Anderson Espinoza’s whole world changed just like that.
The Boston Red Sox traded Espinoza to the San Diego Padres last week for pitcher Drew Pomeranz. It was a unique experience for Espinoza, an 18-year-old who’s considered one of the top prospects in Major League Baseball, but the hard-throwing right-hander since has come around on the situation.
“It was scary, because I didn’t know what was going on after I heard that,” Espinoza told reporters, including Jessica Starbard of WANE-TV, upon reporting to the Padres’ Class-A affiliate in Fort Wayne, Ind. “What is going to happen to me now?
“After talking to my agent and my family and they said, ‘Every change is for you to be better. It’s going to be better for your life and your career.’ So, I started feeling a little bit better with that, and I started to get happy, because I know this trade is going to be big for me and give me a big chance to be in the big leagues.”
Boston signed Espinoza as an international free agent in October 2014. The Venezuelan impressed in his season-plus in the Red Sox organization, even earning comparisons to a young Pedro Martinez.
Baseball America recently ranked Espinoza the No. 15 prospect in baseball as part of its 2016 midseason rankings. He immediately became the No. 1 prospect in the Padres organization.
Thumbnail photo via screen grab
