Red Sox Minor Leagues A to Z

June 14, 2023 Scott Greene AL East, MiLB, Red Sox 0

Shane Drohan
Shane Droham Worcester Red Sox, May 18, 2023. Photo credit Katie Morrison-O'Day, @KatieMo61 on Twitter
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I last did one of these prospects A to Z columns back in February 2019. That was a word association task. For this article I wanted to think of a prospect, or maybe a recently graduated minor leaguer, or even a team, and highlight some things we should know about in the Boston Red Sox farm system.

Exactly as I said last time, I’m thinking it could be fun, maybe even a little informative. Indeed it could also be a disaster but I’m up for the challenge. If you’d be so inclined to come along on this crazy ride with me, here we go.
*Stats as of June 13, 2023

A – Roman Anthony
Boston’s 2nd round compensation draft pick in 2022 (79th overall) comes out of Marjory Stoneman Douglas HS in Florida. His 1st Bowman card and autos, which hobby enthusiasts are chasing, are in 2023 Bowman. Anthony appears to be the favorite among prospectors and his potential future in the organization, even ahead of first round pick Mikey Romero and second rounder Cutter Coffey. He debuted last summer at Single-A Salem, has spent his first full season at that level this year, and was just promoted to High-A Greenville on June 13th.

B – Blaze
Of course I’m talking about Blaze Jordan, Boston’s 20-year-old corner infielder (1B/3B), who some may remember as the 2019 High School HR Derby champion (which took place All-Star Weekend at Progressive Field in Cleveland). Jordan is not just light tower power and a bunch of swing and miss. He’s improved his contact skills and through 52 games at High-A Greenville this year he’s slashing .300/.351/.483/.834, with 7 HR, 37 RBI, 15 2B, and 16 BB. Blaze was #12 in our preseason Red Sox Top 50, but with some graduations and some other names who could be moving in the other direction, he’s likely to be back in the Top 10 come this summer’s midseason update.

C – Ceddanne
The kid is exciting. Ceddanne Rafaela broke out in 2022, and he’s shown continued success at Double-A Portland this year. He had 7 stolen bases in one game! Then the official scorer changed one to defensive indifference. Whatever. He plays a very good center field, has some pop, and kills it on the basepaths. He’s among the Double-A leaders with 27 SB.

D – David Hamilton
Thinking back to the December 2021 Hunter Renfroe trade to Milwaukee that brought JBJ back to Boston, Hamilton was almost considered just a throw-in. Alex Binelas was a Brewers 3rd round pick, coming over to the Sox with some impressive power potential. Now, a year and a half later, Hamilton might be the crown jewel of the package. At least he’s opening a lot of eyes at Triple-A Worcester. Not only is he getting on base, hitting for average, and running (.262/.340/.513/.853, with 26 SB), he also has 11 HR in 47 games, compared to the total of 12 he tallied last year in 119 games at Double-A. Who wants to start the Hamilton train to Boston? Our David Gasper (@dgasper24) was riding the Brewers Hamilton train before the trade.

E – Eddinson Paulino
Some would say the versatile 20-year-old infielder had a “breakout” campaign in 2022 for Single-A Salem, but he’s struggled more in 2023 at High-A. Paulino is playing all over the infield at 2B, SS and 3B for Greenville, but his numbers aren’t what most Red Sox prospect followers were hoping for. Hitting .234 and slugging only .381 through 49 games, let’s look for some positive adjustments in the second half.

F – Freili Encarnacion
For those card collectors, go grab one of Freili’s 1st Bowman autographs in 2023 Bowman. Could be a nice hold for the next few years. The 18-year-old international signee (2022) debuted in the Dominican Summer League last year (3 HR, 23 RBI, .255 BA) and was assigned to Boston’s Florida Complex League rookie ball team for this summer.

G – Greenville Drive
As of June 13, the Drive sit atop the SAL South Division with a record of 32-25. Marcelo Mayer was the top name in Greenville prior to his recent promotion to AA. Drive names we should be keeping eyes on include Jordan, Eduardo Lopez, Miguel Ugueto, Nick Decker, Bryan Gonzalez and Max Ferguson on the position player side. For pitchers, watch Angel Bastardo, Isaac Coffey, Wikelman Gonzalez and Hunter Dobbins.

H – Nathan Hickey
My Diamond Duos dynasty league GM said to me, “all Hickey does is hit.” I will not argue that. Boston’s 2021 5th round pick has climbed the organization ladder fairly quickly and now has 18 games under his belt in AA Portland, following 18 games at High-A Greenville to begin the 2023 campaign. Hickey, who played at the University of Florida, should stick at catcher and is a future major leaguer.


I – Isaac Coffey
Here’s a pop up prospect for you. Selected in the 10th round last year (2022), Coffey hasn’t been on a lot of radars, but his outings in High-A this year, following only two appearances in FCL rookie ball last year, have changed that. He’s given up 2 ER or less in 8 of his 10 starts, and recently threw 3 straight 6 IP, 0 R games. Go claim him now in deep dynasty leagues if you can.


