The Sox caught a break when projected top 10 pick, Virginia Cavaliers catcher Kyle Teel dropped far enough for Boston to take him 14th overall. He was ACC player of the year clubbing 13 home runs, driving in 69 runs and hitting .407 in 65 games. Scouts say his bat could be ML ready by next year but he's going to need time to learn to catch in the pros. Still, the only Sox catching prospect they have is Nathan Hickey in Portland. Now he's got some competition. The Sox haven't had two developing catchers since Christian Vazquez and Blake Swihart 10 years ago, hopefully one or both are good enough to make it.
Surprise surprise, in the second round the Sox chose yet another shortstop to add to the growing list of shortstops Sox GM Chaim Bloom has picked since 2020. This time they took 18 year old Nazzan Zanatello of Christian Brothers High School. His skills are on par with a lot of high school kids but the scouts say he's an incredible athlete and could be a 5-Tool.....if he signs. He's committed to Arkansas University so we'll see if he signs or becomes the next Jud Fabian. Useless information but Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum's father was his high school basketball coach.
You'll never guess what Chaim Bloom took in the third round........ANOTHER SHORTSTOP! Passing on the top college and high school pitchers in the country, the Sox took 18 year old Antonio Anderson of North Atlanta High School. Antonio had a good bat in high school but the bad news is he may not sign as he's committed to Georgia Tech, the same school Jason Varitek, Jay Payton and Nomar Garciaparra came from.
The Sox finally took a pitcher in the fourth round when they selected Canisius Junior College right hander Matt Duffy. He's a junkballer with a pretty good changeup but it begs the question of why didn't they take a more highly touted pitcher in the second or third round? Hopefully Duffy pans out or else this was a big mistake by Bloom to wait this long for pitchers.
Remember because the Sox were over the luxury tax that their compensation pics for losing Bogaerts and Eovaldi weren't going to be until the fourth round? Well the pick they got for losing Bogaerts was used on Georgia Tech shortstop Kristian Campbell, son of old Tennessee Vols running back Kenneth Campbell. This was a bit of a crapshot as Campbell had finished his sophomore year with 4 homers, 24 rbis and a .376 batting average. Bloom is drafting way too many shortstops so a trade may be in the works.
The pick they got for losing Eovaldi was....you guessed it.....another shortstop. Justin Riemer hit .329 his first year at Wright State and was hitting .323 when he tore his ACL 12 games into this season. He won't be playing this year but look for him to make a return in 2024.....we hope.
Kyle Teel wasn't the only Virginia Cavalier drafted by the Sox, they took the ace of the team, left handed pitcher Connelly Early in the fifth round. He pitched for Army for two years not believing he'd make it to the pros but once he realized he was good, he transferred to Virginia, going 12-3 with a 3.09 ERA in 18 starts. He's a junkballer that relies on command but he's a lefty, something the Sox desperately need. He still can choose to pitch his senior year so let's see if he signs.
Bloom then chose to make a crapshot with his sixth round pick, 22 year old right handed pitcher CJ Weins who spent two years at a junior college, two years at South Carolina and a year at Western Kentucky as a grad student. Unfortunately after 5 years at college he was just 1-2 with a mediocre 4.35 ERA out of the bullpen for WKU. Who knows what Bloom sees in him but its nothing new. He drafted Wyatt Olds in the 7th round in 2021 after a terrible senior year and he's been batting practice in Portland this year.
In the 7th round, the Sox took Alabama University outfielder Caden Rose. He hit 9 home runs for the Crimson Tide but hit just .261 for an average. With "launch angle" being a popular stat for nerds, 9 home runs isn't too bad for them. He's pretty quick on defense so he might make it on the glove if not with his bat.
In the eighth round, the Sox took right handed pitcher Trennor O'Donnell out of Ball State University. Another junkballer who relies on command rather than power to get guys out. Hopefully what he showed at Ball State will translate to the professional level.
Good luck O'Donnell
Going to need to do better than a 4.83 ERA
In the ninth round, the Sox chose Kennesaw State right handed pitcher Blake Wehunt. Once again Bloom took a crapshot because Wehunt went 4-4 with a 4.83 ERA in 14 starts. If he was struggling to get ASUN Conference batters out, what's he going to do when he faces better competition? He's a sinkerballer, not a fireballer to boot.
In the tenth round, the Sox finally took a lefty pitcher when they nabbed Clemson reliever Ryan Ammons. He went 2-0 with a 4.05 ERA but also battled a forearm strain that took him out of the rotation. He throws in the low 90's so he's going to rely on his slider to get guys out.
So that wraps up the first 12 picks of the draft. The Sox needed another catcher to go with Nathan Hickey and the abundance of college players sends a message that Bloom expects these guys to develop sooner rather than later. We'll know in a year or so how these guys will turn out.
