Red Sox Prospect Justin Haley Pitched Well For The Paw Sox

Justin Haley was drafted by the Minnesota Twins in last Decembers rule 5 draft from the Boston Red Sox. On July 24th, he was returned to the Red Sox because the Twins didn’t want him on their major league roster. Since Haleys’ return to the Red Sox, he has been pitching at AAA Pawtucket.

While with the Twins in the major leagues this season, Haley struggled severely. In 10 games out of the bullpen, he went 18 innings, giving up 22 hits, 12 runs, 6 walks, and 14 strikeouts. On May 29th, he was placed on the disabled list with right shoulder soreness. He was put on a rehab assignment on 26th, but the Twins didn’t activate him after the 30 rehab window so he was sent back to the Red Sox.

Haley has pitched well for the Pawtucket Red Sox since his return to the Red Sox organization. In 5 starts, he has gone 31 2/3 innings, giving up 27 hits, 10 runs, 4 walks and struck out 25 batters. On Friday night, Justin Haley made his 6th start of the season for the Pawtucket Red Sox against the Lehigh Valley Iron Pigs.

Justin Haley Tonight

Justin Haley pitched well on Friday night for the Pawtucket Red Sox. In 5 1/3 innings, he gave up 2 runs, on 4 hits, 1 walks, and 6 strikeouts on 98 pitches (62 strikes). The first hit that Haley gave up was a one out single in the 5th inning to Angelo Mora. The next batter Dylan Cozens hit a home run out to right on a fastball well below the zone.

Haley has a good fastball that he can get swing and misses on. His fastball sits at 90-92 mph, but he can reach 93 mph on his fastball on occasion. He also has a really good 12-6 curve ball that he is able to get swing and misses on. All of his pitches have a lot of movement on them which causes a lot of swing and misses on his secondary pitches like his curve ball, slider, and change up.

Justin Haley on the hill here for the @PawSox pic.twitter.com/lmXtaLXXb6

— Trifecta Network (@trifectanetwork) August 25, 2017

Haley probably will not be a candidate for the Red Sox to call up to Boston this September. But he is an arm that you need to keep an eye on if your the Red Sox. Based on what I saw from Haley, he has the chance to make the major leagues at one point. I can see why the Twins gave him a chance by drafting him in the rule 5 draft.

Red Sox Call ups: Marrero Or Lin, The Utility Infielder Question

Come Labor Day, the AAA season comes to a close. With the season’s end, the main storyline trends back towards the Boston Red Sox and September call-ups. On Pawtucket’s roster, there is a number of candidates who could be vying for a shot.

But this piece focuses on the infield (Not First Base) and who might be the “guy”. Two names that instantly come to mind are Deven Marrero and Tzu-Wei Lin. Rosters expand from the 25-man to the entire 40-man on September 1st. Both Marrero and Lin happen to find themselves on the 40-man as of August 25th and look to remain there.

Lin Played Well Enough To Get Another Look

Lin started the season with the Portland Sea Dogs and played 48 games for the AA affiliate. Despite starting off down there he is very familiar to Boston Red Sox fans. Lin was called up to the big league club back on June 24th and had an electric time in the majors. In 19 games for Boston, this season the Taiwan product hit .280 (14-for-50) with 2 RBIs and played a number of positions for John Farrell.

In-fact, Lin is one of the most versatile players in the entire Red Sox system. He has spent time at shortstop, second base, third base, and centerfield.

After being sent down on July 17th to Pawtucket, he has appeared in 29 games hitting .225 (27-120) with 7 extra base hits, 5 RBIs, 6 walks, and 23 strikeouts. Not the greatest line, but for the 27th ranked prospect in the Red Sox system, his versatility should find him on the big club come September 1st.

Pawtucket Red Sox vs Buffalo Bison Game Preview

On Thursday, August 24th the Pawtucket Red Sox take on the Buffalo Bison on Kyrie Irving night at McCoy Stadium.

Jalen Beeks will take the mound for Pawtucket with a 3.00 ERA and a 6-4 record going against Bison starter Brett Anderson who holds a 0-1 record and a 2.25 ERA.

Scheduled first pitch for this one is 7:05 pm with Pawtucket owning a 62-68 record and Buffalo sitting at 59-71 on the season.

After this game, there will only be 3 home games remaining for the Pawtucket Red Sox with the team finishing up their season on the road. Every win counts with just 12 games remaining, Pawtucket will have to go 9-3 in order to finish the season at a .500 record.

To give some perspective, the PawSox have finished .500 or better 5 of the last 6 years with last seasons record sitting at 74-68. But Kevin Boles and company have once again had a tough go of things. This is primarily due to the high call up totals to the Boston Red Sox.

Since the All-Star break, the PawSox have been involved in 77 player transactions, that is only a 41-day time period.

Roster moves were made of Thursday’s game in-fact. Both Deven Marrero and Hector Velazquez were optioned to Pawtucket to make room for Blaine Boyer and Rajai Davis in Boston.

Statistically, the PawSox are eliminated from any post-season play this season, everything from here on out is playing for pride and the future.

Here are tonights starting lineups.

Pawtucket Red Sox Lineup

Tzu-Wei Lin SS

Heiker Meneses 2B

Matt Dominguez DH

Bryce Brentz RF

Sam Travis 1B

Brian Bogusevic CF

Ryan Court LF

Dan Butler C

Jantzen Witte 3B

Buffalo Bison LIneup

Christian Lopes 3B

Dwight Smith Jr. LF

Teoscar Hernandez RF

Rowdy Tellez 1B

Gregorio Petit SS

Mike Ohlman C

Jason Leblebijian DH

Roemon Fields CF

Jon Berti 2B