Chad Tracy does a vital job for the Red Sox.
As supervisor of their Triple-A affiliate, the Worcester Red Sox, often known as the WooSox, it’s his accountability to arrange the group’s prime prospects for his or her future, and assist injured and demoted Major Leaguers work their means again.
And he has to get the job completed within the ever-rainy Worcester, the place he’s misplaced depend of what number of rain delays and postponed video games his squad has weathered this season. In April alone, the membership postponed six video games attributable to inclement climate or moist grounds.
When a torrential downpour pressured the WooSox to postpone but once more on Thursday, the skipper sat down with the Herald to debate two of the group’s brightest stars, one who’s knocking at his debut’s door, and one other making his case for American League Rookie of the Year.
Ceddanne Rafaela
Red Sox executives already thought of their No. 2 prospect a Major League-caliber defender, however plate self-discipline was among the many areas in want of enchancment.
But Ceddanne Rafaela has been placing the puzzle items collectively since his promotion from Double-A Portland on June 28. Over 35 video games (getting into Saturday) on the prime degree of the farm system, Rafaela is hitting .317 with a .363 on-base share and .662 slugging. He’s collected 46 hits, together with 10 doubles, a pair of triples, and 12 house runs, scored 26 occasions, and pushed in 33 runs.
Over his first 10 video games of the month, Rafaela had 13 hits, together with two doubles and 6 house runs.
“There’s still things to work on, obviously,” his supervisor mentioned. “But even watching him, pretty much as good as he’s, watching him from proper earlier than the Fourth of July, to now, just a bit over a month, watching him develop earlier than our eyes, his swing selections and the at-bats he’s taking now, it’s electrical.
“When he first got here, there was a lot of free swing, and there was a lot of chase, more than there is now. He’s really made a conscious effort to hone in on what he’s swinging at, and not coincidentally, it got a lot better.”
From a defensive standpoint, Tracy feels Rafaela’s Triple-A time is mutually useful.
“His defense is sensational, and everybody knows that, it’s well-documented,” he mentioned. “He’s teaching me. Just watching him, the way he goes about his business.”
“There’s little things we help them with as far as positioning, making sure you’re in the right spot, right? But from a skill set perspective, there’s not a whole lot extra to teach him.”
The WooSox entered Saturday 22-14 because the second half of the International League season started, one sport behind the first-place Philadelphia Phillies Triple-A affiliate Lehigh Valley IronPigs. Worcester is 7-2 in its final 9 video games, largely attributable to Rafaela, who set a membership document by homering in every of the primary 5 video games of the month.
“He’s very competitive, very, very competitive,” Tracy mentioned emphatically. “Very strong desire to win, individually and for our team. Doesn’t like getting beat in an at-bat, doesn’t like when we lose. Just a very, very competitive guy that likes to come out on the winning end of things, which is awesome. He’s very driven.”
Triston Casas
Last season was Tracy’s first managing the WooSox, and Triston Casas’ final leg of the minor leagues earlier than getting promoted that September.
This 12 months, Casas made the Red Sox Opening Day roster, however struggled early. He’s improved by leaps and bounds every month, and because the All-Star break, has been one of many league’s greatest hitters. Entering Saturday, his 10 house runs because the break lead the American League, and his .772 slugging share over that span leads the Majors.
Only seven gamers in franchise historical past have homered 10+ occasions in a 25-game span earlier than turning 24, and solely 11 Red Sox hitters beneath 24 have homered 19 or extra occasions as rookies, placing Casas within the elite firm of Ted Williams and Tony Conigliaro, amongst others.
“People often forget, even though you see it happen every year, there’s a learning curve at the Major League level,” Tracy mentioned. “Even really good players, there are some that break the curve and just go up there, but most guys have an adjustment. We saw it with Jarren Duran, too. There were a lot of things going on, but he trusted the process. And now people are like, ‘Why isn’t he playing? We gotta get this guy out there!”
“Any time I see any of our players go up there, a part of me knows how it’s going to go,” he continued. “They’re going to have to learn how to fight through it, and even though there’s gonna be a lot of noise surrounding them, just keep playing the game and keep learning. (Casas and Duran) are contributing, they’re big contributors.”
Over 25 video games between March and April, Casas hit .133 with a .576 OPS. He hit .349 with a 1.199 OPS in July.
“It’s the Major Leagues. It’s hard here, it’s even harder there,” the WooSox supervisor mentioned. “So for me, watching Triston, seeing that progression is a great thing because it means you have a player that’s learning. He’s understanding how pitchers are attacking him, he’s adjusting to the velocities, getting used to it. And over the last couple of months, he’s done a lot of damage, which is what he’s capable of doing.”
Source: www.bostonherald.com