Triple-A Pawtucket: Chris Marrero, 1B

Since we wrote about Deven Marrero last week, now seems like a good time to introduce you to his brother, Chris Marrero. Chris Marrero is actually the older and more experienced of the two, but has struggled to surpass the Triple-A level over the past four years. The Red Sox just signed Marrero a month ago after he started the season in the White Sox organization. This recent move just adds to the list of teams the first baseman has played for in the last two seasons. Marrero was drafted in the first round by the Nationals in 2006 and was a top prospect in the organization up until his ascension to the big leagues in 2011, when he played 31 games in Washington. However, a torn hamstring and a series of other ailments set Marrero back tremendously, derailing what once looked like a promising career. Since then, he’s played in eight major league games — all with the Nationals in 2013 — and has bounced from Washington to the Orioles to Chicago and now to Boston. His potential has diminished and his numbers haven’t been the same since.

Signing with the Red Sox offers Marrero yet another chance, but he’s yet to truly capitalize on that opportunity, sporting a .155 true average through 14 games in Triple-A Pawtucket. However, he’s collected hits in five of his last eight games. Three of those games have been multi-hit efforts. Marrero doesn’t have outstanding plate discipline or knowledge of the strike zone, and doesn’t possess the power swing he boasted before his injuries, but he can make solid contact. That’s translated to more hits lately. If he can finish strong at the end of the season, perhaps he’ll earn a chance to stick around.

Double-A Portland: Sam Travis, 1B

The Eastern League season is almost over. But Sam Travis seems primed to make one last impression before the offseason. Travis, who was drafted in the second round in 2014, continues to make strides at the plate. Of course, his numbers are still strong — he owns a .288 TAv and .362 wOBA in 60 games in Double-A. And just last week he went 7-for-13 with three extra-base hits over a four-game stretch. However, what’s been most impressive lately is the way he’s increased his walk rate (10.5 percent) and lowered his strikeout rate (12.5 percent) from where they were in Salem earlier this season. In fact, just last Friday he had a six-game walk streak snapped. That strike zone knowledge, along with his steady line-drive ability, makes him a greater threat at the plate.

The one knock on Travis continues to be his lack of power. He has the raw power to become a 15- to 20-home run hitter, but his line-drive approach has compromised that power-hitting potential. With that said, Travis’ numbers suggest his approach is the right one. His on-base percentage sits at .366 and he’s by far the biggest threat in Portland’s lineup. Additional strength and power in his bat would make him a more complete hitter, something that could be valuable as he makes his case for Triple-A next season.

High-A Salem: Kevin McAvoy, RHP and Kevin Heller, OF

Kevin McAvoy doesn’t boast elite-potential stuff or outstanding velocity. He throws just three pitches — a fastball, slider and changeup — none of which will necessarily overwhelm hitters. Nothing he does screams future ace. But, what McAvoy has been and continues to be is steady. The right-hander has been perhaps Salem’s most reliable starting pitcher this season, sporting a 4.17 FIP and 5.29 K/9 through 24 starts. Nothing special, no. But at least with McAvoy Salem knows what it’s getting most nights. The Bryant University product’s scattered three truly ugly starts this season — the most recent being an nine-run clunker over 3.2 innings July 21 — but has been strong outside of that, owning a 1.94 ERA over his last six starts.

At 22, McAvoy could move up to Double-A by next season. He has the potential to become a back-end starter, but the 2014 fourth-round pick still has much to improve. His fastball command needs work, especially as a pitcher who induces weak, ground-ball contact by attacking the low end of the zone. His 4.61 BB/9 is a drastic increase from his 0.95 rate over 11 games in Lowell. McAvoy didn’t start throwing his changeup until he was drafted. If he can’t develop that then a fastball-slider mix may be better suited out of the bullpen. But McAvoy’s dependability as a starter thus far at least buys him some time.

