Red Sox pitching prospect makes AA-Portland debut
Red Sox pitching prospect makes AA-Portland debut
It’s been a quick rise for Isaac Coffey. The 6’1” right-hander impressed on the mound enough to earn himself a call-up from the Greenville Drive. A 2022 10th-round draft pick out of the University of Oral Roberts, he has flashed some interesting qualities in his limited time in professional baseball.
As a soft-throwing right-hander, you wouldn’t expect him to have the type of strikeout success that he did in Greenville. A 12.38 K/9 and 1.48 BB/9, his command of the strike zone was likely a driving factor in his promotion. After 60.1 IP, the Red Sox as an organization felt comfortable promoting Coffey.
In his AA debut, Coffey only lasted 2+ innings with 4 earned runs on 7 hits, 2 walks, and a home run allowed. An uninspiring introduction to Portland, Coffey unfortunately fell in line with the recent struggles of the Portland pitching staff.
The most shocking aspect of Coffey’s repertoire was the lack of velocity. With his strikeout and walk rates at such incredible paces in High-A, one could have imagined his velocity sat in the low 90s at least. His fastball was around 86-88 mph, as he topped out at 89 mph. Also featuring a sweeper that sat in the low 70s and a changeup in the low 80s, the young pitcher is certainly all about finesse.
Albeit a tough first start, it would be unfair to come to a conclusion on a pitcher after just 2 innings of work. With more chances on the horizon, we will see if Coffey can work around his lack of velocity.
Follow Josh on Twitter @Joshball22
For additional Red Sox, Bruins, Patriots, MLB, and NFL content follow Beyond the Monster on Twitter @BeyondtheMnstr.
Join our new Facebook group for all of our latest content, click the link here.