ball hard everywhere. And he hits the ball hard to a lot of quadrants that are pitched to him too, which is good. He doesn’t strike out much. He makes a lot of contact. There’s a lot of good, positive indicators there.”

Defensively, Cespedes saw all of his playing time on the infield dirt last season come at shortstop. The projectable 5-foot-9, 181-pounder logged a team-high 294 innings at short and committed seven errors in 139 chances, which translates to a .950 fielding percentage. He also helped turn 14 double plays.

“He’s become a lot more fundamentally sound,” said Romero, referencing how Cespedes improved on the defensive side of things as the year progressed. “In his base, being more flexible, being more athletic. He’s always had the arm strength. For us, it was working on his range, working on his first step, his agility side to side.”

Coming into the spring, Cespedes is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 10 prospect in Boston’s farm system, up 14 spots from where he was a year ago. He also received at least one vote to be included in BA’s 2024 preseason top 100 list, which was released last month.

Elsewhere, Keith Law of The Athletic recently tabbed Cespedes as his eighth-ranked Red Sox prospect heading into the 2024 season. Law wrote on Monday that Cespedes, his sleeper pick, could be Boston’s “next superstar hitting prospect if what we saw in the DSL carries over to the US.”

With the 2024 FCL campaign set to begin and end a month earlier than before, Cespedes should have an opportunity to make it to Low-A Salem for what would be his full-season debut well before his 19th birthday in September. There could be some struggles along the way, but Cespedes undoubtedly has tantalizing potential at this early stage in his career.

(Picture of Yoeilin Cespedes: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox infield prospect Franklin Arias has the makings of a ‘true shortstop’

The Red Sox had a number of young, international prospects make their respective professional debuts in the Dominican Summer League this past season, including infielder Franklin Arias.

Arias, who just turned 18 last month, signed with Boston for $525,000 coming out of Venezuela back in January. In May, Ben Badler of Baseball America noted that the Caracas native was a “high baseball IQ player with good rhythm at the plate” and “easy arm strength” on the field.

Nearly four months after putting pen to paper, Arias debuted for DSL Red Sox Red on June 18. The right-handed hitter immediately made his impact felt by going 4-for-5 out of the leadoff spot with two RBIs, one run scored, and one walk in an 11-9 victory over DSL Tigers 1.

Arias recorded two more four-hit games in June (the first of which he notched his first pro home run) before cooling off to the tune of a .191/.261/.262 slash line in 12 July contests. He then ended the year on a strong note by going 14-for-34 (.412) with five extra-base hits in August.

All told, Arias batted a stout .350/.440/.453 with nine doubles, one triple, one home run, 15 runs driven in, a team-high 32 runs scored, three stolen bases, 19 walks, and 14 strikeouts in 37 games (159 plate appearances) for Boston’s DSL Red affiliate. Going even deeper, Arias posted a 1.036 OPS against lefties and an .854 OPS against righties.

Among the 276 hitters in the Dominican Summer League who registered at least 150 plate appearances this season, Arias ranked fifth in strikeout rate (8.8 percent), fourth in batting average, 24th in on-base percentage, 57th in slugging percentage, 37th in OPS (.893), 57th in line-drive rate (23.3 percent), 12th in swinging-strike rate (14.8 percent), and 33rd in wRC+ (144), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Arias saw all of his playing time on the field this summer come at shortstop. The 5-foot-11, 170-pounder logged a team-leading 260 1/3 innings at the position, committing nine errors in 121 chances (.926 fielding percentage) while also turning 16 double plays.

Arias, who was not ranked by SoxProspects.com at the start of the minor-league season in April, is now regarded by the site as the No. 30 prospect in Boston’s farm system. Similarly enough, MLB Pipeline currently has Arias ranked 28th on its Red Sox-centered top prospects list.

The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, who compiles the Red Sox’ organizational rankings for Baseball America, unsurprisingly excluded Arias from his preseason top-10 list heading into 2024. He did, however, have encouraging things to say about Arias in a virtual chat with BA subscribers on Friday.

