August 1, 2012 at 12:01 AM
Travis Shaw promoted to Portland; Reynaldo Rodriguez up to Pawtucket
The trade of Lars Anderson has set off a chain reaction for first basemen in the Red Sox system. Reynaldo Rodriguez has been promoted from Portland to replace Anderson in Pawtucket, reports Kevin Thomas of the Portland Press Herald. Travis Shaw (pictured) will follow, getting the call from Salem to take Rodriguez's slot with the Sea Dogs, according to the player's Facebook account.
Rodriguez is hitting .257/.334/.505 with Portland, where he was named an Eastern League All-Star. The 26-year-old ranked third in the league with his.505 slugging percentage, and his 27 doubles has him in a tie for second. The promotion to Pawtucket will mark the first appearance in Triple-A for Rodriguez, who has been in professional baseball since signing with the Yankees back in 2004.
The rise up the ladder has been faster for Shaw. The 2011 ninth-round pick responded well to an aggressive promotion to Salem to begin the 2012 season, earning Carolina League All-Star recognition. Shaw leads the league with 69 runs scored, and ranks in the top ten in the league in several other categories, including hits, runs batted in, doubles, batting average, on-base percentage and slugging percentage. His .968 OPS is the best among all Red Sox minor leaguers.
Photo credit: Travis Shaw by Dave Letizi