Boston Red Sox Switch-Hitting Minor Leaguer Could Blast His Way To The Majors Soon

Following the early-season injury to rising star first baseman Triston Casas and prolonged injuries to multiple infielders, the Boston Red Sox have found massive success through their depth players. The contributions made by 1B Dominic Smith, INF Romy Gonzalez, and MIF David Hamilton among others, have propelled the team into a surprising playoff push through early August.

With rosters expanding at the beginning of September, the team will be looking to add multiple minor leaguers to fill out the edges of the roster and Triple-A Worcester C/1B/2B Mickey Gasper could find himself with the MLB club in that time.

Acquired from the New York Yankees system through the minor-league phase of the 2023 Rule-5 draft, 28-year-old Gasper entered the organization with Double-A Portland and has produced at an extremely high level this year. He slashed .282/.403/.458 in 142 at-bats with the Sea Dogs before getting promoted and has been a one-man wrecking crew since he arrived in Worcester.

In 130 at-bats at AAA, Gasper has hit an astounding .392 with an OBP over .500 and an OPS above 1.150. His batted-ball data matches the elite production with exit velocities routinely reaching the upper percentiles and what might be even more impressive is his incredible 29-13 walk-strikeout ratio.

His age and lack of a high-end ceiling don't profile him as a future long-term part of Boston's incoming core, hence the Yankees' willingness to part with him. However, his production throughout the 2024 season is impossible to ignore and his advanced approach and hard-nosed nature could be the ideal makeup of a September contributor.

Multiple MLB players currently block Gasper at each position he's seen time at, but his ability to be a solid stand-in at three spots could prove desirable in the later stages of the season. If injuries occur over the next month and a half and/or the team believes his skills could be of use at the big-league level, Gasper could easily be brought up for the final stretch.