Mookie Betts promoted to Triple-A Pawtucket
The Boston Red Sox today will promote heralded prospect Mookie Betts to Pawtucket from Double-A Portland. Betts, 21, will join the PawSox tonight when they open a 4-game series in Durham against the Durham Bulls. The PawSox return to McCoy Stadium to begin an 8-game homestand this Saturday night when they host Louisville at 6:05 pm.
Betts was hitting .355 in 54 games for Portland this season playing 40 games at 2B, 12 games in the OF (all in CF - and all of those coming since May 18) along with 2 games as the DH. He was among the Eastern League leaders (and overall Minor League Baseball leaders) in a host of offensive categories.
Mookie's .355 batting average led the Eastern League and is 6th best in all of Minor League Baseball. He also led the Eastern League in both hits (76) and runs (56) which are 4th most and 2nd most in MiLB respectively. As of June 3rd he ranks in the Top 4 in the Eastern League in these categories as well…2nd in stolen bases (22), 2nd in doubles (18), 2nd in walks (35), 2nd in on-base pct. (.443), T3rd in extra base hits (27), 4th in total bases (118), and 4th in slugging pct. (.551). Betts also has the Best SO/BB Ratio in all of Minor League Baseball (20 SO compared to 35 BB) along with the Lowest TPA/SO Ratio in the Eastern League (12.65).
Betts began this season red hot as he batted .430 in 22 games in April and was hitting over .400 through mid-May (.401 on May 15 which led the minors). He fell to .347 (incredibly his season-low) on May 30 but then went 6-for-12 with a 2B, 3B, 4 RBI, and 5 runs scored in his final three games with Portland to get back to .355. He batted lead-off in all 54 of his games with the Sea Dogs
Defensively, Betts began the year exclusively at second base before making his first professional start in the outfield (CF) on May 18. Since that point he has played 12 of his last 17 games in CF. All 4 of his errors this season have come while playing second base (his last error came on May 11). Since joining the Red Sox organization in 2011 (for one game with the Gulf Coast Rookie Red Sox in 2011), Betts has played 224 games at 2B, 14 games at SS (none since 2012 with Lowell), and 12 in the outfield (all in CF for Portland this season).
Some Mookie notes from this season with Portland…He reached base safely in 66 straight regular season games (71 including the Carolina League playoffs last September) from August 2, 2013 through May 16, 2014 before it was snapped on May 17 (0-for-4 but with 2 RBI vs. Trenton)…He reached base 112 times in 54 games for Portland including four times in a game 11 different times and five times twice (May 22 & 24)…He reached base safely in his first 35 Double-A games and hit safely in 44 of his 54 games with the Sea Dogs with 23 multi-hit games…Betts put together a 17-game hitting streak from April 9-30 (longest by a Portland player since 2004) at a .432 clip (32-for-74)…He scored a run in 13 straight games from April 9-26 and scored at least one run in 35 of his 54 games…Mookie led off the 2014 season with a HR on April 3 at Reading as he went 4-for-4 in his Double-A debut….And he had a walk-off 2-run triple on May 22 vs. Binghamton as he went 1-for-1 with 4 walks in that game.
Betts, who won't turn 22 until October 7, will be the youngest player on the current PawSox roster and the youngest player to appear in the International League this season. Last June 14, INF Xander Bogaerts became the 2nd youngest position player ever to appear for the PawSox at 20 years, 8 months, and 13 days young. SS Glenn Hoffman was 19 years, 1 month and 25 days old (young) when he made his PawSox debut on September 1, 1977. RHP Jeff Suppan was 20 years, 8 months, and 1 day old when he made his PawSox pitching debut on August 3, 1995.
The 5'9", 156 lbs. Betts was Boston's 5th round pick in the 2011 June draft out of John Overton High School in Brentwood, Tennessee. The first four picks in that draft by the Red Sox were RHP Matt Barnes, C Blake Swihart, LHP Henry Owens, and OF Jackie Bradley, Jr. Betts split the 2013 season between Greenville (low-A) and Salem (high-A) batting a combined .314 with 36 2B, 4 3B, 15 HR, 65 RBI, 81 BB, and 38 SB in 127 games. Those numbers earned him Red Sox Offensive Player of the Year honors and a spot on Baseball America's Minor League All-Star 2nd Team. He capped his stellar 2013 season by leading the Salem Red Sox to the Carolina League Championship by hitting .412 during the playoffs.
