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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 2, 2020 7:28:07 GMT -5
Boston Red Sox prospect Jarren Duran blasts fifth homer after lifting in garage during coronavirus shutdown; Tanner Houck K’s 9 Updated 8:19 AM; Today 8:14 AM Jarren Duran
Red Sox's Jarren Duran during the fourth inning of a spring training game against the Pirates Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2020, in Bradenton, Fla. (AP Photo/Frank Franklin II)AP By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
Boston Red Sox prospect Jarren Duran bashed his fifth home run since simulated games began at Boston’s alternate training site, Triple-A Pawtucket.
The speedy Duran has made adjustments to his swing and he continued to show his increase in power Tuesday:
Power also can come when a hitter puts on muscle like Duran has done in the past year. He was in great shape during spring training. He arrived at the alternate site in better shape after the coronavirus shutdown.
“Thanks to my dad who’s a gym freak,” Duran said about getting in even better shape during the coronavirus shutdown. “We already had a weight room in our garage. So I was able to work out like two times a day, every day. I’d take some days off. But I just wanted to make sure I was in the best shape possible so if I did get a call, I would be ready to go. ... I was taking it seriously twice a day, every day, making sure I was staying in shape so I could come back stronger, faster. Make sure I could stay healthy.”
Duran is Boston’s center fielder in-waiting. Baseball America ranks him the top hitter for average in Boston’s system. His speed is off the charts.
Duran has batted .322 with a .376 on-base percentage, .446 slugging percentage and .823 OPS, 38 doubles, 19 triples, eight home runs, 73 RBIs and 70 stolen bases in 880 minor league plate appearances since Boston selected him in the seventh round of the 2018 MLB Draft.
Houck K’s 9
PawSox broadcaster Jim Cain provided some notes from Tuesday’s sim game via Twitter:
Pitching prospect Tanner Houck struck out nine in 5 innings. He has been working on his approach against left-handed batters, who went 1-for-4 with four walks against him Tuesday.
Triston Casas, the No. 1 prospect in Boston’s system who homered Sunday and Monday, belted a ground-rule double and walked three times. Watch the full simulated game below.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 2, 2020 11:24:35 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 30m #RedSox aded two more undrafted free agents: RHP Nate Tellier (UMass Dartmouth) and RHP Joey Stock (St. John’s University).
Tellier is from Attleboro.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 3, 2020 14:37:31 GMT -5
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 3, 2020 15:12:08 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 3m #RedSox claimed catcher Deivy Grullon off waivers from the Phillies and optioned him to Pawtucket.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 3, 2020 15:23:29 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 11m Grullon is a 24-year-old who was an international signing by the Phillies from the Dominican Republic in 2012. He debuted last season and went 1-for-9 in four games.
Grullon slashed .253/.305/.405 in 606 minor league games. He hit 116 doubles and 70 home runs. #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 3, 2020 16:49:00 GMT -5
Red Sox Stats @redsoxstats · 36m Casas treats every at-bat in Pawtucket like it’s the 7th game of the World Series. All business, professional approach. Extremely impressive. He only has 7 plate appearances in High-A ball, wonder how much of that level he’ll see next year.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 3:48:29 GMT -5
Bill Koch @billkoch25 · 10h Connor Seabold (4 innings), Matt Hall (3 innings), Domingo Tapia (2 innings) and Marcus Walden (1 inning) are expected to pitch in tomorrow's simulated game action at McCoy Stadium.
Triston Casas will speak with the media around 2:45 pm. #RedSox
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 9:01:08 GMT -5
Jen McCaffrey @jcmccaffrey · 34m Triston Casas. Jeter Downs. Jay Groome.
The Red Sox alternate site in Pawtucket is offering a glimpse of better days ahead for Boston thanks to daily live stream broadcasts on Twitter & Facebook. It's something very few teams across the league are doing
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 13:40:22 GMT -5
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 13:52:33 GMT -5
Pete Abraham @peteabe · 18m Triston Casas on Zoom from Pawtucket.
Casas said he modeled his offensive approach on Joey Votto in particular his two-strike approach.
This is my first time hearing Casas speak at length. He's very analytical discussing what he's trying to accomplish, more than you would expect for a 20-year-old.
Casas says he's 6-5, 250 now.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 14:29:31 GMT -5
Chris Hatfield Looks like outfielder Marcus Wilson is on his way to Pawtucket to be added to the Club Player Pool. Was one of two players on the 40-man not at the ATS. Now that they're in player dev mode, makes sense to bring him in.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 4, 2020 15:39:50 GMT -5
Chris Hatfield @spchrishatfield · 51m IF Hudson Potts and OF Jeisson Rosario, the two players the Red Sox acquired from the Padres for Mitch Moreland, participated in on-field workouts today at the ATS and should be participating in sim games soon.
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 5, 2020 3:41:42 GMT -5
No. 2 prospect Casas making most of '20
By Ian Browne @ianmbrowne September 4, 2020
BOSTON -- A Minor League season would have been nice for No. 2 Red Sox prospect (per MLB Pipeline) Triston Casas, but he wonders if he might be gaining more from the alternative.