It’s probably no coincidence that Amherst College graduate Ben Cherington and his staff used his 40th round pick in 2012 on Kevin Heller — another Amherst guy. But regardless of whether or not Cherington was doing a service to his alma mater, what is clear is that Heller is making the most of his opportunity. The outfielder has a .314 TAv in High-A this season along with a .396 wOBA and 124 wRC+. However, he’s failed in each opportunity in Double-A, and as a player who turns 26 next week, he can only stick around in High-A for so long. While he makes solid contact, Heller strikes out at a consistently high rate. Even in Salem, where he’s excelled, he owns a 21.6 percent K%. That, of course, is something that needs to improve if he wants to further his success and secure a spot in Portland at some point next season.

Low-A Greenville: Andrew Benintendi, OF and Jalen Beeks, LHP

In case you were wondering, 2015 first-round pick Andrew Benintendi is still tearing up the South Atlantic League. The outfielder hasn’t taken long to establish himself as an exciting young prospect, hitting .341/.423/.568 with a pair of home runs through his first 11 games with Low-A Greenville. He’s been especially hot lately with a five-game hitting streak in which he’s hit .380 (8-for-21) and driven in six runs. Benintendi has all the tools the Red Sox need in a young position player. He has plus speed, good bat speed and raw power that is already starting to translate professionally. Eleven games is a small sample size, but the Arkansas product is just building off the success he had in Lowell and in college — he was named SEC Player of the Year this past season. While carrying this into next season isn’t a guarantee for Benintendi, there’s been at least enough to prove he has exciting potential.

Jalen Beeks is another pitcher who’s not made to do the extraordinary. He’s an undersized lefty with a fastball-slider-changeup mix that all work within an average velocity. His numbers — a 4.36 FIP this season — aren’t eye-popping. Like Benintendi, he’s an Arkansas product, but without the flare and high ceiling. Beeks was drafted in the 12th round in 2014, but there’s reason to believe he could become a serviceable player in time. First of all, he’s shown good command throughout his first 24 games, boasting a solid 3.56 strikeout to walk ratio. He’s also been dependable, tossing 138.2 innings over those starts. He has a unique delivery with a high leg kick, but it’s deceptive. One concern with Beeks is a history of arm issues, which may explain his recent drop-off over his past few starts. Beeks has been solid all season long, but has struggled toward the end, allowing four or more runs in three of his last four starts. If the arm continues to be a longterm problem, Beeks may at some point have to move to the bullpen. Perhaps his ability to limit walks, throw strikes and use his unique, left-handed delivery to his advantage already makes him better suited as a reliever.

Photo by Kelly O’Connor/www.sittingstill.smugmug.com

Triple-A Pawtucket: Rusney Castillo, OF and Zeke Spruill, RHP

We’ve all seen what Rusney Castillo can do at the major league level at this point in the season. Given the $72.5 million price tag, it isn’t pretty. The 27-year-old Cuban outfielder sported a .180 true average combined with some shaky defense through 26 games with the Red Sox before being optioned to Pawtucket last weekend. It appeared long overdue. Castillo was striking out at a 19.5 percent rate and had showcased none of his power.

Castillo appears comfortable back down in Triple-A. He went 4-for-10 in his first two games back and had two hits, a double and a walk on Saturday, improving his TAv to .306 with the PawSox this season. The fact that Castillo is in the minor leagues despite his age and contract is another example of how maddening this Red Sox season has been. He’s joined Allen Craig and Joe Kelly in that category, although the expectations for Castillo are astronomically higher. But the positive spin is that Castillo is still technically a rookie, and still very new to Major League Baseball. If he can continue to hit like he has in Triple-A this season, it won’t be long before he’s given another chance to prove he was worth the hype – and the money.

Lost among pitching names such as Henry Owens, Brian Johnson and Pat Light in Triple-A this season has been right-hander Zeke Spruill. The 25-year-old was acquired from the Diamondbacks in the offseason for Myles Smith, and came into the year with 12 major league appearances and three starts under his belt. Last season he had a 2.56 FIP in 22.2 innings for Arizona before being traded in December. At 6-foot-5, Spruill is a tall, lanky pitcher who’s good at keeping the ball down and forcing weak contact. His fastball sits in the low-to-mid 90s, while his secondary stuff tends to tail off in velocity and effectiveness. He certainly won’t pile up overwhelming strikeout numbers.

