2013-2014 Red Sox ML Comings and Goings

Jed Zeppelin

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Plympton91 said:
Wow, does that suck.  He seemed like such a good pick on paper, but never had even a moment in pro ball where he looked like a prospect.  Who was picked in the 10 slots after him (I could look that up probably, sorry).
 
He was drafted with the knowledge that he would have to change positions, but the bat was supposed to be so good that it didn't matter where he ended up. Obviously one of those things that looks weird in hindsight.
 
As for the what if game, I do recall some buzz around Nick Castellanos - could have been just speculation based on the Sox system weakness at 3b - but he was taken in the supplemental round and is now BA's #21 prospect. Nabbed Cecchini in the 5th so no harm I suppose.
 
As for players the Sox probably weren't looking at given who they drafted in the early rounds, they passed three times on Taijuan Walker.
 

Nuf Ced

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Don't know if this was posted elsewhere, but Chris Balcom-Miller said on his Twitter feed that he was released by the Red Sox today. Balcom-Miller was acquired in the Manny Delcarmen trade. Never progressed beyond the AA level at Portland where his ERA averaged in the mid-fours. 
 

Bigpupp

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Plympton91 said:
 
 
Wow, does that suck.  He seemed like such a good pick on paper, but never had even a moment in pro ball where he looked like a prospect.  Who was picked in the 10 slots after him (I could look that up probably, sorry).
This isn't really true about being a good pick on paper. Pretty sure there wasn't a single person (on this board anyways) that liked the Vitek pick the second it happened. Most people were calling for Zack Cox or Castellanos. I can't find my post at the time but I said something along the lines of wanting to throw something across the room if they picked Vitek.

Having said that I'm still surprised he retired so early.
 

OttoC

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He's going to be 25 on April 1 and maybe he figured that there is something better than playing for peanuts in the minors, especially after only 56 games in 2012 and 61 in 2013. After all, he has college and probably a pretty good signing bonus on which to fall back.
 

mabrowndog

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As noted in the Bullpen thread:
 
Alex Speier ‏@alexspeier 
Cherington said Francisco Cordero [is] expected to request (and be granted) his release.
 

Pete Abraham ‏@PeteAbe
#redsox released non-roster Japanese submariner Shunsuke Watanabe. Was in minor league camp.
 

mabrowndog

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Just stumbled upon this:
 
 
[Third baseman] Keaton Briscoe was a UBC Thunderbird from 2010 to 2012. Briscoe made an immediate impact in the Thunderbird lineup starting 98 of the 101 games that he appeared in during that time. Briscoe ended his UBC career with 352 At Bats, 113 hits, 4 home runs, 52 RBI’s, and 26 stolen bases and a .321 batting average.
 
The North Vancouver native was then drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 27th round of the 2012 first year player draft. Briscoe spent time with the rookie league team in the Gulf Coast League and then spent a season with Greenville in the South Atlantic League. After an injury riddled 2013 season, Briscoe signed his voluntary retirement papers in 2014 after slow healing stress fractures in his legs.
 
Today, Keaton is wrapping up his UBC degree and is working clinics and summer camps for Last Raps Baseball Corp.
 

mabrowndog

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Per the Alex Speier/Matt Huegel tag team, 3B Jantzen Witte, C Jordan Weems, and RHP Joe Gunkel have been promoted from Greenville to Salem, moves that both recognize their progress (except Weems) and clear roster slots for other promotions &/or new draft signings.
 
For Weems, it's clearly time to put up or get out of the way.
 
 
Gunkel, 22, has appeared in 17 games for Greenville in 2014 and has started his last five. In five starts, Gunkel has posted a 2.96 ERA over 27 1/3 innings while striking out 29. He's also posted a remarkable 0.65 WHIP as a starter. Overall in 2014, Gunkel has posted a 2.28 ERA and a .149 batting average against. Gunkel was a 13th round selection in the 2013 draft.

Witte, 24, has posted a line of .330/.418/.554 in 65 games for Greenville. He's also belted eight home runs, 24 doubles, and plated 54 RBI. Both Gunkel and Witte were named to the 2014 South Atlantic League All-Star team, and split time last season between the GCL Red Sox and the Lowell Spinners. 
 
Weems, 21, has not had as much tangible success as his counterparts. In 50 games for Greenville in 2014, the Georgia native has hit .166 and posted a .497 OPS. Weems has spent the last two full seasons in Greenville playing 197 games. He was selected in the third round of the 2011 draft.
 

mabrowndog

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In conjunction with the above, Tim Roberson & Kevin Mager have been sent from Salem down to Greenville. With Mager now 26 and Roberson also hitting that milestone within a month, they're clearly roster filler and aren't long for the system once younger talents inevitably get moved up from Lowell.
 
Also, former Mr. Irrelevant Kyle Stroup has been released after six injury-riddled, weight-addled, up-and-down years in the Sox system. His last 10 games over the past 6 weeks saw him get tagged for a 10.22 ERA and a .450 BAA in 12.1 innings with 27 H, 12 BB and just 7 K.
 

mabrowndog

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LHP Francisco Tena, who was suspended 50 games in February after testing positive for anabolic steroids, has been released.
 
OF Jesus Loya, who failed to advance beyond low-A Greenville in four seasons after signing as an international free agent from Mexico, has retired. He was hitting just .170/.264/.170/.434 in 55 PA for the Drive this spring.
 

mabrowndog

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OF Andres Torres has completed his indoctrination at Lowell, and has been assigned to the PawSox. That knocks OF Shannon Wilkerson back down from Pawtucket to Portland.
 