Though Casas wasn’t added to the 60-man player pool originally, he did get the call to the alternate site at Pawtucket, R.I., on Aug. 20 and has spent the last two weeks reveling in the experience of competing with and against upper-level Minor Leaguers and quite a few who have played in the Majors.
For someone who has yet to play above Class-A, this has been a unique opportunity for the heavy-hitting Casas, who smashed 20 homers and had an .830 OPS in his first pro season last year.
“I haven’t got the call to the big leagues but I feel like it’s the closest thing to it,” Casas said. “I was really excited to get up here. I knew the level of talent was not anything like I’ve faced before. I was really excited to test what I had against the best guys in our organization besides the guys in the big leagues. I’ve definitely come up here and tried to take full advantage of the opportunity, take every at-bat with purpose and go out there and compete.”
In Casas, the Red Sox have a big -- as in 6-5, 250-pound -- lefty slugger who also has the gift of a strong batting eye.
The Red Sox made the Miami native their first-round selection (No. 26 overall) in the 2018 Draft out of high school, but he displays the talent and the maturity of someone who could rise faster than a typical high school draftee.
A corner infielder, Casas has a savvy response when asked if he feels more comfortable at first or third base.
“I always tell them I feel most comfortable in the lineup,” said Casas.
Put a bat in his hands and let him rake, Casas says. He will then put whichever glove on he needs to and figure out how to get it done on defense.
“I don’t really care where I play on the field,” Casas said. “In all honestly, I feel as comfortable as I do at third at first. I played all three outfield positions in high school. I’m not saying I’m an outfielder at the big league level. And the shifts they have us at shortstop, so I feel pretty comfortable all over the place. They haven’t told me for sure anything in terms of position wise, but I’m staying ready and agile to play anywhere.”
Prior to being invited to Summer Camp, Casas did something interesting in lieu of playing in games. He watched a Major League game every day and tried to visualize at-bats.
“I just tried to be in the hitters’ heads, think about what they could be getting in that at-bat or how they were getting pitched throughout the games in terms of situations, counts, and I would just pick a couple of hitters out of a game that I thought I related to, or a left-handed hitter, that sort of thing,” said Casas. “I was definitely trying to stay in tune with the game that way and trying to focus on a couple of things every once in a while.”
Unlike many hitters in this strikeout-happy, launch-angle generation, you’ll notice that Casas shortens his stroke and even chokes up when he has two strikes. It turns out he has a hitter he loves to emulate in Joey Votto.
“Growing up, I loved watching Joey Votto. I love his approach. I love his swing. I love the way he approaches the game, and the way he takes his at-bats are second to none,” Casas said “The stats speak for themselves. He’s one of the best hitters of the 2010s, and that’s when I was growing up watching baseball, and being a left-handed first baseman, Joey Votto’s not a bad guy to emulate.
“I don’t really try to copy everything he does, but the other day I hit a home run in the sim game, and looking back on it, I was like, ‘Wow, I actually do look like Joey Votto.’ So, yeah, growing up I really did like watching him play.
“The choke up on the bat and two-strike approach, it was just something that I watched him do, and I tried it out for myself and I liked the results I was getting. I liked the way I felt in the box. I liked the way I would compete when I did formulate a good two-strike approach. I’m looking to keep that [approach], because I’m feeling really comfortable now.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 5, 2020 3:54:59 GMT -5
Triston Casas has a plan at the plate, and it’s getting attention in Pawtucket By Julian McWilliams Globe Staff,Updated September 4, 2020, 7:58 p.m.
If you listen to Red Sox prospect Triston Casas talk hitting, you might forget he’s just 20 years old and hasn’t played above Single A. Their first-round pick in 2018 carries an advanced approach, one that is turning heads at the team’s alternate site in Pawtucket.
“Anytime anyone spends any time with him, you can appreciate why we drafted him as high as we did,” Pawtucket manager Billy McMillon said Friday. “He has an understanding of his swing. I think the thing that’s really impressive is that he understands his strengths. He gives professional at-bats. He had an 0-2 walk a couple of days ago, which someone with his experience, it’s really good to see.”
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Casas grew up watching Joey Votto, arguably the most detail-oriented and meticulous hitter in the majors. Much of Votto’s approach centers around working counts — he has a career .420 on-base percentage — and driving the ball on a line to all fields. Votto also takes the old-school approach of choking up on the bat, occasionally surrendering power for more control and making him less prone to strike out. Get 108 Stitches in your inboxEverything baseball every Monday-Friday during baseball season, and weekly in the offseason.
Like Votto, Casas sits in a crouch stance and chokes up on the bat. When he has two strikes, he spreads his legs to limit the amount of movement in his swing.
“It was just something that I watched him do and I liked the results I was getting. I liked the way I felt in the box,” Casas said.
Last season in Greenville, the first baseman hit .254 with 19 homers. He struck out 23.5 percent of the time, but also tallied a 11.8 percent walk rate and an .820 OPS. This week, he homered twice in as many days, including one against Red Sox reliever Marcus Walden.
