Soxprospects.com Podcast

It's now August, and we've got our second straight new top prospect! Why did Rafael Devers leapfrog Yoan Moncada to take the top spot? How about the jumps made by the likes of Anderson Espinoza, Marco Hernandez, and Luis Alexander Basabe? Plus the guys talked about the (then-pending) debut of Henry Owens, the injury to Brian Johnson, the move of Matt Barnes back to the rotation, and the promotion of Kevin Steen to Lowell. To cap the episode, we present Chris' interview with Salem right-hander Teddy Stankiewicz, talking about pitching, bus rides, and the shocking discovery from his pre-signing physical.

Chris and Ian just spent some time watching the Greenville Drive, and they had plenty to talk about! The guys chatted with Matt about their thoughts on Yoan Moncada, Rafael Devers, Javier Guerra, Michael Chavis, Nick Longhi, and more! While he was in town, Chris also checked in with Drive manager Darren Fenster to discuss what's been going on with these players behind the scenes, as well as getting the manager's take on life in the minors. Plus, the guys talk about Brian Johnson's MLB debut, and your listener emails hit on players from throughout the system and beyond: How does Devers compare to Xander Bogaerts at the same age? Where have Karsten Whitson and Christopher Acosta been? Which players might move positions? All this and more herein!

It's another action-packed edition of the SP Pod, featuring an interview with Salem Red Sox right-hander Ty Buttrey! Chris sat down with him recently in Frederick and talked about his bounce-back season, injuring his hand last year, Clash of Clans, and more! Plus, Chris brought back his scouting notes from seeing a pair of Salem games dishing on Buttrey, Daniel McGrath, Aaron Wilkerson, German Taveras, Wendell Rijo, Mauricio Dubon, Jordan Procyshen, and more. Not to be outdone, Ian countered with notes from Lowell on Andrew Benintendi('s BP), Austin Rei, Tate Matheny, Jake Cosart, Ben Taylor, Luis Alexander Basabe, Victor Acosta, and Jeremy Rivera. Plus, your emails!

With the calendar turning to July, Chris and Ian got on the horn and had plenty to talk about, starting with a slew of recent promotions, including those of Manuel Margot, Sam Travis, and Mauricio Dubon to new affiliates and Deven Marrero, Jonathan Aro, and Jackie Bradley to the majors, among others. Plus the Red Sox are now mostly done with draft signings - after inking Andrew Benintendi, how much money is left? And of course, new month, new rankings, including a new number one prospect and debates aplenty! We close, as usual, with your emails.

Many outlets have noted the abundance of prospects on the Pawtucket Red Sox roster this season. So what about it then? We're past the midway point of June, and after getting plenty of looks at what the Triple-A club has to offer, Chris, Matt, and Ian talked about who's up and who's down for the PawSox, including Travis Shaw, Garin Cecchini, Jackie Bradley, Brian Johnson, Henry Owens, Pat Light, Dayan Diaz, Jonathan Aro, and more. At the other end of the ladder, the Lowell Spinners started their season on Friday, and the GCL Sox will start on Monday. What did the guys think of the season-opening Lowell roster, and what that probably means down at the complex? Listen and find out. And as always, we answered your listener emails, which led to a discussion regarding the development of Xander Bogaerts and Mookie Betts.

On Monday, the Red Sox selected Arkansas sophomore center fielder Andrew Benintendi with the seventh overall pick in this year's MLB Draft. Chris, Ian, and Matt quickly hopped on for their reactions: Did they like the pick? Where might he debut in the rankings? Where will he play this year and next? Those answers, plus video game music!

The Draft is in two days, so Chris and Ian got on the horn with Fangraphs Lead Prospect Analyst Kiley McDaniel to preview who might be on the Red Sox radar with the seventh overall selection on Monday. We discussed the players in play, as well as the club's strategy with their second pick not coming until the third round at 81st overall. Plus, Kiley talks about his recent viewing of the Greenville Drive, focusing on Michael Kopech, Rafael Devers, Javier Guerra, Nick Longhi, and Michael Chavis.

  Following the big debut of Eduardo Rodriguez and the Boston rotation's continued struggles, it's sure looking like it's time for the Red Sox to start leaning on that stacked Triple-A rotation we heard about in the preseason. But what can we expect from Rodriguez, Brian Johnson, and Henry Owens, both now and in the future? Chris, Matt, and Ian talked about that, as well as when it's time to promote a player in the minors - spurred by 18-year-old Rafael Devers's hot month of May in Greenville - as well as the latest update to the site rankings!

With Chris returning from the other side of the world, he got Ian and Matt on the horn to look back at the season's first month. The guys talked about the new rankings' movers and shakers, as well as some recent MLB call-ups and the outlook for players like Blake Swihart, Jackie Bradley, and Matt Barnes. The guys also had plenty to report from the field(s), having seen Pawtucket, Portland, and Greenville already in this young season. Listen for reports on Henry Owens, Rafael Devers, and more! Finally, in response to reader questions, the guys quickly discussed the Red Sox' potential plans for the number 7 pick in next month's draft.