“Yeah, he’ll start to get attention next year,” Speier wrote of Arias. “There’s a strong consensus that he’s a true shortstop, with enough bat-to-ball that he should have some offensive value. His physical development will determine how much, but he has an unusually clear path to being a big-leaguer for someone who has yet to play in the United States.”

To that end, Arias is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to the States and play in the rookie-level Florida Complex League next season. As things stand now, he would seemingly be in a competition for playing time at shortstop with top prospect and fellow 2023 international signee Yoeilin Cespedes.

Of course, the Red Sox will more than likely find a way to accommodate both infielders so they each get plenty of at-bats in Fort Myers. Still, this can be viewed as a good problem to have if it means one or both of Arias and Cespedes get exposure at a new position next year.

(Picture of JetBlue Park: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Who is Gilberto Batista? Get to know the Red Sox’ Latin Program Pitcher of the Year

Like infielder Yoeilin Cespedes, pitching prospect Gilberto Batista was recognized as the Red Sox’ 2023 Minor League Latin Program Pitcher of the Year at Fenway Park last month.

Batista made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League this past June after signing with the Red Sox for a mere $10,000 as an international free agent last November. In 11 appearances (nine starts) for Boston’s DSL Red affiliate, the 18-year-old right-hander posted a 3.54 ERA with a team-leading 54 strikeouts to just eight walks over 40 2/3 innings in which he held opposing hitters to a .228 batting average against.

Batista’s best start of the year came on July 14. Going up against DSL Cubs Blue on the road, the Dominican-born hurler struck out seven (tying a season-high in that category) across four scoreless, no-hit frames. He took a bid for a perfect game into the bottom of the third inning before leadoff man Omar Ferrera reached on a Franklin Arias throwing error. Batista then struck out the side before retiring the last three batters he faced in the fourth.

Among 94 pitchers in the DSL who threw at least 40 innings this season, Batista ranked fifth in strikeouts per nine innings (11.95), 11th in walks per nine innings (1.77), fifth in strikeout rate (33.5 percent), first in swinging-strike rate (50.7 percent), 12th in walk rate (5.0 percent), 19th in WHIP (1.03), 11th in FIP (3.02), and first in xFIP (2.74), per FanGraphs.

Batista (right) pictured with fellow countryman Brayan Bello (left) at the club’s academy in El Toro

Listed at 6-feet and 165 pounds, Batista operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 93-94 mph fastball that touches 95 mph, a “true” curveball, a “hard” slider, and a changeup, according to Red Sox assistant general manager Eddie Romero.

“As he’s added 11 pounds since March, his velocity has started to tick up,” Romero said of Batista in a recent email exchange with BloggingtheRedSox.com. “After a sluggish start to his DSL season, he really excelled July and August. He’s an above average athlete with a lightning quick arm who loves to compete.”

Batista, who turns 19 in January, is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to the United States and pitch in the rookie-level Florida Complex League at some point in 2024.

(Picture of Alex Cora, Gilberto Batista, and Yoeilin Cespedes: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Who is Yoeilin Cespedes? Get to know the Red Sox’ Latin Program Position Player of the Year

Red Sox infield prospect Yoeilin Cespedes reached plenty of milestones in 2023.

In January, Cespedes inked his first professional contract and received a hefty $1.4 million signing bonus, making him the highest-paid member of Boston’s 2023 international free agent class. The Dominican native then made his pro debut as a 17-year-old in the Dominican Summer League and was later recognized as the organization’s Latin Program Position Player of the Year.

Cespedes entered the professional ranks as the No. 24 prospect in Boston’s farm system, per Baseball America’s preseason rankings. Even before debuting with DSL Red Sox Blue in June, Cespedes had already generated plenty of buzz on account of what he was doing in extended spring training games at the club’s academy in El Toro.

“He definitely stands out offensively,” Red Sox assistant general manager Eddie Romero told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier earlier this year. “He’s been one of the better offensive players that we’ve had there in a while.”