Casas’s approach takes on different forms and has evolved as he’s matured. When he initially reached the minors, Casas implemented his two-strike approach from the first pitch of the at-bat.
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“I was trying to make an adjustment to the high velocity,” Casas said. “Adjustments to very quality pitching coming from high school, so I went from one extreme to another, and wanted to find a balance between the success I had in high school and the way I saw myself progressing in professional baseball.”
The balance now for Casas, who is 6-foot-4, 238 pounds, centers around controlled aggression, which in a lot of cases is not an easy approach to master. Before getting to two strikes, Casas certainly tries to do damage, but he never wants to get outside of hitting the ball to all fields. Once he gets to two strikes, it becomes about protecting the strike zone, but also making sure he grinds out the at-bat. He wants the opposing pitcher to feel him.
In a game that’s filled with whopping strikeout rates and a ton of homers, Casas is attempting to zig while the rest of baseball zags.
“He’s not trying to do too much,” McMillon said, “but he’s also in a position that if they do make a bad pitch, he’s able to capitalize on it. He understands a little more about hitting, and I think he’s willing to maybe sacrifice potential power for hitting the ball where it’s pitched, and all over the field. Some guys have that ability. I think that’s going to play well for him.”
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It will be a while before Red Sox fans will see Casas in a major league uniform, but just like in the batter’s box, a patient and calculated approach is guiding him.
“I feel like getting this opportunity to come up here and play against the older guys, and the way that I’ve put together at-bats, I definitely feel like I’ve put together a good reputation around the camp,” Casas said. “In terms of getting to the big leagues quicker, I’m not too sure. I don’t really try to focus on that.”
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Post by CP_Jon_GoSox on Sept 5, 2020 12:07:04 GMT -5
Next Boston Red Sox prospect or minor leaguer to be promoted? C.J. Chatham? Jeter Downs? Christian Arroyo? Updated 11:11 AM; Today 10:59 AM
By Christopher Smith | csmith@masslive.com
Boston Red Sox manager Ron Roenicke was asked Saturday his plans at second base during the final 20 games because José Peraza has struggled.
Peraza is a non-tender candidate this coming offseason. He is batting just .226 with a .274 on-base percentage, .321 slugging percentage, .595 OPS, eight doubles, one triple and no home runs in 31 games.
“We’ll see if it’s those guys we’ve been (using). We’ve talked about maybe somebody else in the alternate site,” Roenicke said via Zoom. “So I’m not exactly sure how we’re going to do it.”
Someone else at the alternate training site? Who might it be?
C.J. Chatham and Christian Arroyo seem like the two most obvious candidates. Jeter Downs — the top prospect acquired in the Mookie Betts trade — is more of a long shot.
Chatham is on the 40-man roster. Both Arroyo and Downs aren’t.
Downs is the most talented of the three players. But chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom has remained adamant he won’t rush any prospect to the majors before he’s ready. Downs, who turned 22 in July, has received just 56 plate appearances above High-A. All those plate appearances came in 12 games at Double-A last year. He has impressed in simulated games at the alternate training site, Triple-A Pawtucket’s McCoy Stadium, but he never has played in an actual Triple-A game.
Chatham, 25, was a Red Sox second-round pick in 2016, the same year Boston drafted Bobby Dalbec in the fourth round.
Chatham is a little older than most prospects but he missed almost the entire 2017 minor league season because of a hamstring injury. The 6-foot-4, 185-pound middle infielder is in excellent shape and he’s a contact hitter. Baseball America previously ranked him the best hitter for average in Boston’s system. BA has Jarren Duran ranked No. 1 right now.
Chatham in April was named the best pure hitter in the Red Sox’s minor league system by MLB.com’s Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Mike Rosenbaum, but he has lacked power in the minors.
He batted .302 with a .330 on-base percentage and .430 slugging percentage in 20 games (91 plate appearances) after a promotion to Triple-A Pawtucket last season.
Baseball America wrote in its 2020 Prospect Handbook that Chatham “could offer a credible everyday option, most likely at second base, if he adds offensive impact.” BA also wrote, “While Chatham gets the bat to the ball, he does so by spraying the ball to all fields rather than slugging. His aggressive approach caps his on-base abilities and limits his power.”
The Red Sox claimed Arroyo, a 2013 Giants first-round draft pick, off waivers Aug. 13. They then designated him for assignment after one day on the active roster. He cleared waivers and has been at Boston’s alternate training site since then.
The 25-year-old has batted .215 with a .280 on-base percentage, .342 slugging percentage, .622 OPS, six home runs, nine doubles, one triple and 27 RBIs in 71 games (251 plate appearances) over parts of four major league seasons with the Giants, Rays and Indians. He appeared in one game for Cleveland this year but did not receive a plate appearance.
Or the Red Sox could just stick with who they have right now. Rule 5 Draft pick Jonathan Arauz is a candidate to see more time at second base during the final two weeks.
Yairo Muñoz — who went 6-for-7 in Friday’s doubleheader split — also could receive some starts at second. But he is more likely to play the outfield going forward this season.
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