Baseball America is busy right now putting together its top 20 prospects lists by league now that the minor league baseball season is over. They got started last week with the Arizona League, the Gulf Coast League, Appalachian League, Pioneer League, NY/Penn League, Northwest League, Midwest League, South Atlantic League and California League.
Now we’ll look at the Carolina League where the Red Sox minor leaguers play with the Salem Red Sox.
Four Red Sox farmhands are ranked in the top 20 prospects of the Carolina League. They are SS Xander Bogaerts who comes in at No. 2, RHP Matt Barnes at No. 3, OF Jackie Bradley Jr. at No. 4 and C Christian Vazquez at No. 17.
Bogaerts was signed as international free agent in 2009 out of Aruba and spent the 2010 season with the Dominican Summer League Red Sox. In 2011, he played for the Greenville Drive and split the 2012 season between Salem and the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs.
In 104 games with Salem, Bogaerts hit .302 with 15 home runs, 64 RBIs and four stolen bases. In 23 games with the Sea Dogs, he hit .326 with five home runs, 17 RBIs and one stolen base. If you combine his stats for the year, Bogaerts hit .307 with 20 home runs, 81 RBIs and five stolen bases.
Barnes was a first round pick of the Red Sox in 2011 out of UConn and made his minor league debut this season with the Greenville Drive. In five starts for the Drive, he was 2-0 with a 0.34 ERA. He had 42 strikeouts in just 26.2 innings of work.
He finished the 2012 season with Salem where he made 20 starts going 5-5 with a 3.58 ERA. He struck out 91 batters in 93 innings of work. If you combine his stats for the year, he was 7-5 in 25 starts with a 2.86 ERA and 133 strikeouts in 119.2 innings.
Bradley Jr. was a first round pick (supplemental round) of the Red Sox in 2011 out of South Carolina and he played in 10 games for the Lowell Spinners and Greenville Drive. He started the 2012 season with Salem before being promoted to the Portland Sea Dogs.
In 67 games with Salem, Bradley hit .359 with three home runs, 39 RBIs and 16 stolen bases. In 61 games with the Sea Dogs, he hit .271 with six home runs, 29 RBIs and eight stolen bases. If you combine his stats for the year, he hit .315 with nine home runs, 68 RBIs and 24 stolen bases.
Vazquez was ninth round draft pick of the Red Sox in 2008 out of Puerto Rico. He spent the 2008 season with the GCL Red Sox and split the 2009 season between the GCL Red Sox and Lowell. In 2010 and 2011, he played for the Drive. He split the 2012 season between Salem and Portland.
In 81 games for Salem, he hit .266 with seven home runs, 41 RBIs and two stolen bases. In 20 games with the Sea Dogs, he hit .205 with no home runs and five RBIs. If you combine his stats for the season, he hit .254 with seven home runs, 46 RBIs and two stolen bases.
The next look at where Red Sox farmhands rank in their respective league comes tomorrow when Baseball America looks at the top 20 prospects for the Eastern League.
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