yophery rodriguez – Blogging the Red Sox

Revisiting Red Sox’ trade of Quinn Priester to Brewers

With the Brewers playing in the National League Championship Series, it feels like an appropriate time to revisit the trade they made with the Red Sox for starter Quinn Priester back on April 7.

In exchange for Priester, who put together a strong first season for Milwaukee, Boston acquired outfield prospect Yophery Rodriguez, a player to be named later, and a competitive balance Round A pick in the 2025 draft.

This article will focus on the early returns of the trade from the Red Sox’ end, starting with Rodriguez.

Yophery Rodriguez

Rodriguez came over to the Red Sox a little more than two years after originally signing with the Brewers for $1.5 million as an international free agent out of the Dominican Republic in January 2023. The San Pedro de Macorís native earned Dominican Summer League All-Star honors in his professional debut, then advanced straight to the Low-A level, thus skipping the Arizona Complex League, to begin his first season stateside in 2024.

As an 18-year-old, Rodriguez held his own by batting .250/.343/.383 with 23 doubles, six triples, seven home runs, 60 RBIs, 59 runs scored, seven stolen bases, 59 walks, and 115 strikeouts in 110 games (484 plate appearances) for Low-A Carolina last season. The left-handed-hitting teenager took another step forward by breaking camp with Milwaukee’s High-A affiliate this spring before being traded to Boston just three games (in which he went 5-for-12 with a double and triple) into his 2025 campaign.

Remaining at the same level upon switching organizations for the first time in his young career, Rodriguez debuted with High-A Greenville on April 8. As part of an up-and-down season, the 19-year-old outfielder batted .214/.312/.331 with 17 doubles, six triples, five home runs, 48 RBIs, 44 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, 52 walks, and 81 strikeouts in 101 games (433 plate appearances) for the Drive. He particularly stood out in July by slashing .342/.375/.539 in 19 games (77 plate appearances) en route to receiving South Atlantic League Player of the Month honors, but struggled to a .159/.239/.232 line over 23 games (92 plate appearances) between August and September to end things on a rather disappointing note.

Among 46 qualified hitters in the South Atlantic League this season, Rodriguez — lauded for his advanced feel of the strike zone — notably ranked fifth in strikeout rate (18.7 percent), sixth in fly-ball rate (43.9 percent), 12th in walk rate (12 percent), and 13th in opposite-field rate (32.2 percent) and swinging-strike rate (9.9 percent), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Rodriguez saw playing time at all three outfield positions with Greenville this year. The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder logged a team-leading 488 1/3 innings in left, 177 innings in right, and 117 innings in center, recording 13 outfield assists and committing just three errors in 165 total chances. He also made nine starts at DH.

Rodriguez, who turns 20 in December, is not currently regarded among Boston’s top prospects by Baseball America. At the same time, he is ranked as MLB Pipeline’s No. 21 Red Sox prospect and SoxProspects.com’s No. 36 prospect. Barring his inclusion in a trade or other surprise move this winter, Rodriguez is projected to make the jump to Double-A Portland for the start of the 2026 season.

John Holobetz

Exactly four weeks after adding Rodriguez, the Red Sox acquired right-hander John Holobetz from the Brewers as the player to be named later in the Priester deal.

Holobetz was selected by the Brewers in the fifth round (156th overall) of the 2024 draft out of Old Dominion. The Pennsylvania native signed with Milwaukee for $322,500 last summer, but did not make his professional debut until this past April. He made five appearances (three starts) at the Low-A level to begin the 2025 season, posting a 3.00 ERA (2.28 FIP) with 31 strikeouts to five walks in 24 innings, before joining the Red Sox organization on May 5.

Four days and one promotion later, Holobetz debuted with Greenville on May 9. The 23-year-old righty proceeded to pitch to a 3.43 ERA with 62 strikeouts to 10 walks in 12 outings (11 starts) for the Drive. Though he gave up his fair share of hits, as evidenced by the fact that opponents batted .276 against him in that time, Holobetz was elevated to Portland in early August.

