Red Sox Veterans Gush Over ‘Superstar In The Making’ Prospect

Boston Red Sox catcher Reese McGuire has played with a few superstars in his day.

In six seasons of service time in Major League Baseball, McGuire has been teammates with the likes of Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Bo Bichette, Marcus Semien, George Springer, José Abreu, Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez — who are all multi-time All-Stars.

McGuire thinks Red Sox prospect Ceddanne Rafaela could be next.

“When I was catching in one of those games, there were multiple balls that were hit to deep center field where off the bat, I was like, ‘Oh, this is trouble,'” McGuire told Christopher Smith of MassLive. “And he honestly got to that location really fast and almost was just coasting to the ball by the end of it. He made plays look really easy. So he’s a load of talent and definitely a superstar in the making, I think. He’s very exciting.”

Rafaela has been the definition of electrifying since his late-June promotion to Triple-A Worcester. The 22-year-old has slashed .321/.370/.672 in 32 games with the WooSox, crushing 11 home runs, 10 doubles and two triples while scoring 24 runs and knocking in 30 RBIs. In 146 plate appearances, he has seven walks and 32 strikeouts.

In that time, the Red Sox have had a number of injured contributors make rehab appearances in Worcester, with Rafaela wowing nearly all of them.

“He’s got like a quiet confidence about himself. That’s something that’s going to go a long way for him.”

Red Sox shortstop Trevor Story on Ceddanne Rafaela

“The few games I was there, defensively he’s the real deal in the outfield. He’s quick as hell out there,” Red Sox reliever John Schreiber told Smith. “And obviously you guys can see, he’s been hitting the ball very well. I think he’s going to be a great player the older he gets and the more he learns.”

“He’s a special talent,” Boston shortstop Trevor Story told Smith. “He’s a game-changer. He causes havoc on the base paths. Super fast. Super athletic. He brings that to all aspects of his game. Defense is amazing. I was just really impressed with the way he handles himself, too. You can tell he has a lot of thump in his bat. He’s got like a quiet confidence about himself. That’s something that’s going to go a long way for him.”

Rafaela had a five-game home run streak that stretched from Aug. 1-5, showing off some power that could see him make a jump on the MLB.com prospect rankings, where he currently sits at No. 75. The ability to play top-line defense at three positions up the middle of the field should help him make the jump to MLB at some point before the end of the Red Sox season.

If not, Boston should be home to Rafaela’s electrifying play style in 2024.