Monthly Notes: 40-man roster moves ramp up; rankings season begins

Here are November's minor league notes:

• Executive Editor Chris Hatfield and Director of Scouting Ian Cundall were busy with the Podcast in November, as they covered a wide array of topics. In episode 169, they went in-depth on their projections for who will be protected in the Rule 5 Draft, while also recapping the WSBC Premier12 Tournament and Noah Song's (pictured, right) potential military commitment. 

• Episode 168 covered MLB’s proposal to restructure minor league baseball. The proposed restructuring would bring significant changes to the minor leagues, including 42 teams that would lose their affiliations with major league clubs. The New York Times provided the full list of 42 teams, which included the Lowell Spinners, the only Red Sox affiliate on the list. 

• If you want to join the SoxProspects.com team, we are now hiring for three positions for the 2020 season. Editor-in-Chief Mike Andrews provided all the details on the positions which include Scouting Report Manager, Web Editor (Content Specialist), and Social Media Specialist (Game Time). 

• Song was scheduled to begin flight school at the beginning of December unless he received a waiver from Richard Spencer, the Secretary of the Navy. Spencer was fired on November 24, and things have come to a halt. There has been no word on whether Song ultimately attended flight school, or if he is still waiting on a final word on his waiver. 

• The main transactions for November revolved around the Rule 5 draft, as Bobby Dalbec, CJ Chatham, Kyle Hart, Marcus Wilson, and Yoan Aybar were all added to the 40-man roster to prevent them from being selected in the Rule 5 draft. The most notable player who went unprotected was Eduard Bazardo, who is currently ranked 26th in the system. The Rule 5 Draft will take place on December 12. 

• The non-tender deadline was Monday, and the Red Sox made a few moves to clear up space on the 40-man roster. Sandy Leon was traded to Cleveland in exchange for minor league pitcher Adenys Bautista. Bautista had a 7.79 ERA as a 21-year-old in rookie ball last year, but the Red Sox were likely to non-tender Leon so a big return was not expected.

• The most surprising move was the decision to non-tender Marco Hernandez, who played well in 2019 after missing most of the previous two seasons with injuries. Josh Osich, who was claimed off waivers in October from the White Sox, was also non-tendered. The 40-man roster now sits at 34. 
  

• Eight players were released on November 14, highlighted by Jake Cosart (pictured, right) who was a third-round pick in 2014. The other players who were released were Jordan Wren, Fabian Andrade, Hildemaro Requena, Devon Fisher, Angel Padron, Jonathan Ortega, and Alberto Schmidt.

• Kyle Hart will essentially take the place of Brian Johnson on the 40-man roster, as Johnson cleared waivers and was outrighted to Pawtucket. Both players are tall left-handed pitchers with good pitchability.  

• Baseball America released their 2020 top 10 prospects for the Boston system, with Triston Casas, Bobby Dalbec, and Bryan Mata making up the top three. Comparing it with the SoxProspects.com list, BA is higher on Dalbec, Jarren Duran, and Thaddeus Ward, with SoxProspects higher on Jay Groome, Gilberto Jimenez, and Tanner Houck. 

• 2020 is the last season that Boston's Triple-A affiliate will be in Pawtucket before moving to Worcester for the 2021 season. The Worcester Red Sox unveiled the nickname and logo they will be using, as the "WooSox" nickname became official and the logo of “Smiley Ball” was unveiled. Smiley Ball is a yellow smiley face with a red hat and red socks swinging a bat. 

• With the PawSox slated to leave McCoy Stadium at the end of the 2020 season, Pawtucket and Rhode Island officials are deciding on what to do with the ballpark. According to the Providence Journal, the two most likely options include luring another minor league baseball team, or tearing the ballpark down for a new use. 

• MLB's proposal that would tentatively leave the Lowell Spinners without an affiliation is under attack from both political parties. 106 members in the U.S. House of Representatives sent a letter to MLB commissioner Rob Manfred that stated their opposition to the proposal. One of the members who signed the letter was Lori Trahan of Massachusetts, a Lowell native.

Photo Credit: Noah Song and Jake Cosart by Kelly O'Connor

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