Red Sox Sign Infielder After Stellar Season In Yankees Farm System

Boston will benefit from the added depth
Red Sox Sign Infielder After Stellar Season In Yankees Farm System
Red Sox Sign Infielder After Stellar Season In Yankees Farm System /

Boston Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow appears to be intrigued by the New York Yankees farm system after poaching the organization for the third time in a matter of a week or so.

The Red Sox continue to stockpile for Yankees' prospects and have now just added the most enticing bat of their haul. 

Infielder Jamie Westbrook was one of seven players to receive a non-roster invite to spring training on Monday.

The 28-year-old hit .294 with 41 extra-base hits including 21 home runs, 81 RBIs and a .897 OPS in 117 games for the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre last season.

He flashed some serious pop while getting on base consistently. If his bat translates to the big leagues, the Red Sox could have a diamond in the rough on their hands. We've seen many Four-A types in recent years that struggle at the highest level and dominate Triple-A -- but we haven't seen which side of the fence Westbrook falls on.

Westbrook spent the majority of his career at second base but has a considerable amount of time played in left field as well. He's sprinkled in time at third base, first base and shortstop along the way.

The Red Sox need as much second base depth as possible and Westbrook appears to be a solid option to start with Triple-A Worcester and potentially earn a spot on the roster down the road.

Westbrook joins a plethora of Yankees added this winter. Right-handed pitchers Richard Fitts, Greg Weissert and Nicholas Judice came over in the Alex Verdugo trade. One day later Boston added former Yankees catching prospect Mickey Gasper in the minor league portion of the Rule 5 Draft.

Now Westbrook joins the surge of former rivals joining the organization.

More MLB: Red Sox's Top Priority, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Reportedly Closing In On Decision


Published
Scott Neville
SCOTT NEVILLE

Scott Neville covers the Boston Red Sox for Sports Illustrated's new page "Inside The Red Sox." Before starting "Inside The Red Sox", Neville attended Merrimack College, where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media with a minor in Marketing. Neville spent all four years with Merrimack's radio station WMCK, where he grew as a radio/podcast host and producer.  His propensity for being in front of a microphone eventually expanded to film, where he produced multiple short films alongside his then-roommate and current co-worker Stephen Mottram. On a journey that began as a way to receive easy credits via film classes, he received a call from "It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia" star Charlie Day. Day advised him to make a feature-length film, which he completed his senior year. While writing the film, Neville completed an internship for United Way as part of their NFL Partnership Program. Neville ran the blog for a team of interns and hosted an internet show called "United Way's NFL Partnership Series" where he interviewed NFL alumni. After college Neville wrote for SB Nation's "Over The Monster," a Red Sox sister site of the flagship brand. His work would eventually lead him to a job as a content producer with NESN, where he would cover all sports. After developing as a writer with the top regional network in the world, he was given the opportunity to join the Sports Illustrated Media Group in his current endeavor as the publisher of "Inside The Red Sox." The successful launch and quick rise of "Inside The Red Sox" led to Neville joining the Baseball Essential ownership group, a national baseball site under SIMG. Follow him on Twitter: @ScottNeville46 Email: nevilles@merrimack.edu