Two players won weekly honors and two more remain important cogs on the major league club as we head down the stretch with our weekly top prospects.
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Last week: No. 1
Casey Kelly, RHP
Kelly missed one start in July with a blister and has been limited to just one outing in August, part of the organization’s plan to take all precautions with him to ensure he is not overworked.
Kelly has thrown 95 innings and figures to get to around 30 more down the stretch. His numbers won’t suggest anything close to a dominant campaign, but if he gets through his first full season as a pitcher with a relative degree of health and a few lessons under his belt, nobody will care much.
Kelly is 3-5 with a 5.31 ERA in 21 starts.
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Last week: No. 2
Ryan Kalish, OF
He remains a prospect in name only. Kalish is the regular left fielder with the Red Sox and enters Saturday with a .300 average, a home run and a stolen base in his first 12 games at the major league level.
With Jacoby Ellsbury on the disabled list once again and Mike Cameron a relative non-factor for the foreseeable future, Kalish’s spot on the major league roster is secure. He may even be the second best outfielder in the group behind J.D. Drew. The 22-year-old has impressed not only with major league skills but also with poise of a veteran.
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Last week: No. 3
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
As if turning 21 gave him another layer of muscle, Rizzo has powered up in a big way since his birthday last week. He homered on his birthday last Sunday with a blast that officials estimated at 490 feet.
Not resting on his laurels, Rizzo slugged another home run two days later and then had another the day after that.
With a .367 average, five homers and 20 RBIs in just 11 games in August, Rizzo is a worthy winner of Eastern League Player of the Week honors. He’s always had a pretty good mindset, but lately he’s been making some adjustments a little lower down to get better results.
“It’s just one at-bat at a time,” Rizzo said. “I’ve just been working with (hitting coach Dave) Joppie and he’s got me using my legs a lot more.”
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Last week: No. 4
Lars Anderson, 1B
As we begin to reflect on seasons in their entirety, it continues to be a bit of a mixed bag for Anderson. He has yet to homer and has just three doubles in August, so the slugging stroke that was there earlier in the year has vanished a bit.
Anderson enters Saturday at .245 with seven homers with Pawtucket. The big splash he made with the PawSox back in May seems like a long time ago.
Still, Anderson is only 22 and figures to take a step forward at the Triple-A level next year. It won’t be a make or break year, but some improvement in a few areas would be nice to see.
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Last week: No. 5
Felix Doubront, LHP
Like Kalish, we have Doubront still on the list only because his future, as in 2011, remains slightly up in the air. We will likely see him return to the minors for more seasoning as a starter. For now, we continue to monitor his progression as a reliever, where he has had to learn on the fly with the big club.
It’s been an up and down beginning in the role, but that’s to be expected for a guy who was somewhat deprived of a chance to learn how to be a reliever at the minor league level. He is 1-0 with a 9.00 ERA in three relief outings, striking out five and walking none in three innings.
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Last week: No. 6
Jose Iglesias, SS
The 20-year-old’s rehabilitation from a broken finger in his right hand continues at Single-A Lowell. In 11 games with Lowell entering Saturday, he is hitting .344 (11-for-32) with a .930 OPS.
Iglesias has been splitting time between shortstop and DH while with Lowell, but is expected to rejoin Double-A Portland early next week.
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Last week: No. 8
Stolmy Pimentel, RHP
This is one reason why the organization is high on Pimentel: In his last four starts, he has struck out 23 and walked just two in 22 innings. Here is another: He is only 20.
Pimentel’s control at a young age remains marvelous. It will be interesting to see his progression next season, likely at Portland.
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Last week: No. 9
Josh Reddick, OF
The forgotten soul in a season that has seen other prospects surpass him in the eyes of many, Reddick is finally getting some recognition with a prolonged hot stretch. He was named International Player of the Week ending Aug. 9, during which he batted .464 (13-for-28) with five doubles, three homers and 10 RBIs.
The 23-year-old followed that up with a 3-for-5 effort Friday night. His averages in the last four months: .181, .269, .301, .365.
Don’t forget about Reddick going forward.
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Last week: No. 7
Luis Exposito, C
Some may chalk this season up as a subpar one for Exposito, who was really expected to blossom. He has had some shaky moments behind the plate, and his numbers with the bat have remained somewhat so-so.
But he’s been batting near .290 since the start of July, continues to drive in runs at an impressive clip (82, third in the Eastern League, in only 106 games) and has shown significant improvement in plate discipline. After walking 27 times against 76 strikeouts in two levels last year, he has drawn 49 free passes against 74 whiffs in 2010.
While it might not be the sexy numbers everyone wants to see, it signals progress as much as anything else.
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Last week: No. 10
Oscar Tejada, 2B
Tejeda has multiple hits in five of his last 10 games and had a home run and five RBIs in two games entering the weekend. The numbers across the board for the 20-year-old are very impressive, as he ranks among the leaders in every significant offensive category.
Yet, perhaps the best indication of his maturation lies in increased evidence of plate discipline. In the first two months of the season, Tejeda drew only five walks and struck out 48 times. Since then, his walk-to-strikeout ratio is a much more respectable 24:36.
Five others knocking on the door:
Kolbrin Vitek, 2B/3B – Vitek’s prolonged slump may be coming to an end. He had two hits in two of his last three games entering the weekend.
Reymond Fuentes, OF, Greenville: The 19-year-old is hitting .359 in August, and his 32 steals rank ninth in a league known for impressive running games.
Michael Bowden, RHP, Pawtucket: With Ellsbury going on the DL on Saturday, Bowden is being given his second shot in the Red Sox’ bullpen. He is 2-0 with a 2.81 ERA in 12 games as a reliever with Pawtucket.
Ryan Lavarnway, C/DH, Portland: A long cold spell may have ended this week when Lavarnway cranked out a pair of hits in consecutive games.
Will Middlebrooks, 3B, Salem: He has eight of his 12 home runs since the start of July, including one Thursday.
