Article: Red Sox 2024 Offseason Top Prospects: #10, Jhostynxon Garcia

[Nick John]

Welcome back to Talk Sox’s 2024 top 20 prospect rundown! After breaking down spots 20 through 16 and spots 15 through 11, we’re officially into the top 10. Leading off is none other than Jhostynxon Garcia, aka The Password, as voted on and compiled by the Talk Sox community.

#10 OF Jhostynxon Garcia (Salem Red Sox, Greenville Drive, Portland Sea Dogs)

Garcia signed as an international free agent out of Venezuela in 2019 for a bonus of $350,000. Over four seasons, he has played in 256 games across four levels, compiling a .259/.356/.462 slash line. He didn't make his full-season debut until 2023, and it wasn't until the 2024 season when The Password finally unlocked the potential the Red Sox development and scouting teams saw in him. Splitting the season between Salem, Greenville, and Portland, Garcia played in a career-high 107 games, slashing .286/.356/.536 over 459 plate appearances. Garcia set career-highs in nearly every offensive category and looks primed to start the season in Portland, though his stay there could be short if his performance stays consistent. Below are his 2024 stats.

Level	G	PA	HR	SB	BB%	K%	AVG	OBP	SLG	wRC+
A	24	104	5	14	14.4	24.0	.258	.365	.517	155
A+	53	229	16	1	5.2	21.8	.311	.371	.627	176
AA	30	126	2	2	5.8	19	.263	.320	.386	103
Total	107	459	23	17	7.2	21.6	.286	.356	.536	151

What to Like:
Garcia is officially listed at 6'0" and 163 pounds, but he's already added plenty of muscle to his sturdy frame. FanGraphs has him listed at 6'2" and 220. He's known for his plus bat speed and he has improved against secondary pitches. His natural ability to backspin the ball results in plus raw power that should translate to games. He's already demonstrated high-end exit velocities, which helped him lead the Red Sox minor league system with 23 home runs in 2024.

What to Work On:
Garcia’s great power is accompanied by an extremely aggressive approach. His plus bat speed comes with a long swing, and his game involves a lot of swing-and-miss. In an encouraging sign, he ran a 24% strikeout rate in Salem, which dropped to 22% in Greenville and 19% in Portland. His walk rate also plummeted at each stop, so it remains to be seen whether he has fixed something or simply managed to put some more balls in play. He’ll be tested by the faster velocity of the upper minors. Despite the improvements that Garcia made during the 2024 season, it’s clear that the 21-year-old still has more room to grow.  Originally a shortstop as an amateur, Garcia moved to the outfield, and although he's primarily played center, he seems destined for a corner outfield spot, so his bat will need to shine.

What’s next:
Garcia ended the season with a 30-game stint in Portland, where he put up a .263/.320/.386 slash line and a 103 wRC+ over 126 plate appearances. There’s a chance he could end up as a non-roster invitee during spring training, but he'll likely begin the 2025 season back in Portland. A promotion to Worcester should not be out of the question for Garcia next year, and it will be interesting to see whether the Red Sox view him as a piece of the future or a key addition to a trade either over the offseason or during the 2025 season.

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[mvp 78]

Garcia may be my favorite prospect right now, but I'm also more aware of some of his flaws than some other posters. I think he could be similar to Abreu (overall production/ceiling wise, not approach wise). I don't see him becoming a "big 3" type prospect, but a guy that could be very useful in MLB at some point. Him and his brother were a big reason I watched a lot of Salem games early on this spring. 

[moonslav59]

I'm one of the "other posters" who is super high on this guy, despite his flaws.

He does turn 22 in December, so he's not super young, but I think he can still improve, quite a bit, and his body has changed a lot in the last few years. It may take some time for him to figure it all out, but this guy can hit!

[mvp 78]

3 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

I'm one of the "other posters" who is super high on this guy, despite his flaws.

He does turn 22 in December, so he's not super young, but I think he can still improve, quite a bit, and his body has changed a lot in the last few years. It may take some time for him to figure it all out, but this guy can hit!

Appearing in AA at 21 is pretty young!

[moonslav59]

29 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Appearing in AA at 21 is pretty young!

It's not old. He's not "super young," either. I would say 21 is on the "younger" side, but he turns 22, soon, and is expected to start in AA, next year. That is not "super young."

"Pretty Young!" I guess.

[mvp 78]

16 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

It's not old. He's not "super young," either. I would say 21 is on the "younger" side, but he turns 22, soon, and is expected to start in AA, next year. That is not "super young."

"Pretty Young!" I guess.

Per Baseball America, the average age for AA hitters is 24. I think getting there at 21 is on the young side. 

