Already boasting a lineup with outstanding young hitters, the Boston Red Sox are adding another one to the mix by calling up top prospect Andrew Benintendi from Double-A Portland.
The Red Sox officially announced Benintendi‘s promotion on Twitter.
The seventh overall pick in last year’s draft, Benintendi‘s stock has done nothing but rise in the 13 months he’s been in the Red Sox farm system.
Benintendi, who was named SEC Player of the Year and Golden Spikes Award winner in 2015, has posted a .312/.378/.532 slash line in 97 games between High-A Salem and Double-A Portland this season.
ESPN.com’s Keith Law ranked Benintendi as the No. 3 overall prospect in his midseason update released on July 14, behind Houston‘s Alex Bregman and Washington‘s Lucas Giolito.
Law noted that Benintendi‘s “hands are super-quick and very strong, and he’s fast enough to stay in center field for the near term.”
Pete Abraham of the Boston Globe noted the Red Sox will use the same tactic they did in 2013 when Xander Bogaerts was called up, as Benintendi will sit for Tuesday night’s game against Seattle before starting on Wednesday.
The Red Sox are secure in center field with Jackie Bradley Jr. enjoying a breakout season. Left field has been one of the few black holes in Boston’s lineup this year with a collective slash line of .256/.322/.394, per Baseball-Reference.com.
Boston president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski explained the team’s decision to promote the 22-year-old right now, per Ian Browne of MLB.com:
Our people kept coming up and saying, ‘We think he can play at the big league level and we think he’s ready.’ Now, don’t look for him to hit in the middle of the lineup like he will eventually. But he’s a well-rounded player, he’s a good defensive player, he runs the bases well, he has a good arm, we’ve been working him out at left field and he’s been able to play the wall well in Portland there.
The Red Sox don’t necessarily need an offensive boost, even with the problems in left field, because they lead MLB with 576 runs scored, 55 more than anyone else in the American League.
Yet the Red Sox have had problems with their starting rotation this year, an area they were unable to upgrade before Monday’s non-waiver trade deadline, so the next-best solution is to create a deep lineup that will cause more problems for opposing pitchers over the final two months.
Benintendi has done nothing but hit since his junior season at Arkansas. He’s never looked overmatched at any level and will be ready to step in any role the Red Sox need him to serve as they hope to secure a playoff spot.
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