J – Juan Chacon
Another 2023 1st Bowman subject! Chacon debuted in 2021 as an 18-year-old in the DSL. He saw 8 games in Single-A last year, and now he’s playing everyday for Salem as a 20-year-old. Through 45 games he’s slashing .280/.411/.380/.791. His power should be developing, with no homers this year and only one last year, but he does have 19 SB, so he’s getting on base and taking advantage of that. The Sox will not rush him and I look for him in High-A next year, and potentially Double-A in 2025.

K – Niko Kavadas
May 17th in Hartford was the first time in history that two Nikos played in the same game, in the lineup, against each other. Kavadas played 1B for Portland and Niko Decolati was in RF for Hartford. I was there to witness history! @TommyYankees confirmed this was indeed the first ever Niko vs. Niko. Having said that, Kavadas, Boston’s 11th round pick out of Notre Dame in 2021, hits bombs. Who doesn’t dig the long ball? Niko mashed in 2022, hitting 26 HR across three levels, posting an OPS of .990. He’s playing 1B most games this season in Double-A, the contact hasn’t been there as much as last year (.224 BA), but he’s getting on base (45 BB, .396 OBP). Boston gave Kavadas more playing time last Fall in Arizona, so the organization has high hopes for the 24-year-old from South Bend, IN.

L – Luis Guerrero
Guerrero, a 17th round draft pick, is having success in AA Portland’s bullpen, having posted 10 saves already this season. Through 25.2 innings so far, his ERA is 1.05 having given up only 3 ER. I’d like to see some more swing and miss stuff, and a 7.0 K/9 is lower than what you want in the back end of a bullpen. Hopefully the strikeouts will come and he’ll get back closer to his career 11.0 MiLB K/9.

M – Marcelo Mayer
Mayer is Boston’s consensus #1 prospect, and following steady improvement and flashes of superstardom at High-A in the early part of this season, his promotion to Double-A came at the end of May. I was in NJ and saw two games earlier this month, and he broke out in the second game, notching his first AA hits and RBIs. He’s off to a slow start in Portland through 10 games, but they cannot rush him. Let him play out the rest of the season at Double-A, and maybe even start there next year, with a push to Triple-A later in 2024. He’s only 20, and shortstop in Boston should be waiting for him in 2025 and beyond.


N – Brendan Nail
Nail is 27 and that doesn’t bother me. Does it bother you? Do you think he’s too old for his level? I look at trends and performance and what have you done lately all before age. He came out of Western Carolina University, played in the Cape Cod Baseball League in 2017, and has been in Boston’s farm system since. Fast forward to this season, he was basically lights out at Double-A (0.99 ERA, 0.92 WHIP, 5 GS in 14 G) and has since been promoted to AAA Worcester. He’s potentially another Triple-A arm Boston could look at if needed this year or next.

O – Oddanier Mosqueda
I was considering Mosqueda as the Q in my A to Z, but decided to go another way with that (see Q). For my “O” let’s take a quick peek at Oddanier. He’s been around for a little while. Now 24, was signed as a 16-year-old out of Venezuela back in July 2015. He’s pitching out of the WooSox bullpen and seems to be organizational depth at this point in his career.

P – Portland Sea Dogs – The Sea Dogs are leading the Eastern League Northeast division and several players on the AA roster are making statements. Nick Yorke, Chih-Jung Liu, Chase Meidroth, and Ryan Fernandez are some of the top names to see at Hadlock Field this summer.

Q – QS+ (Quality Starts Plus)
This is my own made-up statistic, one that I prefer over the QS. My QS+ is 6 or more innings pitched, with 2 ER or less OR, 7 or more innings with 3 ER or less. It’s not a simple lookup on Baseball Reference, Fangraphs or any other site with statistics, so I dove into each starter’s game logs. I wanted to know which Red Sox minor league pitchers had the most QS+, let alone the basic QS. Portland’s Brian Van Belle (see below at V) leads all Red Sox MiLBers with six. Worcester’s Shane Drohan, Greenville’s Isaac Coffey, and the recently DFA’d Matt Dermody all have 5 QS+. Don’t sleep on Grant Gambrell, Sterling Sharp and Hunter Dobbins. They each have four.

R – Corey Rosier
Do you remember this trade? Boston sent Jay Groome to San Diego for cash, Eric Hosmer, Max Ferguson, and the other prospect who came over to the Sox in that deal was Rosier. I like what I’ve seen from Rosier in Portland so far. He’s hitting just under .300 on the season and is fourth in the system in stolen bases (24). Boston has a lot of outfield prospects, so we’ll have to see what Rosier’s path is over the next year or two.

