Article: Red Sox Minor League Recap: Top Prospects Shine In Solid Week For The Farm

[Billy Mock]

Following a tough week for the Red Sox minor league affiliates, it was a solid showing for the farm this week as they combined for a 12-12 record along with plenty of promising individual performances.

Worcester Red Sox (Triple-A): 5-1 (10-9 overall)

It was quite the impressive week for the Woo Sox in Rochester, where they took on the Red Wings, the Washington Nationals' Triple-A affiliate. Some very hot bats highlighted their 5-1 week as they scored 49 runs across the six games, including a 20-run showcase on Friday night. They hit a total of 10 home runs while collectively posting a .329/.421/.586 slash line was good for a minor league-leading 1.007 OPS for the week. Five hitters with at least 20 plate appearances had an OPS north of 1.000 on the week: Roman Anthony, Vaughn Grissom, Abraham Toro, Nathan Hickey, and Tyler McDonough.

The pitching also had its fair share of success, logging a 3.96 ERA on the week, which was fifth best in the International League. The 26-year-old lefty Shane Drohan led the charge, allowing just one run in nine innings of work across two starts while striking out 12 batters. 

The Woo Sox are back in Worcester this week to take on the Syracuse Mets, the New York Mets' Triple-A affiliate.

Featured Prospect: Marcelo Mayer

Roman Anthony, last week's featured prospect for Worcester, had another monster week, but it's worth noting that Marcelo Mayer had a great week following a subpar performance last week. The top shortstop prospect reached base in all six games and homered twice on his way to a minor league-leading 13 RBI on the week and an .869 OPS. Following a solid showing at big league spring training where he had a 156 wRC+ across 44 plate appearances, Mayer is heating back up and certainly paving the way for himself to make his MLB debut very soon.

Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A): 2-4 (7-6 overall)

It was a shortened week due to inclement weather for the Sea Dogs last week, but they managed to get all six of their games in this week with the Hartford Yard Goats, the Colorado Rockies' Double-A affiliate. In Hartford, the Sea Dogs won each of the first two games by a score of 7-5 before dropping the next four by a combined score of 24-10. The mound featured a few familiar faces as Lucas Giolito and Brayan Bello made rehab appearances. Giolito threw seven innings across two starts - one on Tuesday and one on Sunday. He allowed six earned runs on 11 hits and three walks while striking out eight in his seven innings of work. Bello's start on Wednesday wasn't all that pretty either as he allowed four earned runs on six hits and a walk in four innings, but did strike out seven. Last week's featured prospect for Portland, Connelly Early, had another stellar week on the mound. The Red Sox's tenth-ranked prospect by MLB Pipeline struck out 14 Hartford hitters across seven innings out of the bullpen, allowing just one run on three hits. Early continues to be a pitching prospect to keep tabs on as he is now down to 0.84 ERA on the season with a 55.3 K%.

Mikey Romero is a player worth noting on the offensive side. The 2022 first-round pick seems to be picking right up where he left off last year. He hit his second home run of the season on Thursday and had two multi-hit games on his way to a .958 OPS. 

The Sea Dogs are back home in Portland this week, taking on the Reading Fightin Phils, the Philadelphia Phillies' Double-A affiliate. 

Featured Prospect: Jhostynxon Garcia

Jhostynxon Garcia is the Red Sox's sixth-ranked prospect and certainly showed why with the bat this week. In 22 plate appearances, Garcia posted a .474/.545/.737 slash line with a home run, two doubles, three walks, and just two strikeouts. The home run was his first of the season, and there should be a lot more where it came from as he hit 23 long balls across three levels just a year ago. He's now up to an .891 OPS on the season. 

Greenville Drive (High-A): 4-2 (7-7 overall)

It was a fun week for the Drive in Greenville as they took on the Winston-Salem Dash, the Chicago White Sox High-A affiliate. They suffered a tough loss on Thursday night, during which they made a five-run comeback in the ninth, only to fall in extra innings. However, they would go on to win each of the final three games by one run, including a 12-inning 10-9 marathon that the Drive walked off in the 12th. They scored 38 runs on the week, which was only topped by the Greensboro Grasshoppers (PIT) in the South Atlantic League this week. Nelly Taylor, Brooks Brannon, and Marvin Alcantara led the charge offensively, posting an OPS north of 1.000 this week. 

Jojo Ingrassia had yet another impressive outing as he delivered 5.1 scoreless innings on Saturday while allowing just one hit and one walk while striking out five, which brings his ERA on the season to 2.77 and his WHIP to 0.77. Hayden Mullins, the 24-year-old lefty drafted in 2022, was another pitcher with an impressive outing. He struck out eight across five innings while allowing two runs, which brought his ERA on the season to 1.38.

The Drive are back on the road this week as they take on the Hub City Spartanburgers, the Texas Rangers' High-A affiliate.

Featured Prospect: Nelly Taylor

Nelly Taylor was an 11th-round pick in the 2023 draft who is off to a hot start thus far in 2025. He was fairly pedestrian in his first full season of pro ball in 2024, hitting just .233/.337/.376 on the season, but did look good in his cup of coffee in Greenville at the end of last season, where he posted a .894 OPS across 41 plate appearances. He was the top offensive performer for the Drive this week, hitting .400/.500/.533 with five walks to just three strikeouts and three stolen bases. He's the Red Sox's 22nd-ranked prospect thanks to his plus skills in the outfield and his wheels on the bases. The bat is certainly the factor that can turn him into an impact player moving forward.

Salem Red Sox (Low-A): 1-5 (5-10 overall)

It was another rough week for Salem, which now has a 1-5 record in consecutive weeks. They played the Lynchburg Hillcats, Cleveland Guardians' Low-A affiliate, at home, winning just the Wednesday night matchup by a score of 9-7. The offense left much to be desired, as Salem was the only Carolina League team that failed to hit a home run this week. On top of that, only one hitter managed to post an OPS higher than .700.

The pitching, fortunately, had some brighter spots. Brandon Clarke, one of the highlights across all Red Sox Minor League teams last week following a perfect four-inning outing, delivered another solid performance, striking out six in just two and a third innings while allowing just one run, two hits, and one walk. Michael Sansone and Matt McShane were two promising arms out of the bullpen as they combined to give up just three runs in 11.1 innings across four appearances while striking out a total of 13 hitters and walking just one. 

This week, the Red Sox hit the road to take on the Hickory Crawdads, the Texas Rangers' Low-A affiliate.

Featured Prospect: Antonio Anderson

The lone hitter with an OPS higher than .700 this week for Salem was Antonio Anderson, who managed to hit .412/.522/.471 in 23 plate appearances. Anderson hit safely in all five games he played this week, which included two multi-hit games and a six-game hit streak. The 19-year-old third baseman was the Red Sox's third-round pick in the 2023 draft. While he struggled in his introduction to pro ball between the end of 2023 and all of 2024, Anderson is off to a much better start as he's sporting a team-leading .886 OPS thus far in 2025. 

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