Triston Casas ended his first full season in pro ball with a significant bang.
The consensus No. 1 overall prospect of the Boston Red Sox, Casas was promoted to High-A Salem over the weekend and responded by going 3-for-7 with one homer and three RBIs. The homer, which came Monday in Salem’s regular-season finale, was an absolute moonshot.
Watch Casas hit his first Carolina League homer in the video below:
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The 19-year-old third baseman had an up-and-down season, but the highs absolutely outweighed the lows.
After struggling in April with the Greenville Drive, Casas enjoyed a torrid May that catapulted the 2018 first-round pick to the top of Boston’s prospect rankings. His production dipped in July, partly due to a shoulder injury, but he rebounded in August to finish the season with a .256 average to go along with 20 homers, 81 RBIs and an .830 OPS. Casas joined Xander Bogaerts as the only teenagers to hit 20-plus homers at any level for the Red Sox since Tony Conigliaro, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.
Of course, Red Sox fans should temper their expectations with Casas. He’s only 19 years old and likely is at least a couple years away from seeing time with the big league club.
Still, it’s hard to ignore Casas’ production or the reputation he already has built for himself within the baseball community. The Red Sox might have a great one on their hands.