Cespedes earned in-season DSL All-Star honors by batting a stout .338/.391/.552 with 12 doubles, three triples, five home runs, 28 RBIs, 30 runs scored, one stolen bases, 14 walks, and 17 strikeouts in 37 games (169 plate appearances) from June 5 through July 28. After drawing a walk and swiping one bag in the All-Star game itself on July 30, the right-handed hitter closed out the 2023 campaign by going 14-for-37 (.378) with one homer and 10 RBIs in his final nine games.

Altogether, Cespedes slashed .346/.392/.560 with 15 doubles, four triples, six home runs, 38 runs driven in, 37 runs scored, one stolen base, 14 walks, and 24 strikeouts in 46 total games (209 plate appearances). Among 66 hitters in the DSL who made at least 200 trips to the plate this season, Cespedes ranked third in batting average, 27th in on-base percentage, fifth in slugging percentage, seventh in OPS (.953), eighth in isolated power (.215), first in line-drive rate (28.1 percent), sixth in strikeout rate (11.5 percent), and ninth in wRC+ (145), per FanGraphs.

“He’s put up some numbers we haven’t seen very much from that level,” Romero said of Cespedes when speaking with MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith back in July. “Obviously the numbers down there speak for themselves. A lot of contact. A lot of hard contact. I think he’s working on being a little bit more patient at the plate.

“He’s not pull-oriented,” added Romero. “He uses the whole field. He hits the ball hard everywhere. And he hits the ball hard to a lot of quadrants that are pitched to him too, which is good. He doesn’t strike out much. He makes a lot of contact. There’s a lot of good, positive indicators there.”

On the other side of the ball, Cespedes saw all of his playing time on the field this season come at shortstop. There, the 5-foot-10, 181-pounder logged 294 innings and committed seven errors in 139 chances, culminating in a .950 fielding percentage. He also turned 14 double plays.

“He’s become a lot more fundamentally sound,” Romero said of Cespedes’ improving defensive prowess. “In his base, being more flexible, being more athletic. He’s always had the arm strength. For us, it was working on his range, working on his first step, his agility side to side.”

Cespedes, who celebrated his 18th birthday last month, was honored alongside Gilberto Batista — Boston’s Latin Program Pitcher of the Year — and several other Red Sox minor-league award winners on Sept. 28. When speaking with reporters (including Smith) in the home dugout that night, Cespedes was asked about how Baseball America described him as “one of the top hitting prospects to come through the organization’s academy since Rafael Devers a decade ago.”

“It’s an unbelievable feeling to be compared to him,” Cespedes said of his fellow countryman through interpreter Carlos Villoria Benítez. “He’s someone I admire and follow a lot. For me to be compared with him, it’s very, very special.”

As a shortstop, however, Cespedes acknowledged that he grew up idolizing Xander Bogaerts and still tries to emulate the former Red Sox star to this day. Bogaerts, of course, left Boston via free agency by signing an 11-year, $280 million deal with the Padres about one month before Cespedes put pen to paper himself.

“One of the reasons was because Xander was here,” Cespedes said when asked about why he signed with the Red Sox. “And another one is because I love Boston. I love the Red Sox.”

Coming off a self-described “learning year” in his first season of pro ball, Cespedes is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 12 prospect in Boston’s farm system. MLB Pipeline has him ranked 13th on its Red Sox-centered list while SoxProspects.com slots him in at No. 10 on its list.

Still a ways away from the big-leagues, Cespedes is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to the rookie-level Florida Complex League in 2024. Even though the FCL season does not start until next June, Cespedes already knows what he needs to work on in order to get better.

“Definitely swing decisions is something I need to improve on because that aggressiveness makes me swing at pitches that might not be in the zone,” said Cespedes, who described his hit tool as a “super power” of sorts. “So that’s something I need to improve on and I’m already working on that.

“I improved on my defense,” he continued while reflecting on his 2023 . “I think it was day and night the difference compared to where I started and how I finished.”

(Picture of Yoeilin Cespedes: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)