The off-season acquisition of Adrian Gonzalez was a huge deal for the Boston Red Sox this winter. He will play an integral role in Boston for the foreseeable future. Netting the first base slugger did however come at a price. The farm system for the Sox was significantly weakened by shipping off two of their top prospects in Anthony Rizzo and Casey Kelly. The first round of the MLB Draft was the first step in replenishing that talent void.
While many people around baseball view the Red Sox as a big market bully who snatches up all of their players via free agency and trades, this perception is a bit misguided. While a portion of their roster is a product of those means, they have a significant number of impactful players who were raised through the Boston minor league system.
Dustin Pedroia, Kevin Youkilis, Jonathan Papelbon, Daniel Bard, Clay Buchholz, Jacoby Ellsbury and Jon Lester are all homegrown players. Ever since Theo Epstein took over as General Manager this has been the adopted philosophy and a real point of emphasis for Boston. Now let’s meet the newest potential members and hope that this young wave will surge their way through the minors and make their way to the big leagues soon.
With the 19th overall selection the Red Sox took a right-handed pitcher out of UConn by the name of Matt Barnes. Thankfully there’s no relation to the LA Laker forward who shares the same name. There was however a bit of an issue that I initially noticed. In his player profile he stated that one of his favorite players is Joba Chamberlain… He might want to rethink that statement before being introduced in Boston.
The rest of the story on this guy looks pretty positive though. At 6’4” and 203 pounds, he’s a big guy with a big arm. Although he is currently being used as a starting pitcher, early indications are that his skills set would translate better as a reliever in the big leagues. With a fast ball that touches upwards of 98 MPH, he’s been compared to a Daniel Bard type talent and has a good chance of taking a similarly fast route to the majors.
With their second pick and 26th overall, the Sox selected Blake Swihart. He is a high school catcher out of New Mexico. He is a switch-handed hitter and is considered as the top catching prospect in this year’s draft. The offense seems to be there already but the defense needs a lot of work. If he remains behind the plate, as is the case with most prospects at this position, his journey to the majors will take quite a bit of time.
The Red Sox next selection came at pick 36 and with it they took another high school player. Henry Owens is a tall left-handed pitcher from the southern California area. He is 6’7” and 200 pounds his tall lanky build suggests he’ll need to spend a little time in the weight room but his fastball already travels over 90 MPH.
At this position, he became the highest left-handed high school pitcher ever taken by the Red Sox. The previous player to hold that distinction: Jon Lester. His high school stats are very impressive as he has posted a career record of 29-3 and an incredible 1.14 ERA. Needless to say the Sox think very highly of this young pitcher and he certainly has some lofty expectations surrounding his arrival.
Finally, with the 40th overall selection the Red Sox finished off their first round of moves by picking Jackie Bradley, Jr. The outfielder is a Junior at the University of South Carolina. He is a plus defender who hits for average and possesses a little bit of power.
Prior to this season he was projected to be a middle-of-the first round prospect, but an injury caused him to slip to the Red Sox late in the compensatory round. A torn ligament in his wrist has ended his 2011 season, so he will certainly be a player that has something to prove once he recovers.
When all is said and done, the MLB draft is probably one of the most difficult evaluations of talent. There are so many young players and so many rounds in which they are selected. Aside from a few stand-out athletes each year, it’s nearly impossible to predict who will make the big leagues and who will spend a career mired in the minors.
The hope for Red Sox nation rests in the reputation of the regime that was ushered in when Theo Epstein took the reins. His knack for plucking out talented players is well documented and the evidence of that can be seen in the number of players on the current roster who were products of this very same process.
Therefore let’s hope that this success rate continues as the draft progresses and we watch these young players develop and advance through the system. Who knows? Your next favorite Red Sox player could have started his career in Boston this past Monday night. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.
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