Trio Of Top Red Sox Prospects Recognized For Stellar Defense

Boston’s young prospects have garnered attention for their slick defense

Scott Neville | Sep 6, 2023

Trio Of Top Red Sox Prospects Recognized For Stellar Defense /

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Boston Red Sox

The 2023 Boston Red Sox have been one of the worst defenses of the century, which has made it nearly impossible to compete for a postseason spot.

With Justin Turner locked in as the designated hitter, there’s only so much manager Alex Cora can do.

Rafael Devers, Triston Casas and Masataka Yoshida have been a nightmare defensive trio, but they are all too good offensively to be kept out of the lineup.

For Boston to compete, they need everyday hitters to excel on both sides of the diamond.

Fortunately, it appears that a young wave of talent are doing just that, and they are working together to do so.

Second baseman Nick Yorke, third baseman Chase Meidroth and shortstop Marcelo Mayer were named the Eastern League's best defensive players at their respective positions as voted on by opposing league managers in a Baseball America survey.

The trio of prospects have provided slick defense for Double-A Portland and could provide a boost to the big-league club in short order — possibly even next season.

Mayer was recently shut down for the season with a shoulder injury but is the top prospect in the organization and is expected to become the next franchise shortstop for Boston.

Yorke is the club’s No. 6 prospect and is gaining attention for his bounce-back season after an unproductive and injury-riddled 2022 campaign. The 21-year-old seemed to have a similar rep as Christian Arroyo coming out of the draft — sure-handed but with limited range and arm strength. It’s nice to see him getting a nod for his defensive acumen.

Meidroth comes in as the No. 20 prospect, with far less pedigree than the aforementioned first-round picks but continues to impress at every level. The 22-year-old is a natural second baseman who was moved to third due to Yorke’s presence on the roster. Scouts have had the same concerns as they did with Yorke but his arm supposedly has held up at third base thus far.

Ideally, all three young sluggers can continue to flash the leather and become part of a new young core in the near future.

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Published Sep 6, 2023

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