Orioles' Honeycutt joins The Show Before the Show
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Red Sox prospect rips double THROUGH Fenway-esque scoreboard
Red Sox No. 4 prospect Franklin Arias, an infielder for High-A Greenville, REALLY didn’t want to let visiting Asheville score any runs in the top of the eighth inning on Friday night. With runners on first and second base in the bottom of the fourth, Arias showed he apparently held
April's hottest hitting prospects -- one for each organization
The Minor League season is a month old and several of the game's best hitting prospects are off to fast starts. Red Sox outfielder Roman Anthony is tearing up Triple-A (just like he did at the end of last year), Padres shortstop Leo De Vries is leading the High-A Midwest
Check out the best -- and wackiest -- Minor League promos happening in May
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast coming LIVE to a Somerset this June
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
New ballparks highlight 2025 MiLB road trip stops
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from the Baseball Traveler newsletter, presented by Circle K, is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
Minor League Baseball partners with TruGreen
FRANKLIN, Tenn. -- TruGreen, the nation's leading lawn care treatment provider, is proud to announce a groundbreaking partnership with Minor League Baseball that includes activations across all 120 clubs, a makeover of the home dugout in each market, sponsorship of select MiLB team grounds crews, and a new initiative called
Podcast explains why the Syracuse Mets are looking for Jim Morrison
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Dash im-prom-tu promo and Mets' Suero joins the podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Minor League Baseball partners with Circle K
Minor League Baseball announced a new national partnership with Circle K, which will see the convenience store giant become the “Official Convenience Store of Minor League Baseball.” During the 2025 season, the Circle K brand will be integrated into the MiLB in-stadium experience through in-game video board assets at most
These 15 moments led to season No. 15 of Minor League road trips
Benjamin Hill travels the nation collecting stories about what makes Minor League Baseball unique. This excerpt from his newsletter is a mere taste of the smorgasbord of delights he offers every week. Read the full newsletter here, and subscribe to his newsletter here.
MiLB podcast crew makes Opening Day predictions
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Everything you need to know for Triple-A Opening Day
First, there was big league Opening Day. Now it's Triple-A's turn to take the spotlight. The Minor League season opens Friday when the Triple-A International League and Pacific Coast League seasons get underway for the first of MiLB’s two Opening Days. And right out of the gates, several of baseball's
Top prospects to watch at Triple-A -- one for each organization
It’s Triple-A’s turn up to bat on Friday. The regular season begins for the Minor Leagues’ highest level one day after the action starts on the Major League side. Fun fact: it’ll be the earliest start to a Minor League season since 1951 (March 27). Double-A, High-A and Single-A will
Here's where every Top 100 prospect is expected to start the season
The 2025 Opening Day prospect roster announcements began last week when the Cubs informed Matt Shaw (MLB No. 19) he was making the trip overseas to compete in the Tokyo Series. Roki Sasaki (No. 1) also received the good news, but his assignment was much less of a surprise. Now
Nationals prospect King joins MiLB podcast
Check out the latest episodes of The Show Before the Show, MiLB.com's official podcast. A segment rundown is listed below, in case you want to skip to a particular section. Like the podcast? Subscribe, rate and review on Apple Podcasts. The podcast is also available via Spotify, Megaphone and other
Here are the 2025 All-Spring Breakout Teams
Fifteen games, several jersey swaps and countless highlights later, the second edition of Spring Breakout has officially concluded – and it lived up to its billing. Of the 16 contests sprinkled across four days, only one game (Dodgers vs. Cubs) was rained out. Coincidentally, the Cubs were one of two
Rox young sluggers aim to bring pop back to Coors Field
SCOTTSDALE, Ariz. -- Coors Field may provide the best run-scoring environment in Major League Baseball, but the Rockies haven’t taken advantage of it in recent years. Even without adjusting for Coors, they have fielded offenses worse than the league average the past three seasons, and they scored the fewest runs
Astros brass sees potential in consistently 'underranked' farm system
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The last time the Astros landed in the top 10 of MLB Pipeline’s farm system rankings was before the 2019 season. Since those rankings expanded to all 30 teams ahead of the 2020 season -- 11 lists in total -- they’ve never ranked higher than
Complete results and highlights from Spring Breakout
The second edition of MLB Spring Breakout is complete, and there was no shortage of highlights from the future stars of Major League Baseball over the four-day showcase. Here's a complete breakdown of the 16-game exhibition:
Southpaw Spring Breakout: White Sox future on display with Schultz, Smith
GLENDALE, Ariz. -- If all goes as planned for the White Sox, left-handers Hagen Smith and Noah Schultz won’t spend much time following each other to the mound in a single game. Schultz, the No. 1 White Sox prospect and No. 16 overall, per MLB Pipeline, and Smith, who is
In first pro game, Rainer offers pop, promise to Tigers fans
NORTH PORT, Fla. -- Bryce Rainer’s pro career consisted of workouts and batting practice until Sunday.
'Me and Brady on the dirt again': House, King reunite at Spring Breakout
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- The 2025 Spring Breakout was a flashback for Brady House and Seaver King. Over 10 years ago, the infielders were travel ball teammates in Georgia who shared the dream of making it to the Major Leagues. Now, they are top prospects in the same organization,
Lambert -- 'an adrenaline guy' -- hoping to be next Mets bullpen gem
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. -- Ryan Lambert loves throwing hard. He relishes the idea of getting to two strikes and blowing hitters away. “Get me in a game,” Lambert said, “cool things will happen.”
Stewart embraces Spring Breakout: 'What's not to love?'
PHOENIX -- Sal Stewart was one fired-up Reds prospect. On Sunday in the first inning during the organization's 9-7 Spring Breakout win over Brewers prospects, Stewart lifted a 2-2 pitch that sailed over the center fielder's head to the wall. Already not known as a speedster, he stumbled running between