Crimson Sox
Past Marcelo Mayer, the Sea Canines boast two different top-100-ranked prospects on their roster.
PORTLAND, Maine — Hadlock Subject stands simply 107 miles away from Fenway Park.
For a lot of high prospects who’ve risen by way of the Crimson Sox group, the Sea Canines’ ballpark stands as one of many closing stops on the way in which to stardom.
Such a sentiment is validated by the array of jerseys lined atop the suites and press field that anchors the highest of the seating part on the 29-year-old stadium.
It’s a “who’s who” of Crimson Sox legends.
Betts. Bogaerts. Devers. Ellsbury.
Many abilities who routinely peppered the Inexperienced Monster at Fenway often obtained their first licks in in opposition to the same “Maine Monster” up in Portland.
Marcelo Mayer will look to be the most recent in an extended line of Crimson Sox blue-chip prospects to make his mark in Portland en path to his path to the large leagues.
However he is probably not the one one on this present Sea Canines clubhouse.
Mayer, tabbed as MLB.com’s No. 5 prospect, will be the headliner on Portland’s roster this summer season. However the Sea Canines are additionally dwelling to a different two top-100 prospects in baseball in second baseman Nick Yorke (No. 96, Baseball America) and outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela (No. 83, MLB.com).
“I really like these guys in there,” Mayer mentioned of his new teammates. “We had an excellent factor happening within the clubhouse in spring coaching. So everybody’s household. So getting the decision up or becoming a member of a brand new membership was fairly simple and clean.”
Mayer, who turned a double play with Yorke on Tuesday night time in opposition to Akron, already has lots historical past with the second baseman.
“Cali boy too. So I performed in opposition to him rising up,” Mayer mentioned of Yorke. “So we’re fairly cool. Fairly tight.” … “And it’s not simply him, all of them. Like I mentioned, in spring coaching, all of us hang around.
“We’re all collectively on a regular basis. So it’s type of unhappy once we break camp, simply because we all know we’re not gonna see one another for a very long time. However having the ability to see these guys once more was cool.”
Yorke, 21, is within the midst of a formidable bounce-back marketing campaign with the Sea Canines. The 2020 first-round choose had a incredible begin to his professional profession in 2021, slashing .325/.412/.516 with 14 dwelling runs and 62 RBI between Salem and Greenville.
A slew of accidents restricted Yorke to simply 80 video games with Greenville in 2022, with the power-hitting infielder slashing .232/.303/.365.
However with a clear invoice of well being, Yorke has as soon as once more put himself on the radar of MLB prospect evaluators. Coming into Wednesday night time, Yorke was batting .287 with six dwelling runs and 20 RBI over 44 video games with Portland.
If Yorke can proceed to push apart the 2022 season as an outlier, the Crimson Sox might have a really intriguing duo anchoring the center of their infield within the coming yr between him and Mayer.
“To see that this early, we’re extraordinarily joyful about that as a result of that’s most likely one of many greatest jumps you make, Excessive A to Double A,” Crimson Sox minor league hitting coordinator Lance Zawadzki instructed The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier of Yorke. “Having the ability to rebound, having the ability to make that leap and be doing what he’s doing, that’s nice. He has an opportunity to be a whole hitter.
“There’s large upside on the ability. Clearly, it’s nonetheless coming. This man has had a pure means to hit since we drafted him. I believe that was some of the interesting issues once we did get him.”
Mayer might need made his dwelling debut with Portland on Tuesday night time, however the star of the night was Boston’s fellow top-100 prospect in Rafaela. Rafaela, now within the midst of a 12-game hitting streak, went 3-for-4 on the plate on Tuesday with three steals.
The 22-year-old Rafaela possible already has a path to the majors because of his plus protection, be it in middle subject or at shortstop. However Rafaela has continued to indicate indicators that he may be greater than only a utility piece on the subsequent degree.
He has torched the basepaths throughout his first full season with Portland, stealing 25 bases in his first 46 video games this yr. He set a brand new Crimson Sox group document by swiping six luggage in a single sport again in Might.
However after slugging 33 extra-base hits over 71 video games with Portland in 2022, Rafaela is batting .284 with 12 doubles, 4 dwelling runs and 31 RBI over 46 video games in 2023. For the reason that begin of June, Rafaela is batting .455 with two doubles, one dwelling run, 5 runs scored and 5 RBI.
Signed by Boston as a global free agent out of Curaçao in 2017, Rafaela might make a push for a promotion as much as Triple-A Worcester later this summer season.
In fact, most eyes will nonetheless be fixated on Mayer, who slugged his first Double-A house run on Wednesday night time in his second sport at Hadlock Subject.
To date, he’s slot in nicely on a Sea Canines group already anchored with loads of high-end expertise.
“Very laid again,” Sea Canines supervisor Chad Epperson mentioned of Mayer’s strategy. “Our group motto is’ unfastened and loaded.’ And that’s type of what he’s. He matches that profile excellent. , I imply, he’s very unfastened, however he’s able to play each single day.”
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