Yordanny Monegro's Scoreless Inning Streak Extends to 36.1
Yordanny Monegro's Scoreless Inning Streak Extends to 36.1
Plus Mikey Romero, Kristian Campbell's promotion to Worcester, and more
It is no secret that the Boston Red Sox have massively struggled to develop homegrown pitching since the turn of the century. Whether it can be blamed on outdated philosophies or not distributing enough top-end assets on pitchers, the organization has made it public that they are adapting to the new way teams form their pitching infrastructure. Shortly after Luis Perales’ breakout this spring in which the right-hander was touted as a potential big league starting pitcher by a handful of publications, the Venezuela native was concluded to be out for the year with elbow surgery and likely part of 2025. With that, the organization needed some lower pedigree arms to step up in Perales’ place. 6’4” right-hander Yordanny Monegro has done so, posting a 2.89 ERA across 56 total innings in High-A Greenville, striking out 11.3 batters per 9 innings. Monegro started the 2024 season on the development list, with the reason being to build up strength in his throwing shoulder. After making 3 appearances in the complex league in May, the right-hander made his season debut for the Drive on June 2nd. After an inconsistent first month, Monegro took off in July, and he currently boasts a 36.1 inning scoreless streak dating back to July 2nd. Known for his post-strikeout celebrations, he should be on the way up to Double-A Portland before season’s end, as it is clear he is not challenged by High-A lineups. Being eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter, Monegro will have an interesting case to be placed on the Red Sox 40-man roster.
Taking a deeper dive into the Red Sox farm system, 2023 9th round pick Blake Wehunt has made himself relatively notable in 18 A-ball starts this season; 8 in Low-A Salem, 10 in High-A Greenville. At 6’7”, 240 lbs, the right-handed pitcher’s intrigue as a prospect comes from a stuff and deceptiveness standpoint, not so much projectability. Wehunt offers a fastball, sweeping slider, and splitter. This past week, Wehunt earned the South Atlantic League Pitcher of the Week honor after throwing 5 shutout innings against the Aberdeen Ironbirds last Friday. Like his Greenville Drive rotation counterpart Yordanny Monegro, Wehunt has shown his stuff can play at the next level of the minor leagues, but may have to wait longer than expected for a chance to prove so due to fellow pitchers already at said level needing innings. On the cusp of Double-A in his first professional season, Wehunt will not be eligible for the Rule 5 Draft until 2026, adding to his value as he approaches the higher ranks of the minor leagues.
Hunter Dobbins has flown under the radar at Double-A Portland this summer. A 2021 8th round pick out of Texas Tech, Dobbins underwent elbow surgery in the spring of his draft year, rehabbed to be ready for the start of his first full professional season, and has progressed through the low levels of the Red Sox farm system as a starting pitcher. The right-hander has posted this year, starting 21 games and pitching 105 innings for Portland, and has allowed one home run to Eastern League batters this year. Although a .1 HR/9 may not sustainable, Dobbins has only yielded 10 home runs in his 217.2 innings for the Greenville Drive and Portland Sea Dogs over the last couple years, affiliates that both play in rather hitter-friendly ballparks. After striking out 7 batters across 6 shutout innings on Tuesday, Dobbins has been promoted to AAA Worcester, where he will look to continue his effectiveness in their rotation.
After being the main piece in a rare Yankees-Red Sox trade that involved Alex Verdugo this past offseason, Richard Fitts was added to Triple-A Worcester’s rotation to open the season and has made 21 of his 22 appearances as a starter for the WooSox. The supination-oriented pitcher offers a fastball, slider, and a changeup he throws significantly less than his two primary offerings. In 2023, Fitts earned the title of the pitcher with the best control in the Eastern League from its respective managers. In his first two years in the minor leagues with the New York Yankees organization, Fitts registered 2.1 BB/9, with that rate hovering around 3 since the start of his Red Sox tenure. In his last 5 starts, Fitts has posted a 3.00 earned run average, struck out 28 batters in 27 innings, and has completed at least 5 innings in each start. Although he may not offer considerable upside at the major league level, Fitts is eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter, and the Red Sox may look to start his 40-man clock prior to season’s end.
After a rough initial professional season, infielder Mikey Romero has boosted his stock after recovering from a slew of injuries since signing his first professional contract. An underslot first round pick by Boston in 2022, Romero showcased promise as a contact-oriented middle infielder in his glimpse of play after being drafted. After suffering a back injury to start his 2023 season, the left-handed hitting infielder didn’t make his season debut until June 23rd, and succumbed to another back injury in just his third game for the Greenville Drive in the middle of August. After slashing .214/.294/.286 last year, Romero has bounced back massively in Greenville, slugging .510 in the 2024 season across 55 games while only striking out in 21% of his plate appearances. If he can stay on the field, Romero’s strong hit tool can make him a part of the Red Sox future plans, and with him playing both shortstop and second base, he could potentially offer versatility elsewhere on the diamond if his athleticism holds.
Exactly a week after Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, and Kyle Teel were all promoted from Portland to Worcester, perhaps the best performer on Boston’s Double-A squad, Kristian Campbell, was moved to Worcester a week later. Campbell is currently posting the highest wRC+ among qualified minor leaguers at affiliated levels at 184. The 22-year-old utilityman will try to continue his surge in the International League, as he tries to make himself a part of the Red Sox’ future plans.
In his seventh game at the Triple-A level, outfielder Roman Anthony hit his first home run for the Worcester Red Sox. With most of Anthony’s prospect pedigree coming from being a power-hitting left-handed batter, the outfielder seeing southpaws well will be huge for his development as he inches closer to the big leagues.
After not being in the Portland Sea Dogs lineup since July 30th, Marcelo Mayer was activated from the injured list on August 10th, but did not play between then and the time of his promotion to Worcester. Since then, he has not been in Worcester’s lineup either, as he headed back to the IL this past Tuesday. Although he is not likely to debut in the majors this year, it will be key to get Mayer’s Triple-A stint going as soon as possible when he is ready.