Minor league notebook: Position battles ramp up for Red Sox
With most of the eyeballs and media attention on the lack of moves being made to address dire needs at the MLB level, Craig Breslow & company have been quietly stockpiling important depth pieces at the Triple-A level.
Numerous minor league deals have trickled in over the past few weeks, mostly position player depth and a veteran bullpen arm to add into the existing mix. The minor league signings have created log jams at several key positions in Worcester that have trickled down to Portland.
Worcester bullpen options
One of the biggest areas of needs that the Red Sox front office addressed this offseason has been the bullpen depth. There are 15 arms that should be in consideration for the available spots after the bullpen battle gets situated. There are projected to be around 5 relievers who are currently on the 40-man roster who will start the year in Worcester to start the year barring any injuries.
There are newcomers to the organization who are currently on the 40-man roster are Isaiah Campbell, Cooper Criswell, Greg Weissert, and Justin Slaten. Slaten has to make the MLB team this year, so he is already out of the equation. Criswell, Campbell, and Weissert all should be considered long shots to make the opening day roster. They do provide the team with much needed depth for the bullpen that all have MLB experience if needed to be called upon. That was something the team did not have last season.
The Red Sox have Joe Jacques, Chris Murphy, Zack Kelly, and Brandon Walter returning who are current members of the 40-man roster. All four should be locks to start the year in Worcester’s bullpen as added depth. Walter might see some time in the rotation to kick the year off.
Boston gave out a few intriguing NRI’s to Cam Booser, AJ Politi, Franklin German, Luis Guerrero, Justin Hagenman, Chase Shugart, Lucas Luetge, and Melvin Adon. Aside from Adon and Luetge, the rest have pitched in Worcester previously and are looking to grab this opportunity to separate themselves during Spring Training.
High minors catching duty battles
The attention will always be on Kyle Teel and when he will be brought up to Triple-A in 2024. However, after only playing in 9 games in Portland, Teel should be in Double-A for at least the first half of the season. The real question should be around Nathan Hickey and when he might get brought up. Hickey has appeared in 80 games in Portland already and received an NRI for Spring Training.
The Red Sox have done a good job adding defensive minded catchers for Worcester this season. Roberto Perez, Tyler Heineman, Mark Kolozsvary join holdover Stephen Scott as the catching group in 2024. That is a drastic upgrade from what the situation looked like last offseason.
Perez has a similar opt-out in his contract like Jorge Alfaro did in 2023, so having the extra depth will be needed as the season goes on. He figures to be the primary catcher with Heineman getting plenty of reps as well throughout the week. Scott will see more time at first base this season to get his bat in the lineup throughout the week.
Veteran position players challenging younger guys
The Red Sox have rounded out their minor league position player signings with Jamie Westbrook, Mark Contreras, Joe Dunand, and Dalton Guthrie. From this group, all but Westbrook have made their MLB debut and have seen some MLB action. The veteran adds mixed in with Nick Sogard, David Hamilton, Enmanuel Valdez, Corey Rosier, and Ceddanne Rafaela are holdovers from last season’s team.
These depth signings are crucial to a locker room in Worcester. We saw last season when the team signed guys like Greg Allen, Jake Faria, and Niko Goodrum to similar deals. They set the important culture in the room and mix in well with the younger guys on the current roster and the ones who come up from Double-A. Depending on the outfield situation in Boston, it seems likely that Contreras will grab a starting spot in the WooSox outfield with Guthrie coming off the bench fairly regularly. Depending on if guys like Nick Yorke and Chase Meidroth start the year in Worcester, the same will be said for Dunand and Westbrook.
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