Reports emerged late on Monday night that the Boston Red Sox are calling up 22-year old outfielder Andrew Benintendi. Boston President of Baseball Operations Dave Dombrowski confirmed the news:
In the elevator after the game, Dave Dombrowski confirms that Andrew Benintendi will in fact be in Seattle on Tuesday.
— Ian Browne (@IanMBrowne) August 2, 2016
One of the top prospects in baseball, Benintendi had been mentioned as a potential trade chip as the MLB trade deadline drew near. Now, Benintendi is on his way to the big leagues with the team that drafted him in the first round of the 2015 draft.
Benintendi will be skipping Triple-A entirely on his way to the big leagues. As with many talented prospects at the trade deadline — especially when part of a winning team’s farm system — Benintendi was mentioned as a possible trading chip the Red Sox could part with in exchange for some help with a player like starting pitcher Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox. The Red Sox ended up holding on to one of their top prospects, and are now ready to see what he can do at the major league level.
Baseball America ranked Benintendi as the second highest-ranked prospect in the Red Sox farm system, trailing only second baseman Yoan Moncada (Moncada is the number one-ranked minor league prospect according to Baseball America, and Benintendi ranks ninth overall). Benintendi is expected to bring some power to the lineup, if he proves capable of making the jump to the big leagues this quickly.
Benintendi in 97 minor league games this year: .312/.378/.532 with 52 extra-base hits, 39 walks, and 39 strikeouts.
— Alex Speier (@alexspeier) August 2, 2016
The addition of Benintendi to the lineup, or simply the roster, continues the Red Sox’s trend this season of thriving with young players. David Ortiz aside, of course, the Red Sox have been winning on the strength of young players like Xander Bogaerts, Jackie Bradley Jr., and Mookie Betts. With Benintendi heading to the big leagues, Boston may have a reason to revive an old nickname to revive in the sports scene.
Help is on the way for the Red Sox. Andrew Benintendi is coming up tomorrow. Benintendi, Betts, Bradley. The new Killer B's.
— Jeff Passan (@JeffPassan) August 2, 2016