With the Sea Dogs having activated OF Pete Hissey from the DL (while sending RHP Matty Ott back to Salem), Portland was still heavy one outfielder. So they've released Mike Greenwell's son, Bo, who was hitting just .182/.284/.287/.531 in 86 PA at AA after earlier stints with Greenville & Salem.
 

mabrowndog

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* Michael Almanzar, picked by BAL in the Rule 5 draft, has been returned to the Sox. He's yet to be reassigned but Portland seems likely.
 
* The Sox trade LHP Rich Hill from Pawtucket to the Angels for cash considerations.
 
* Pawtucket granted RHP Chris Resop his release.
 

Sprowl

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mabrowndog said:
* The Sox trade LHP Rich Hill from Pawtucket to the Angels for cash considerations.
 
Sigh

 
I would really have liked to see Rich Hill return to Fenway and revive the Bullpen Percussion Section, but the Red Sox have an embarrassment of riches in left-handed relievers. Miller, Doubront and Breslow (with the disappointing Britton still in Pawtucket) were all ahead of Hill, and the Red Sox don't appear interested in adding a LOOGY to the already flush bullpen.
 

mabrowndog

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Lowell Spinners @LowellSpinners

Congratulations to Cole Sturgeon and Jason Garcia, promoted to the @GreenvilleDrive. Sturgeon first 2014 Draft Pick to reach Greenville.

 
They'll need to make 2 other moves to clear roster spots on the Drive. If they don't DL an outfielder, it might be the end of the line for 25-yr-old Kevin Mager (an undrafted FA signing in 2012).
 
Among pitchers, 2009 IFA Mario Alcantara seems most at risk. He was moved to the pen after getting hammered for 8 ER in a May 12 start. Since then: 9 app, 15.1 IP, 23 H, 10 BB, 2 HBP, 11 K, 8.22 ERA, .354/.449/.585/1.033 line vs 78 batters. He's still young (turned 21 just after Christmas), but this is his 5th season in the Sox system and he's yet to resolve his control issues with 34 BB & 24 K in 43.1 IP. If they don't cut Alcantara now, I don't see him surviving once Ty Buttrey comes off the DL.
 

mabrowndog

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RHP Michael Olmsted's second stint in the Red Sox system has come to an end, as Portland released him yesterday.
 
Drafted by the Mets in 2007 (9th rd), he spent two seasons in their lower levels before being released. He underwent Tommy John surgery, missing all of 2009, then spent 2010 with the Softbank Hawks in Japan. The Sox signed him prior to the 2011 season, and he spent 2 years with 4 Boston affiliates while putting up consistent 14 K/9s at each level and an eye-popping 136/24 K/BB (5.67) in 87.6 combined innings at low-A, high-A and AA. He advanced to Portland midway through 2012, where he didn't allow an earned run in 20 IP over 14 G, striking out 31 with just 7 BB and 11 H.
 
Granted minor league free agency, Olmsted spent 2013 in the Brewers system where control issues dimmed his status (40 BB, 52.3 IP) before he returned to the Sox this past spring. His numbers with Portland through June 27 were decent enough (19 G, 29.1 IP, 34/14 K/BB, 2.45 ERA, .207/.323/.333/.656 line), but he also hit 5 batters and had just 4 outings where he pitched a clean inning. The conventional data belied several issues including a drop in fastball velocity, inconsistent release points, and command problems with his breaking stuff. The wheels fell off in his final three games (July 2, 7 & 10) with 10 BB, 6 H, 1 HBP and 13 R (8 ER) over just 3 innings of work while throwing less than half his pitches for strikes.
 
He turned 27 in early May, so he really needed to put everything together this year to have any shot. He didn't.
 

mabrowndog

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A new face from the independent leagues: RHP Aaron Wilkerson
 
 
Aaron Wilkerson was dominant for the Grand Prairie AirHogs on Wednesday evening. The right-handed pitcher struck out eight hitters and scattered three hits and a run over seven innings against the first-place Wichita Wingnuts as the AirHogs won 5-4.
 
Now, that start is more than just a big AirHogs win. It is Wilkerson’s sendoff to affiliated baseball. The Boston Red Sox have purchased Wilkerson’s contract and assigned him to the Short Season Class A Lowell Spinners of the New York-Penn League. The Spinners will begin a series at the Auburn Doubledays in Auburn, New York on Sunday.
 
On the 2014 season, Wilkerson is 3-1 with a 3.54 ERA. He has started 12 games and struck out 77 over 73 and 2/3 innings with only 31 walks. The eight punchouts on Wednesday were his third-highest total of the season, as he recorded 10 strikeouts in seven innings on June 30 in a win over the Sioux City Explorers. Wilkerson also fanned nine hitters in a no-decision on June 20 against the Amarillo Sox.
 
His first win of the season came on May 30 at Amarillo when he struck out seven in six innings, allowing two earned runs in a 5-4 win. One June 8, Wilkerson recorded victory no. 2 by throwing five and 1/3 shutout innings against Wichita while striking out six. Wilkerson had at least four strikeouts in each of his 12 starts in 2014.
 
Wilkerson made three starts with the AirHogs in 2013, going 1-1 with a 1.84 ERA.  In the 2013 postseason, he took a no-decision after throwing seven shutout innings against Wichita on Sept. 4.
 
The former Cumberland University player also played with the Frontier League’s Florence Freedom and the United League’s Fort Worth Cats in 2013. He had a combined record of 10-2 with a 2.96 ERA between the three clubs.
 
In 2011, Wilkerson was an NAIA First-Team All-American at Cumberland. He was 12-0 with a miniscule 1.49 ERA. He struck out 90 hitters and walked only 22 in 90 1/3 innings that year.
 

mabrowndog

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RHP Dayan Diaz promoted from Salem, taking Michael Olmsted's spot on the Portland pitching staff.