Scout Chatter: Miguel Bleis, Enderso Lira and more DSL prospects

The Red Sox Florida Coast League has wrapped up, but the Dominican Summer League teams are still playing and it's time for the final Scout Chatter with reports we've received on those affiliates. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on the players from the Red Sox Dominican Summer League teams. 

The early returns on outfielder Miguel Bleis—who signed in January for $1.5 million, making him the Red Sox’ most expensive international signee since 2017-2018—have been very encouraging even though he has only played 15 games. In 41 plate appearances, he is hitting .262/.341/.449 with four home runs and seven steals. Obviously, he is still early in his career, but one scout told me, “he’s the real deal.” 

Catcher Enderso Lira has been the most intriguing position player prospect in the DSL other than Bleis. The 6-foot-1, 185-pound Venezuelan signed for $850,000 in January, the second-highest bonus in the Red Sox’ international class. Still only 17, Lira has a great frame for a catcher, with projection remaining, and is athletic enough that one scout suggested to me he could even handle third base if he outgrows catcher. He has looked good behind the plate though and has an above-average arm already. Offensively, he has a very advanced approach for his age, with more walks (31) than strikeouts (18) this year. His swing is short and direct, and he has quick hands. Right now, he mostly hits hard line drives, but he should grow into some power in the future, especially given his frame. Lira has a long way to go developmentally, but is a very intriguing prospect at a position the Red Sox have really struggled to develop. He has shown promise both offensively and defensively, and given how low the bar is for catching at the big league level right now, adding a player with his potential warranted the jump from unranked to 35th in the system that Lira has made this year. 

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Scout Chatter: Wilkelman Gonzalez, Luis De La Rosa, Nathanael Cruz and Juan Daniel Encarnacion

The Red Sox Florida Coast League and Dominican Summer League teams are in full swing and it's time for another Scout Chatter with reports we've received on those affiliates. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on the pitchers from the Red Sox Florida Coast League team. 

The best pitcher by far for the FCL squad this summer was right-handed pitcher Wilkelman Gonzalez. The 19-year-old Venezuelan, who signed for $250,000 in July 2018, had 46 strikeouts and only 8 walks, and allowed only 29 hits in 35 innings with a 3.60 ERA and 1.06 WHIP. He was promoted to Salem on August 27th and in three starts there has continued to impress with a 0.66 ERA and 1.10 WHIP with 13 strikeouts and 5 walks in 13.2 innings. Gonzalez was solid at the Fall Instructional League in 2020, but has really taken a step forward this year, especially with the development of his secondary offerings. Gonzalez has been 93-95 mph with his fastball, while his changeup at 86-88 mph has been his best secondary pitch. He has shown the ability to turn it over, and the pitch now projects as above-average at least, when last fall it was his third pitch. He also has refined his breaking ball, switching from a slow, loopy curveball to a slider in the high-70s with average-to-better potential. The main concerns scouts have with Gonzalez are his size and delivery. He is athletic, but is not an imposing figure on the mound, listed at 6-foot-0, 180 pounds, and he has some effort in his delivery. There is some reliever risk, but regardless, he is a very exciting arm and one whose stock is well up this year. 

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Scout Chatter: Eduardo Vaughan, Freddy Valdez, Miguel Ugueto and more

The Red Sox Florida Coast League and Dominican Summer League teams are in full swing and it's time for another Scout Chatter with reports we've received on those affiliates. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on the outfielders from the Red Sox Florida Coast League team. 

Another player who has impressed scouts in the FCL is 19-year-old outfielder Eduardo Vaughan. Vaughan signed back in July 2018 out of Panaman and has one of the system’s most projectable frames in the low minors. He is listed at 6-foot-4, 185 pounds, and still has room to fill out. Vaughan already shows plus raw power, his best tool at present. He has three home runs on the year in the FCL and is hitting .221/.365/.412. His hit tool and approach are still works in progress, and his swing is on the long side, but his hands are quick. Vaughan has shown the willingness to take a walk as well, with 15 to just 17 strikeouts in 85 plate appearances. He is a fringe-average runner right now and will likely get slower as he matures, but he has a good arm and a typical right field profile. Vaughan is the quintessential high-risk, high-reward prospect; he’s got some very loud tools, but has a long way to go developmentally and a wide gap between what he is now and what he could be in the future. 

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Scout Chatter: Blaze Jordan, Brainer Bonaci, Eddinson Paulino and Karson Simas

The Red Sox Florida Coast League and Dominican Summer League teams are in full swing and it's time for another Scout Chatter with reports we've received on those affiliates. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on the infielders from the Red Sox Florida Coast League team. 

Red Sox 2020 third-round pick Blaze Jordan has done exactly what the Red Sox hoped he would when they drafted him, earning a quick promotion to Salem. In 76 plate appearances over 19 games in the FCL, he hit .362/.408/.667 with 12 extra-base hits, including 4 home runs, and had a 17.1% strikeout rate and 7.9% walk rate. While the overall stat line is very impressive, scout feedback from Fort Myers has been more cautious. Likely to move from third base to first base based on reports on his defense, Jordan is going to have to hit at every level. His raw power is obvious, and he performed exactly how you would want, but his approach is still a work in progress and he needs to develop a plan at the plate. Too often, he was reaching for pitches and getting himself out, and would get caught off balance. Given his offensive potential when he stays back and drives the ball, it would serve him well to take those pitches, rather than cheat himself out of an at-bat. He is still very young though, not turning 19 until December, and he has plenty of time to develop.