From there, Holobetz compiled a 2.39 ERA (2.60 FIP) with 27 strikeouts to just five walks over six outings (five starts) spanning 37 2/3 innings for the Sea Dogs. Opposing hitters in the Eastern League batted .205 against him as he finished his first full season in pro ball with a 3.03 ERA (3.04 FIP) in 23 appearances (19 starts) totaling 124 2/3 innings across Low-A, High-A, and Double-A. That includes a 3.04 ERA (3.23 FIP) with 89 strikeouts to 15 walks in 100 2/3 innings between Greenville and Portland.

One of seven Red Sox minor leaguers to surpass the century mark in innings pitched this year, Holobetz was named a 2025 SoxProspects.com All-Star. Among those seven, he ranked first in walks per nine innings (1.34) and walk rate (3.8 percent), second in WHIP (1.11) and xFIP (3.17), and third in ERA and FIP, according to FanGraphs.

Standing at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, Holobetz throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a medium-high leg kick into his delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the lanky hurler operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a whiff-inducing 92-94 mph fastball that tops out at 96 mph, an 83-87 mph slider, a 79-82 mph curveball, and 84-87 mph changeup.

Holobetz, who does not turn 24 until next July, is not regarded among Boston’s top prospects by Baseball America or MLB Pipeline but is ranked as SoxProspects.com’s No. 25 overall prospect and No. 13 pitching prospect. Assuming he remains in the organization through the winter, Holobetz is projected to open the 2026 season in Portland’s starting rotation.

Marcus Phillips

In addition to Rodriguez and a player to be named later (Holobetz), the Red Sox acquired the 33rd overall selection in the 2025 draft from the Brewers for Priester in April. They used that pick to take Tennessee right-hander Marcus Phillips in July.

Days before celebrating his 21st birthday, Phillips signed with Boston for a below-slot $2.5 million on July 20, but did not pitch for an affiliate after putting pen to paper. The South Dakota native spent the final two seasons of his collegiate career at Tennessee after transferring from Iowa Western Community College. He posted a 3.90 ERA with 98 strikeouts to 34 walks in 17 starts (83 innings) for the Volunteers as a junior this past spring.

Listed at an imposing 6-foot-4 and 246 pounds, Phillips has featured a three-pitch mix that includes a 96-99 mph fastball that can reach triple digits, an 84-88 mph slider, and a 90-94 mph changeup. The burly righty is currently ranked as Boston’s No. 12 prospect by MLB Pipeline, No. 14 by SoxProspects.com, and No. 16 by Baseball America.

Phillips is projected by SoxProspects.com to open the 2026 campaign in Greenville alongside fellow 2025 draftees Kyson Witherspoon and Anthony Eyanson. All three could move through the system very quickly, depending on how aggressive the Red Sox are with their development.

(Picture of John Holobetz: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox acquire pitching prospect John Holobetz from Brewers to complete Quinn Priester trade

Exactly four weeks after dealing right-hander Quinn Priester to the Brewers, the Red Sox completed their April 7 trade with Milwaukee by adding some minor-league pitching depth on Monday.

Having already obtained outfielder Yophery Rodriguez and a competitive balance draft pick (33rd overall in this year’s draft) last month, Boston acquired minor-league righty John Holobetz from Milwaukee as the player to be named later (as opposed to cash considerations) in the deal to officially complete the swap.

Holobetz, 22, was selected by the Brewers in the fifth round (156th overall) of last summer’s draft out of Old Dominion (where he primarily pitched out of the bullpen) by way of Radford. The Pennsylvania native signed with Milwaukee for an under-slot $322,500 but did not make his professional debut until this April. He posted a 3.00 ERA (2.48 FIP) with 31 strikeouts to five walks in five outings (three starts) spanning 24 innings for Low-A Carolina to begin the 2025 season. Opposing hitters batted just .180 against him.

