Red Sox Fans Thrilled With Call-Up of Top Prospect
The Boston Red Sox’s 2023 MLB campaign has been a rollercoaster, to say the least.
The majority of the season has been a disappointment for Red Sox fans with the team on pace to miss the playoffs for the fourth time in five seasons. But some solid play in August has a portion of the fanbase believing now that Boston is just 4.5 games out of the American League’s final wild-card spot.
With the playoffs being more of a realistic goal than they were a few weeks ago, general manager Chaim Bloom is providing the lineup with a major boost and Red Sox fans couldn’t be more thrilled.
MLB.com‘s Ian Browne reported Monday afternoon that the Red Sox are calling up highly-touted outfield/infield prospect Ceddanne Rafaela from Triple-A Worcester.
Big news. Rafaela is getting called up today.
— Ian Browne (@IanMBrowne) August 28, 2023
Rafaela’s promotion has been a long time coming. The gifted 22-year-old has been a prospect that Red Sox fans couldn’t wait to see in the Majors ever since he signed with Boston two months before his 17th birthday.
He also ranks as the Red Sox’s No. 3 prospect on MLB.com and was even the No. 71 prospect in the entire sport, per Baseball America’s pre-2023 rankings.
When the bat is in his hands, few prospects are as dangerous as Rafaela. He’s racked up 20 home runs and 79 RBIs while slashing .302/.349/.520 across 108 minor-league games.
That’s without mentioning his 54 extra-base hits or his 36 stolen bases and 26 walks. The combination of speed and patience makes him a threat on any given night.
Rafaela’s defensive versatility is just another reason why the Red Sox faithful are pumped. After playing time at every defensive position except catcher and first base while in the minors, the 2022 Red Sox Minor League Player of the Year can fit in whenever needed, which is even rarer for a rookie.
Chances are he’ll likely be deployed in either center field or shortstop after spending the majority of the 2023 campaign at those positions. At the same time, don’t be surprised if Alex Cora gets creative by experimenting with Rafaela throughout the next month.
Even if Boston doesn’t overcome the odds by making the playoffs, finally being able to watch Rafaela perform trumps all. It’s been a long time since Red Sox fans had a prospect this exciting and now time will tell if he can deliver on the hype.
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