Spruill has spent most of his first season in the Sox’s organization pitching out of Pawtucket’s bullpen. If he’s going to return to the big leagues in the next few seasons, it’ll probably be as a middle reliever. The PawSox, however, recently moved Spruill into their rotation. In two starts, Spruill has allowed a combined four runs over 10.2 innings, putting his FIP at 3.77 for the year. The big-picture numbers are solid overall. The only concern is he’s prone to getting into trouble and working with high pitch counts. He could some day be a serviceable back-end starter, or be good for a spot start here or there down the road, but he seems best served out of the bullpen at the big league level.

Double-A Portland: Marco Hernandez, SS and Sam Travis, 1B

Marco Hernandez isn’t supposed to be a big name or a budding star. It explains why he was the player to be named later when the Red Sox traded an unhappy Felix Doubront to the Cubs last summer. But unlike Doubront, who essentially gave up in the middle of last season, Hernandez has at least shown some value in his first year in the organization. The 22-year-old Dominican Republic native has speed and a solid glove at shortstop, and this season – in Double-A Portland – may be the best of his professional career offensively. Hernandez has posted a .282 TAv, an impressive .375 BABIP and has shown surprising power thus far. He’s been especially hot at the plate recently, riding a nine-game hitting streak into Sunday and reaching base safely in 11 of the last 12 games while hitting out of the leadoff spot. With a number of shortstops locked throughout the organization, Hernandez may need to adopt a utility role to ascend to the major leagues in Boston. But this offensive surge is a good step forward.

It was just one year ago that Sam Travis was playing in short-season Lowell after being drafted in the second round out of Indiana. Now the 21-year-old is three games into his Double-A career. Travis was a strong offensive performer over 66 games in High-A Salem, boasting a .297 TAv and a 1.9 WARP before being called up. Travis is strong and a solid contact hitter, but he also has a good knowledge of the strike zone, with his 9.4 walk percentage in High-A as evidence. The first baseman has started off slowly in Double-A thus far, collecting just one hit in three games while batting in the middle of the order. Perhaps Travis’ biggest challenge as he moves up the organization will be adjusting to the increased velocity given his longer swing.

High-A Salem: Kevin McAvoy, RHP

Kevin McAvoy is another pitcher whose name can be easily overlooked in the shadows of bigger names within the organization. In this case it’s because of the notoriety of Ty Buttrey and Teddy Stankiewicz in High-A Salem. There’s hope for McAvoy to make it through the system, however. He was a 2014 fourth-round pick out of Bryant University, and after one strong summer in Lowell jumped right to High-A ball. McAvoy looked like one of the better pitchers in the Carolina League to start the season, but has since struggled, giving up four or more runs in three of his last six starts and upping his FIP to 4.24.

McAvoy is primarily a ground- ball pitcher who lives off location down in the zone to force weak contact and get easy outs. He’s done more of that this season, but is also striking out three to six batters in most of his outings. What McAvoy has been most hurt by is his command. He’s issued seven free passes combined in his last two starts and holds a 4.93 BB/9 for the season. McAvoy doesn’t work at a high velocity, so location is essential to him becoming an effective pitcher and developing into a back-end starter in the big leagues.

Low-A Greenville: Michael Chavis, 3B

There’s a reason the Red Sox used a first-round pick on Michael Chavis in 2014. He makes solid contact, has plus power potential and is a good overall defensive player. He has the tools to one day become a solid, everyday major leaguer. But if we’ve learned anything from Chavis’ first three months in Low-A ball it’s that he’s a long way from reaching his potential, particularly at the plate. The 19-year-old has yet to hit well this season, sporting a .216 TAv and an ugly 33.3 percent strikeout rate. Chavis had one solid stretch from the end of May to the first week of June, but has quickly tapered off again, collecting just two multi-hit games this month. Chavis’ bat is expected to be an asset for him once he starts to reach his potential. For now, it’s a work in progress to say the least.

Photos by Kelly O’Connor/www.sittingstill.smugmug.com