Among 15 qualified Carolina League pitchers, Holobetz currently leads the pack in strikeout rate (31.3 percent), batting average against, WHIP (0.88), FIP, and xFIP (2.71). He also ranks second in strikeouts per nine innings (11.63), walks per nine innings (1.88), and walk rate (5.1 percent), and seventh in ERA, per FanGraphs.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 190 pounds, Holobetz throws from a three-quarters arm slot and puts a lot of effort into his delivery. At present, he features a 92-94 mph fastball that has reached 96 mph this season, an 83-86 mph slider, and a high-80s changeup. According to Holobetz’s Baseball America pre-draft scouting report, “scouts believe the changeup is his best pitch, a potential weapon, but his breaking ball is more of a work in progress. Despite his reliever history, he throws enough strikes to potentially start in pro ball.”

Holobetz, who turns 23 in late July, was initially assigned to Low-A Salem but will instead report to High-A Greenville to begin his career as a member of the Red Sox organization.

(Picture of John Holobetz: Old Dominion University Athletics)

Red Sox acquire OF prospect Yophery Rodriguez from Brewers in Quinn Priester trade

The Red Sox acquired outfield prospect Yophery Rodriguez from the Brewers for right-hander Quinn Priester on Monday.

In addition to Rodriguez, Boston acquired a Competitive Balance Round A selection (33rd overall pick) in the 2025 draft and a player to be named later or cash considerations.

Rodriguez, 19, was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in Milwaukee’s farm system. The Dominican Republic native originally signed with the Brewers for $1.5 million as an international free agent coming out of San Pedro De Macoris in January 2023.

Shortly after signing, Rodriguez made a positive first impression in his professional debut. The left-handed hitter was recognized as a 2023 Dominican Summer League All-Star after batting .253/.393/.449 with 13 doubles, two triples, six home runs, 36 RBIs, 34 runs scored, 12 stolen bases, 41 walks, and 40 strikeouts in 52 games (224 plate appearances) for DSL Brewers 1.

Rodriguez made the jump stateside in 2024, with the Brewers aggressively having him skip the rookie-level Arizona Complex League and instead assigning him to Low-A Carolina out of spring training. As an 18-year-old all of last season, he slashed .250/.343/.383 with 23 doubles, six triples, seven home runs, 60 RBIs, 59 runs scored, seven stolen bases, 59 walks, and 115 strikeouts in 110 games (484 plate appearances) for the Mudcats.

Rodriguez broke camp with High-A Wisconsin this spring and had gotten his 2025 campaign off to a strong start, going 5-for-12 (.417) with one double, one triple, five runs scored, one walk, and three strikeouts in his first three games. The 6-foot-1, 185-pounder made three starts in center field for the Timber Rattlers and has made 138 starts there for his young career. He also has limited experience in the corners, with five starts in left field and eight starts in right field under his belt.

Per his Baseball America scouting report, Rodriguez “doesn’t have one spectacular tool, but he does a lot of things well. He’s a good fastball hitter with a smooth left-handed swing and his plate discipline is solid for his age, though he ran into trouble with more swing-and-miss against offspeed stuff. Rodriguez makes quality contact and shows flashes of what could be future average or better power.

“Rodriguez has good defensive instincts—especially on balls hit over his head—and an average arm, but he’s a solid-average runner, so he doesn’t have prototypical center field speed,” the report adds. “He projects to be a fringe-average defender in center field but more likely ends up in right field, where he should be an average to above defender.”

Rodriguez, who does not turn 20 until December, has been assigned to High-A Greenville and will presumably report to Boston’s South Atlantic League affiliate in the coming days. With the Drive, he is slated to join an outfield mix that includes the likes of Miguel Bleis, Zach Ehrhard, Kolby Johnson, and Nelly Taylor, among others.

(Picture of Yophery Rodriguez: Chris Coduto/Getty Images)