With the season underway, Chris, Ian, Matt, along with podcast rookie Chaz Fiorino had plenty to chat about in this extra-large episode! First, the guys examined the affiliate rosters, picking superlatives and discussing surprises. Then, taking advantage of having both Ian and Chaz on, they talked about scouting: what they do when they're at a game, what they look for in players, and decoding scout-speak. Finally, the guys emptied the listener mailbag.

It's that time! Chris and Ian welcomed special guest Matthew Kory of Over the Monster, Forbes, Baseball Prospectus, and sundry other publications of varying repute to talk about what storylines we're looking forward to following in the minor league system in 2015. How will all the infielders in Greenville get playing time? How many of the prospect-laden PawSox have a future in the organization? Are Portland and Salem as bad as the rosters look at first glance, or is there intrigue there? Listen and learn! Plus, the debut of Turkey Facts! (Note: we recorded on Saturday, 4/4, so forgive the couple of outdated comments.)

The boys are back... from Fort Myers! Chris, Ian, and Matt had a ton of stuff to report back from the SoxProspects.com staff's annual trip to Spring Training. We got our first look at Yoan Moncada, as well as updated looks at Rafael Devers, Michael Chavis, and others! Which sleepers looked poised to break out? What new guys impressed? All that and more in this action-packed episode!

A couple of bombshells dropped on the SoxProspects landscape Monday morning, so naturally we had to get on the horn post haste! First, we talked to Baseball America's Ben Badler about the Red Sox reaching an agreement to sign Cuban phenom Yoan Moncada, discussing the ins and outs of who Moncada is and what the impact is of his signing. Then, we discussed a few things about the Moncada signing that have really been grinding our gears before talking a bit about the sale of the Pawtucket Red Sox and their potential move to Providence.

Well, that was a week wasn't it? With the Red Sox trading Allen Webster, Rubby De La Rosa, Raymel Flores, Yoenis Cespedes, Alex Wilson, Gabe Speier, and Myles Smith in deals for Wade Miley, Rick Porcello, and Zeke Spruill, as well as signing former SoxProspects.com number 1 prospect Justin Masterson (oh, and there was the failed pursuit of Jon Lester), Chris and Matt had plenty to talk about. Plus, your emails asked about who will lead off and about the defensive prowess of Christian Vazquez and Blake Swihart.

Within a week of the major league club making a pair of huge signings in Pablo Sandoval and Hanley Ramirez, Baseball Prospectus has dropped its Red Sox Top 10 prospects list, which means one thing... the return of Chris Mellen to the podcast! Hatfield, Matt, and Ian welcomed back the Dean of #diesel, now one of the men in charge of the BP prospect team, to discuss BP's list and the state of the farm. And by the way, please take our one-minute survey at http://bit.ly/SPPodSurvey!

Thursday's reserve list deadline came and went without much fanfare, but that doesn't mean there was nothing to talk about. While the roster additions were the four we all expected, Chris and Matt ran through those who were not added to the 40-man roster and may be potential selections in next month's Rule 5 Draft. Of course, that wasn't all that happened this week, so the guys said goodbye with a look back at Alex Hassan's time with the organization, then moved on to shiny new toy Juan Francisco and what he brings to the Red Sox. Finally, a pair of listener emails led to discussions of Cuban free agent Yoan Moncada and whatever happened to Jose Vinicio.

A long-time coming, Chris, Ian, and Matt got on the horn to talk about Ian's trip to the Fall Instructional League! Michael Kopech, Rafael Devers, Michael Chavis, Javier Guerra, Jake Cosart, and many more players were in our Director of Scouting's crosshairs. Also on the agenda: a quick run through the offseason leagues, with a chat about what to make of the numbers put up by Sean Coyle, Deven Marrero, and Robby Scott in the Arizona Fall League. PLUS, a listener mailbag spectacular! What should the Sox do with their glut of upper-minors pitching? Who did we like in Lowell this year? What does next year's draft look like? The answers to those and more await! (And please, if you're even a part-time listener of the show, please fill out the survey at http://bit.ly/SPPodSurvey. You'll be doing us a big-time solid.)

It is rankings season! Our friend Alex Speier of WEEI.com published his Red Sox Top 10 Prospects for Baseball America recently, so we had him on the pod to talk about his rankings and to pick his brain about the state of the Red Sox system. We're talking top 10, graduates, sleepers, disappointments and more! Even colossal squids! There's only one way to hear it all... hit that download button! Also, we're asking our listeners from a BIG favor. If you're even a part-time listener of the show, please fill out the survey at http://bit.ly/SPPodSurvey. You will be doing us a major solid. (Note that you can fill the survey out without giving your email.)

Things are bad in Boston and the minor league season is over, but that doesn't mean there's nothing to talk about! Chris and Ian got on the horn to take your emails, talk about the recently released Fall Instructional League roster, and project who the Red Sox might protect in December's Rule 5 draft.

It took a bit, but the good news is that SoxProspects South is fully operational and the podcast is back! Matt relays his observations from Pawtucket, and Chris brings some goodies from catching Salem in Frederick. Then we finally get to a couple of your emails, answering questions about Jackie Bradley, Deven Marrero, Rafael Devers, and Michael Chavis.