The Red Sox’s outfield will be home to some of the team’s most exciting young players, many of whom are expected to play a pivotal role in Boston’s success this season and for years to come.
Mookie Betts, Jackie Bradley Jr., Brock Holt, Rusney Castillo and Chris Young give manager John Farrell the versatility, defense and offensive ability required to be one of the American League’s best outfield groups.
With Opening Day fast approaching, here’s our preview of Boston’s outfield.
What to like: Defense
You probably won’t find better outfield defense, at least in the American League, than what the Red Sox will roll out in 2016.
Betts and Bradley are incredible athletes and have the speed, first step and reflexes to chase down just about any ball, no matter where it’s hit. In fact, Betts’ 10 defensive runs saved ranked sixth among all center fielders.
These two should be in contention for Gold Gloves if they play a full season. What’s more is each of them has the ability to switch between center and right field as needed, proving their versatility.
Brock Holt and Rusney Castillo are solid defensive players, too.
What not to like: Rusney Castillo’s spring
Castillo could play a major role in Boston’s success this season, but he was a bit disappointing in spring training, which allowed Holt to win the starting left fielder job.
The 28-year-old batted .204 with zero home runs, one double, a .502 OPS and a .278 on-base percentage in 18 spring training games. There’s no reason to be overly concerned about Castillo, but he must be more consistent at the plate to earn playing time, whether it’s in left field or somewhere else.
2016 expectations: We already talked about the excellent defense we are expecting from this group, but 2016 also will be about many of these players taking another step forward in their offensive development.
Consistency is an important part of that, particularly for Bradley. He batted .354 in August of last season, but he didn’t hit over .222 in any other month. JBJ also batted just .221 versus right-handed pitchers. His ability to play every day likely will be determined by his success at the plate.
Betts batted .311 with eight homers and 34 RBIs after the All-Star break, and he will be looking to build on that and avoid the slow start he went through in April and May of last season. He’s even been mentioned as a dark horse AL MVP candidate.
If Betts, Bradley and Castillo are able to provide consistent production from the plate, the Red Sox might score enough runs to help make up for any pitching struggles or injuries that might be a factor.
Minor league prospect to watch: Andrew Benintendi
Benintendi was Boston’s first-round pick in the 2015 MLB Draft and shows tremendous potential, specifically as a hitter. He batted .313 with 11 home runs, 31 RBIs and a .414 on-base percentage in 54 games between Lowell and Greenville at the Class-A level last season.
The 21-year-old is No. 15 on Baseball America’s latest ranking of the top 100 prospects in the sport.
Thumbnail photo via Brett Davis/USA TODAY Sports Images
