MLB Spring Breakout Features Red Sox top prospects

This Spring Training, Major League Baseball added a wrinkle to its regularly scheduled exhibitions.

From March 14 to March 17, each team had their top prospects featured in MLB’s Spring Breakout. The series, which is designed to showcase the game’s best young talent, would allow each organization to assemble a team of its most notable minor leaguers to compete against another team of prospects.

For the inaugural Spring Breakout, the Red Sox prospect team featured 20 of the organization’s top 30 prospects, according to MLB Pipeline. Among them were the club’s top five: SS Marcelo Mayer, OF Roman Anthony, C Kyle Teel, UTL Ceddanne Rafaela, and OF Miguel Bleis. It marked the first time each of these players took the field together on the same roster.

Over the course of Spring Breakout weekend, the Red Sox prospect team played just one game––a Saturday afternoon affair against the Atlanta Braves prospects. The seven-inning exhibition was held at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers and featured a starting pitching matchup between Boston’s RHP Wikelman Gonzalez and Atlanta’s RHP Owen Murphy.

After a scoreless first inning for both teams, IF Nick Yorke opened up the scoring for the Red Sox with an RBI single to score Bleis, who drew a one-out walk and stole second base. It would be the only run of the inning for the Sox, but they would quickly add to their lead in the third.

Teel, who batted clean-up for the Sox prospects, roped a one-out RBI double to score IF Chase Meidroth. After a pitching change, Rafaela continued his hot spring by blasting a three-run home run to give the Sox a 5-0 lead. The Red Sox would add another run in each of the next two innings thanks to a Meidroth sac fly and an OF Allan Castro RBI single. The initial lead, though, proved to be plenty for the young Sox arms.

Despite walking three, Gonzalez was sharp in his three innings of work. The 21-year-old righty picked up a strikeout and did not allow a hit before handing the ball to RHP Richard Fitts. Acquired from the New York Yankees in the Alex Verdugo trade, Fitts matched Gonzalez with three innings of work and added three punchouts of his own. After a bit of a rocky start, Fitts escaped a fourth-inning jam by inducing an inning-ending double play to prevent further damage. The Sox’ 12th ranked prospect carried the momentum through the rest of his outing.

RHP Luis Guerrero, who pitched in six games for the WooSox last season, followed Fitts on the mound. The 23-year-old flamethrower pitched a scoreless seventh inning while picking up a strikeout to end the game. The Red Sox prospects defeated the Braves prospects in the team’s only Spring Breakout game, 7-2.

Some notable performances from the showcase were:

Roman Anthony: 0-2, R, 2 BB

Marcelo Mayer: 0-4, 3 K

Kyle Teel: 2-2, 2B, RBI, R

Ceddanne Rafaela: 1-3, HR, 3 RBI

Nick Yorke: 2-2, 2B, RBI

Chase Meidroth: 1-1, RBI, R

Wikelman Gonzalez: 3 IP, 0 ER, 0 H, 3 BB, 1 K

Richard Fitts: 3 IP, 2 ER, 2 H, 1 BB, 3 K

Luis Guerrero: 1 IP, 0 ER, 1 H, 1 BB, 1 K

Teel and Rafaela were named to MLB’s All-Spring Breakout First Team––an incredible honor for two of the Red Sox top prospects. Teel responded to the recognition.

“I’m pumped,” he said. “We have a ton of amazing prospects. A ton of talent here and the culture in our farm system and minor leagues and all the way up to the major leagues. It’s really special and I’m really grateful to be a part of it.”

After the game, the prospects returned to Spring Training where they will continue their preparations for the 2024 regular season. It will be a pivotal developmental year for all of these prospects––as is every year for a minor leaguer––but it won’t be long before they take the field together again.