Red Sox promote three players to High-A Greenville
Red Sox promote three players to High-A Greenville
Boston has been aggressive with internal player promotions, and that trend continued on Wednesday.
Right-handed pitching prospect Yordanny Monegro was assigned to High-A after completing his rehab stint with the FCL Red Sox.
Monegro is ranked as the No. 21 overall prospect, according to SoxProspects. With the FCL Red Sox, he posted a 3.60 ERA with 12 strikeouts. He had been working back from a right shoulder injury.
Monegro is coming off a breakout season last year, splitting time with three affiliates. He finished the year 6-3 with a 2.06 ERA with 93 strikeouts and 26 walks in 65 2/3 innings. The 6-foot-4, 180-pounder saw the bulk of his time with the Low-A Salem Red Sox, where he made nine starts, posting a 3-2 record with a 2.43 ERA.
The native of the Dominican Republic is regarded as the Red Sox No. 19 prospect with Baseball America. He has a build that makes him look more like a basketball player than a pitcher. Monegro throws from a three-quarter arm slot and operates a four-seam fastball that sits around 95 mph, a swing and miss 12-to-6 curveball, and an 88-90 mph cutter, per his Baseball America scouting report.
“In order to stick as a starter, he’ll likely need to either sharpen one of his pitches into a plus offering or develop the splitter into a solid offering,” wrote BA. Monegro projects as a potential back-end starter or even an up-and-down multi-relief arm.
In addition to promoting Monegro, the Red Sox also elevated right-handed pitcher Jedixson Paez and outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia.
Paez began the year with the Salem Red Sox and owned a 1-1 record with a 2.53 ERA and 35 strikeouts in seven games (five starts).
Garcia put together a strong start, slashing .258/.365/.882 with five homers, 19 RBI, and 14 stolen bases. One of his calling cards at such a young age has been his power.
“Garcia’s power is immense for a [then] 20-year-old,” FanGraph’s Eric Longenhagen wrote. “He is much bigger and stronger than his listed height and weight (on his minor league player page, not in this article), and has thunderous power to the opposite field. His swing’s finish is incredible, and it’s rare for a hitter this dense and strong to be that fluid in the hips.”