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Scout Chatter: Aldo Ramirez, Brayan Bello and more from Fall Instructs

 The Red Sox recently wrapped up their 2020 Fall Instructional League, and this is the final installment of reports we received from Instructs. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus primarily on pitchers the Red Sox signed as international free agents over the last few years. 

- 19-year-old Mexican right-hander Aldo Ramirez was the consensus top pitcher at Red Sox Fall Instructs. Though Eduard Bazardo showed more impressive stuff, long term, Ramirez projects as a more valuable player with a higher ceiling. Ramirez sat 92-95 mph, with a potential plus changeup at 85-89 mph and average curveball at 77-81 mph. His changeup is a potential weapon and could develop into a plus-to-better pitch given he already shows advanced feel for it and has a lot of confidence in it. He has a very good chance to remain a starter and has already shown solid strike-throwing ability. Ramirez was on the younger side of the arms in camp but is remarkably polished for his age and gives the Red Sox someone to dream on as a back-end starter with a chance for more given his youth and constantly improving stuff. 

- While Ramirez showed advanced feel and polish, right-hander Brayan Bello showed some of the best raw stuff at Instructs. The 21-year-old Dominican topped out at 98 mph and mostly worked 94-97 mph. His changeup was his best secondary pitch, flashing arm-side fade at 84-87 mph. Bello also showed off a slider at 84-88 mph that is a work in progress. The shape of the pitch varied and he struggled to consistently snap it off. Developing that pitch was clearly something he was focusing on, as scouts noted he used it a lot more than you would expect in some outings. Bello’s fastball-changeup combination and strike-throwing ability provide him with a solid floor as a reliever, and if he can improve his slider, he still has a chance to develop into a starting pitcher. 

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Scout Chatter: Gilberto Jimenez, Brainer Bonaci and more from Fall Instructs

This is the fourth article in our series relaying reports we received from the Fall Instructional League. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus primarily on position players the Red Sox signed as international free agents over the last few years. 

- Multiple sources identified outfielder Gilberto Jimenez as the top prospect at Instructs, with one remarking that his pure tools are “scary.” The 20-year-old Jimenez had an excellent year with Lowell in 2019, hitting .359/.393/.470, but there were some red flags in his extremely high ground ball rate and low exit velocities. Jimenez’s swing was very slap happy, as he just looked to put the ball in play and use his speed to get on base. Things have changed now, however, as the young Dominican is now listed at 212 pounds, up significantly from where he was with Lowell. Even though he has added that much size, he still is an elite athlete and has only lost a little speed, now grading as a 70 runner rather than 80. From the left side this fall, he was timed at 3.95-4.05 while from the right-side he was timed at 4.12-4.15.

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Scout Chatter: Bradley Blalock, Durbin Feltman and more from Fall Instructs

This is the third article based on reports we’ve received from Fall Instructs. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus on players the Red Sox drafted before 2020.

- Even though he was drafted in 2019, right-hander Bradley Blalock is still only 19 years old and was one of the younger pitchers at instructs. He got off to a slow start, but as camp went on, his delivery and stuff improved. By the end of camp, the reports coming back on him were very encouraging, enough so that he entered our rankings for the first time in our recent update, all the way up at number 36. At his best, Blalock sat 92-94 mph and topped out at 95 mph with a good slider that complimented his fastball well. He also mixed in a curveball and changeup, giving him a four-pitch mix with remaining projection in his frame. He pitches with the type of swagger you like to see on the mound and looks like someone who will add velocity as he matures. Blalock has a lot of development remaining to project as a starter, but his fastball/slider combination gives him a reasonable floor as a potential relief option if his other pitches do not take a step forward. 

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Scout Chatter: Nick Yorke, Blaze Jordan and more from Fall Instructs

 The Red Sox recently wrapped up their Fall Instructional League program. This is the second of several articles based on reports we received from Instructs. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. Today, we focus primarily on players selected in the 2020 Draft and signed as undrafted free agents. 

- As the only member of this year’s draft class to participate at the Alternate Training Site workouts this year—albeit for about a week and a half—second baseman Nick Yorke had a leg up on the competition heading into Instructs. He had already seen what pro pitching looked like, having jumped from high school in California straight into the deep end by facing arms with significantly more experience than him, but he was still able to hold his own in a small sample size. At Fall Instructs, the 2020 first-rounder was the most impressive member of the 2020 draft/NDFA class, showing off his offensive ability, but questions about his long-term defensive profile remain an issue. Yorke got off to a strong start at the plate, but as the camp went along, he struggled to pull the ball and seemed to be just trying to push the ball to right field. Regardless of his struggles near the end of camp, scouts were consistent in saying they believe he can hit and they are high on his bat, enough so that even with a questionable defensive profile and below average speed, they still like him. 

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Scout Chatter: Jay Groome, Eduard Bazardo and more from Fall Instructs

The Red Sox recently wrapped up their Fall Instructional League program, which was slated to run from October 5 through November 12 but ended a few days early due to Hurricane Eta. The Red Sox still were able to get in plenty of work for their top farmhands, including a pair of games against Tampa Bay’s minor leaguers. Otherwise, the camp consisted of morning workouts followed by an intrasquad scrimmage that varied in length depending on how many pitchers needed work. The scrimmages had umpires and were treated like a normal game, save that innings could end early when pitchers hit their pitch count or get extended if they got through an inning too quickly. 

This will be the first of several articles based on reports we received from Instructs. The data we’ve collected will be up on the News Page for your reading pleasure before we use it to update player page scouting reports, so forgive any inconsistencies until that point. 

Today, we focus primarily on players eligible for this year’s Rule 5 Draft, given that Friday, Nov. 20, is the deadline for teams to protect players from selection by adding them to the 40-man roster.

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