[moonslav59]

28 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Per Baseball America, the average age for AA hitters is 24. I think getting there at 21 is on the young side. 

I agree. He'll be 22, in 2025, and that is not "super young."

What is this talk about?

[Larry Cook]

13 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

I agree. He'll be 22, in 2025, and that is not "super young."

What is this talk about?

His long swing should be trouble, but he makes a lot of contact. 
 

I have Anthony, Campbell, teel and Mayer in my big four. 
 

but we have a potentially awesome big 4 (part two) Montgomery, arias, cespedes and either blies or Garcia or meidroth 

[smokedogg1982]

I know that he is no where near the talent level,but his swing reminds me of Manny Ramirez.

[moonslav59]

13 hours ago, Larry Cook said:

His long swing should be trouble, but he makes a lot of contact. 
 

I have Anthony, Campbell, teel and Mayer in my big four. 
 

but we have a potentially awesome big 4 (part two) Montgomery, arias, cespedes and either blies or Garcia or meidroth 

I do think our second 4 (Monty, Arias, Cespedes and Garcia) could end up moving into the top group. Most likely 2-3 will now, but even those that don't, could still be useful players.

I know my pink glasses are bigger than Elton John's, but I'm loving this farm.

I know a lot has been said about the lack or quality pitching on the farm, but I'm hopeful that out of the couple dozen pitching prospects we have, maybe 3-4 might rise to the levels we need to reach glory.

Perales looks like the real deal, but he has a major injury to comeback from.

Fitts, Sandlin and Tolle are recognized as very promising pitchers, already. The rest seem more like longshots, but with so many of them, I'm thinking a couple or three might jump in the rankings, real soon:

Valera, Ingrassia, Dobbins, Monegro, Cason, Guerrero

Kelly, Penrod, E Rodriguez, Early, Mullins, Paez

D Reyes, Neely, Wehunt, Clarke, Tygart, Carlson

Sena, Kwiatkowski, Bonnin, G Jackson,  Hoppe, Shugart

Dean, Rogers, Troye, Liu, Webb, Sansone

Ehrlicher, Judice, Aita, de la Cruz, Polanco, Y Ruiz

Bastardo, Gambrell, Wikelman, I Coffey, Drohan, Mata

This list is almost 50 pitchers long. Granted, some have less than a 1% chance to even sniff the Bigs, let alone do well, there. I get that, but I do think 24-36 have maybe a 5% or better chance, with some having a better than 33% chance. (Perales and Fitts might be 50-50.  Sandlin, Tolle, Kelly & GUerrero might be near 40%.)

 

[moonslav59]

13 hours ago, Larry Cook said:

His long swing should be trouble, but he makes a lot of contact. 
 

I have Anthony, Campbell, teel and Mayer in my big four. 
 

but we have a potentially awesome big 4 (part two) Montgomery, arias, cespedes and either blies or Garcia or meidroth 

Long swings can be adjusted, but the encouraging part about his swing is the bat speed does not seem to be reduced by its longness.

[Hugh2]

On 10/30/2024 at 8:35 AM, mvp 78 said:

Per Baseball America, the average age for AA hitters is 24. I think getting there at 21 is on the young side. 

How many guys older than 24 are just organizational players though? bringing that average up. 

On the other hand, 21-22 year olds reaching AA and becoming good MLB players is much more normal than phenoms reaching the level at 19-20

[mvp 78]

5 hours ago, Hugh2 said:

How many guys older than 24 are just organizational players though? bringing that average up. 

On the other hand, 21-22 year olds reaching AA and becoming good MLB players is much more normal than phenoms reaching the level at 19-20

I just took issue with moon's wording of "he does turn 22 in December so he's not super young" and interpreted that he was either at a normal age for the level or an expected age for the level.

Current prominent INTL Sox: Wilyer didn't get to AA until he was 23. Bello was 22 (COVID year may have pushed it back one year). Devers was 20 - phenom. Rafaela was 21. 

He's not having a meteoric rise, but he's young enough where starting AA again as a 22 year old isn't cause for concern or anything. He'd still be on the younger side for that level. Not everyone there is an org guy, you also have college guys that are just a tick older than the INTL guys. The orgy guys really skew it for AAA where the average age increases to 26 for hitters and 27 for pitchers. 

Pitchers:

A 21.9

A+ 23.1

AA 24.6

AAA 27.3

Hitters: 

A 21.0

A+ 22.5

AA 24.2

AAA 26.6 

Overall increase level to level is approximately 1.5 years until you get to AAA where it just explodes due to orgy players. 

[Hugh2]

You know who else was 22 when the reached Portland????? Jarren Duran.  Yeah.......that's who. 

And he only turned out to be Jarren Duran.