Six Red Sox Prospects Whose Stocks Soared In 2023
It’s been a busy early portion of the offseason for the Boston Red Sox, so you’d be forgiven if you forgot about their blossoming farm system.
They’ve got a pretty dang good one, though.
Chaim Bloom’s tenure in Boston didn’t yield great results for the big league club, but there’s no doubt that he oversaw a successful rebuild down on the farm. The Red Sox have the No. 2 system in Major League Baseball, according to Fangraphs — which is a far cry from their last-place finish in 2019. That successful jump can be attributed in part to Bloom, but mostly to the players who have put things together on the field.
There’s one group who had a bigger hand in that jump than the rest, however, utilizing 2023 as a season to elevate their stock heading into 2024. In his first season as chief baseball officer, Craig Breslow will look for these six prospects to continue improving their own stock.
Kyle Teel, C (Double-A Portland)
Can we say Kyle Teel’s stock “soared” in 2023 even though he’s only two months into his professional career? Yeah, why not?
Teel was the Red Sox’s first-round pick last summer, and he showed exactly why Boston was willing to stray from a recent draft strategy to pick him. The 21-year-old looks like he’ll be ready for big league action sooner rather than later, having been promoted twice in two months and finishing the season by slashing .323/.462/.484 in nine games with Double-A Portland. His defense is almost to the point the Red Sox will want it, while his bat looked MLB ready while he was still at the University of Virginia.
It wouldn’t be surprising if his “prospect” tag is lifted by 2025.
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Luis Guerrero, P (Triple-A Worcester)
The Red Sox’s biggest developmental weakness in recent seasons has been their ability to produce quality pitching. That’s kind of the whole reason Breslow was hired, but in Luis Guerrero, it seems Boston found something that works.
Guerrero came out of nowhere this season, cultivating a 1.81 ERA in 43 appearances for Double-A Portland. He’s got some of the best stuff in the system, having reached triple-digits on the gun, and utilizes a devastating splitter as his strikeout pitch. He’s fun to watch on the mound and could arrive in Boston by the end of 2024.
Wilyer Abreu, OF (MLB)
Did anyone see Wilyer Abreu coming up and being a contributor down the stretch?
It seemed like Abreu, who was acquired alongside Enmanuel Valdez for Christian Vasquez, was falling behind in his development at Double-A Portland. The Red Sox promoted him to Triple-A, anyway, and were rewarded in a big way. Abreu slashed .274/.391/.538 with 22 home runs in 86 games with the Woo Sox, enjoying a torrid stretch in August that eventually led to his big league debut. He’s been pretty solid for Boston so far, and his prospect tag will soon be lifted, so we had to give him a shoutout here.
Luis Perales, P (High-A Greenville)
There’s still a wonder what Luis Perales’ role will be at the next level. Can he start? Is he a multi-inning reliever?
It doesn’t really matter. He’s a quality arm, and Boston should covet those when it finds them. Perales was added to the 40-man roster this offseason, meaning the Red Sox plan on keeping him around for a while.
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Chase Meidroth, INF (Double-A Portland)
You’ve probably heard a lot about Marcelo Mayer and Nick Yorke over the last few seasons, but the Red Sox have another middle infield prospect who looks like he could be a fit moving forward.
Chase Meidroth does exactly what Boston needs out of a second baseman: he plays great defense and gets on base. The Red Sox have missed that in recent years, making him look like a perfect fit moving forward. It’ll be hard to supplant either Mayer or Yorke, but Meidroth has shown he has the ability to rise in Boston’s system.
Roman Anthony, OF (Double-A Portland)
There might not be a prospect in baseball who soared as much as Roman Anthony did in 2023.
Anthony, who is the new No. 1 prospect in the Red Sox’s system, according to our friends at SoxProspects.com, had a stellar season. The 19-year-old slashed .228/.376/.316 at Low-A Salem, .294/.412/.569 at High-A Greenville and .343/.477/.543 at Double-A Portland across two promotions. He was a stud and should continue to improve as he gets used to playing with the Sea Dogs.