Zach Penrod continues to impress for Double-A Portland
Zach Penrod won’t be found on any top prospect lists around minor league baseball due to turning 27 next month and having such a small sample size since signing with the Red Sox at the end of the summer last season.
Regardless, Penrod should be taken serious as a viable threat to be on a fast track to the major leagues on the pace the left-hander is on.
If you aren’t caught up on the ridiculous pace Penrod is on, let me catch you up.
The Red Sox signed Penrod as a minor league free agent in August of 2023 out of INDY ball where he was pitching for the Missoula Paddleheads. Once in Boston’s organization, Penrod reported to Greenville where he wound up making four starts and put up an impressive 2.18 ERA while helping Greenville when the High-A championship.
From there, the Red Sox sent him to the Arizona Fall League. Not only was it a big accomplishment to pitch there, but he was also named an AFL FallStar for his stellar performance. He ended up with a 1.29 ERA over four starts for Glendale.
Spring forward to 2024, the Idaho native has made five starts for the Portland Sea Dogs with his most impressive coming on Sunday.
Penrod threw 6 brilliant innings against Binghamton where he allowed 5 hits and 1 earned run. He walked a grand total of 0 batters and struck out 10. He had an impressive 22 swings and misses, which was a career high for the lefty. That number would end up being the best in all of Double-A on Sunday.
The outing on Sunday lowered his season ERA to 2.25 and it lowered his opponents batting average to .198 off of him. He is now sitting at a career high 12.8 K/9 and has a career low BB/9 at 3.4. His numbers against righties have been interesting as well, as right-handed hitters are hitting just .100 off him compared. Lefties are hitting him much better, so it’s possible Penrod is working on things in Portland to get more righties out.
While this is a small sample size in the grand scheme of things, Penrod has tackled everything in his way since he arrived with the Red Sox and a conversation should be starting on when a promotion to Triple-A Worcester makes sense. The walks have always been an issue, but with just 9 walks through 24 innings, it looks to be a positive step in the right direction.
