Red Sox Add Four To 40-Man Roster

With the Rule 5 Draft coming up in the next few weeks, the Boston Red Sox have added four players to their 40-man roster.

Here’s the release from the Red Sox:

BOSTON, MA – The Boston Red Sox today announced the following roster moves:

Left-handed pitcher Eduardo Rodriguez, infielder Travis Shaw, and catcher Blake Swihart were selected to the major league roster from Triple-A Pawtucket.
Infielder Sean Coyle was selected to the major league roster from Double-A Portland.

With the moves, Boston’s 40-man roster is now at 40.

Executive Vice President/General Manager Ben Cherington made the announcement.

Acquired from the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for left-handed pitcher Andrew Miller on July 31, Rodriguez, 21, split this past season at the Double-A level between Bowie in the Orioles system and Portland in Boston’s system. In 22 starts between both clubs, he went 6-8 with a 3.60 ERA (48 ER/120.0 IP) and 108 strikeouts, placing among Eastern League qualifiers in strikeouts per nine innings (3^rd, 8.1) and ERA (10^th). After the trade, he allowed just four runs in six regular season starts for the Sea Dogs, leading the Eastern League in strikeouts (38) and ranking fourth in ERA (0.96). He started the third game of the Eastern league playoffs for Portland (2 ER/6.2 IP) and then made his Triple-A debut with Pawtucket in the fourth game of the International League Governors’ Cup Finals (2 ER, 7.0 IP).

Following the 2014 season, Rodriguez was rated by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect in the Red Sox minor league system, and the No. 7 overall prospect in the Eastern League. The publication also selected him as possessing the best fastball in Boston’s system. For his professional career, the 6-foot-2, 200-pound Venezuelan native has gone 25-27 with one save, a 3.26 ERA (176 ER/486.1 IP), 418 strikeouts, and 162 walks in 93 games (92 starts). He was originally signed by Baltimore as an international free agent on January 22, 2010.

Shaw, 24, hit .278 (136-for-490) with 29 doubles, two triples, 21 home runs, 78 RBI, and 78 runs scored in 128 games between Double-A Portland and Triple-A Pawtucket in 2014. A left-handed hitter, he combined for a .304 batting average and .926 OPS against right-handed pitching in 2014. Shaw began the year with the Sea Dogs and was third in the Eastern League with 10 home runs when promoted to Pawtucket on May 25 for his first Triple-A experience. He was named the organization’s best minor league hitter for May after batting .331 with eight home runs. In addition to leading all Red Sox minor leaguers in home runs this past year, Shaw also placed third in the system in RBI, and fourth in runs scored. Over the last three seasons (2012-14), Shaw’s 56 homers are the most for any Red Sox minor leaguer.

A native of Washington Court House, OH, Shaw was signed by Boston as a ninth-round selection in the 2011 June Draft. He has hit .263 (423-for-1609) with 108 doubles, nine triples, 64 home runs, and 250 RBI in 444 games over four seasons in his professional career. His father, Jeff, pitched in parts of 12 major league seasons from 1990-2001.

Swihart, 22, spent the majority of last season with Portland where he was a mid-season Eastern League All-Star, and ended the season with Pawtucket. Between both clubs he batted .293 (122-for-416) with 26 doubles, four triples, 13 home runs, 64 RBI, and 53 runs scored in 110 games. A switch-hitter, Swihart set career highs in several categories including hits, runs scored, home runs, RBI, and games played. From behind the plate, he threw out 45.6 percent of attempted base stealers during the regular season, including an Eastern League-best 47.5 percent (28 of 59) while with the Sea Dogs.

After the season, Baseball America tabbed Swihart as the No. 1 overall prospect in the Red Sox system, and the No. 8 overall prospect in the Eastern League. In addition, in its organizational Best Tools rankings, Baseball America named Swihart Best Athlete and Best Defensive Catcher. The publication also named him to its all minor league All-Star Team (First Team).

Swihart, originally from Bedford, TX, was a first-round selection (26^th overall) of the Red Sox in the 2011 June Draft. For his career, he has hit .284 (324-for-1142) with 72 doubles, 15 triples, 22 home runs, and 159 RBI in 307 games.

Coyle, 22, spent last season with Portland where he was named an Eastern League mid-season All-Star, batting .295 (99-for-336) with 23 doubles, one triple, 16 home runs, 61 RBI, and 60 runs scored in 96 games. In addition to ranking fourth among regular season Eastern League leaders in slugging percentage (.512) and eighth in batting average, he led the Sea Dogs in runs scored, home runs, RBI and total bases (172), and finished third among Red Sox minor leaguers in homers and seventh in batting average. Coyle also homered twice more over four playoff games. A right-handed batter, he hit .328 (38-for-116) against southpaws during the regular season. Primarily a second baseman for Portland, he also appeared at third base in 2014. Coyle was the U.S. Team’s starting second baseman in the 2014 All-Star Futures Game and following the season played for the Surprise Saguaros in the Arizona Fall League.

A native of Sellersville, PA, Coyle was the Red Sox’ fifth overall pick in the 2010 June Draft (3^rd round, 110^th overall selection). Over his professional career, he has batted .258 (363-for-1407) with 94 doubles, 11 triples, 55 home runs, and 223 RBI in 381 games.

BOSTON RED SOX 40-MAN ROSTER (40)

PITCHERS (17): Matt Barnes, Drake Britton, Clay Buchholz, Rubby De La Rosa, Edwin Escobar, Heath Hembree, Joe Kelly, Tommy Layne, Edward Mujica, Anthony Ranaudo, Eduardo Rodriguez, Junichi Tazawa, Koji Uehara, Allen Webster, Alex Wilson, Brandon Workman, Steven Wright.