S – Salem Red Sox – Boston’s Single-A squad in the Carolina League is sitting in the North Division’s last place, 10 games behind the leader (Down East). Salem does have some crazy talent on the roster, led by one of Boston’s top prospects Miguel Bleis. The 19-year-old was having some challenges in his full season debut, putting up a slash of .230/.282/.325/.607 in his first 31 games, and is now unfortunately out for the season and will be having shoulder surgery. This stunts his progress and I maintain what I’ve said in previous rankings. For me, I need to see success at full season ball before he’s anointed as one of the top 1-2 prospects in this farm system. Let’s hope Cutter Coffey starts hitting. The 2022 2nd round pick (41st overall) 3B has hit near the top of Salem’s batting order, but a .204 batting average and .290 SLG isn’t going to keep him there long term. On the pitching side, Elmer Rodriguez-Cruz has been impressive, as has Luis Perales, who’s creeping up org rankings and ranked #17 in our preseason Top 50. Jose Ramirez (no not that guy from Cleveland) has been really good too, starting and relieving. Let’s watch him in the second half.

T – Triston Casas
The big lefty isn’t a prospect anymore, but he is deserving to be on this list. It was just announced that he won’t be playing everyday at 1B for the Sox due to some growing pains. Believe in him Red Sox Nation! I do, and I’m confident he’ll be raising that .200 batting average soon. He does have 7 homers and we could be looking at 15-20 for the rookie by end of season. Also, if you know anyone who’s in the market for a 2018 Bowman Chrome Draft Triston Casas red refractor serial numbered 5/5, graded PSA 9, just let me know. 😉


U – Miguel Ugueto
Ugueto had a nice 22 game run in Single-A last year, and his assignment to High-A Greenville this season has proven challenging for the 20-year-old outfielder. As he’s hovering just over the Mendoza Line and posting an OPS of .512 through 40 games, it’s possible Greenville is his assignment next year too.

V – Brian Van Belle
I saw Van Belle pitch in Hartford and Somerset over the last month. You can look at numbers and stats all you want, but those don’t always tell the story. I really liked what I saw, and will be bumping Van Belle up in my Red Sox prospect rankings. Doesn’t hurt that he leads the organization in QS+ (see above). Watch one of his starts if you get a chance. Through 11 GS, his ERA is 2.81.

W – WooSox – As of this writing, Worcester sits in 4th place in the International League’s East Division. As with any Triple-A team, you’re going to get some prospects on their way up to the majors, but you’re also going to have several players who are sticking around in the game and may not have realistic shots to get back to the majors. Wilyer Abreu is on the way up, putting together a solid season for the WooSox. He came over to Boston with Enmanuel Valdez in the Christian Vazquez deadline deal last year. Drohan has arguably been Boston’s MiLB Pitcher of the Year so far. Ryan Fitzgerald could be stalled at this level but he’s a Worcester favorite. The SP trio of Brandon Walter, Chris Murphy and Bryan Mata looked to be one of MILB’s top rotations on paper, but Mata has been hurt and struggled, Walter’s been up and down, and surprisingly Murphy was the first of the three to be promoted. He debuted with a stellar 3.1 IP, 2 H, 5 K relief stint for Boston on June 7th, but was optioned back to Worcester. I believe we will see all three in Boston, at some point.

X – xwOBA and xFIP
Yes, let’s get into some advanced stats! (well, as best as I can) There isn’t much access to the xwOBA and xFIP data for Minor League Baseball, but I can cite regular wOBA and FIP. Does that work? Boston’s Top 5 MiLB leaders in wOBA (minimum 100 plate appearances) are Meidroth and Bobby Dalbec (each at .437), Hickey (.420), Yorke (.400) and Fitzgerald (.392). Over on the pitching side, Boston’s Top 5 MiLB leaders in FIP (minimum 50 innings pitched) are Coffey (2.82), Bastardo (3.77), Liu (4.12), Gambrell (4.15) and Drohan (4.43).

Y – Masataka Yoshida
Josh Jung is the clear front runner for AL Rookie of the Year, but Yoshida is right there, living up to expectations so far. Some don’t consider players with 7 years played in Japan and coming over to MLB as “rookies” per se, but most dynasty leagues’ rules allow for players with less than 130 MLB at bats to be selected in Minors or First Year player drafts. I took advantage of this rule and selected Yoshida 1st overall in two of my Prospects dynasty leagues, and I’m glad I did. He’s getting stats right now when others who selected Druw Jones or Jackson Holliday may have to wait another 2-3 years.

Z – Ryan Zeferjahn
Boston’s Z-man was selected in the 3rd round in 2019 out of the University of Kansas. A starter when he joined the organization, transferred to reliever in 2022. He’s currently holding down a spot in the Portland Sea Dogs bullpen.

Scott Greene

President of Prospects1500. Founder of Diamond Duos dynasty fantasy baseball leagues and the MLB Fantasy Playoffs Parlay. Participant and champion in several dynasty/fantasy baseball and football leagues. Sales Manager for Reminder Publishing in real life. Huge Bruce Springsteen and pro wrestling fan. Along with his wife and two boys, lives in Longmeadow, MA. Follow on Twitter at @Scotty_Ballgame.

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