Pair Of Boston Red Sox Rookies' Professional Approaches Fueling Offensive Success

Sitting just two games out of a Wild Card spot and dealing with the constant roster shuffling of the second half of the season, the Boston Red Sox have begun to rely on the veteran attitude of new and younger players.

Two recently called-up players, utilityman Nick Sogard and catcher/infielder Mickey Gasper, have especially impacted the team in their brief MLB time.

In 32 at-bats Sogard has hit .281 and is reaching base at an over 35% clip. Since beginning his MLB career with a two-run single in an August 2nd win over the Texas Rangers, he has become a consistent producer at the bottom of the lineup and a reliable stand-in at three different infield positions.

Gasper received his first Major League promotion on August 12th and was immediately thrust into an extremely high-leverage situation just hours later. Following INF Enmanuel Valdez's RBI double and Nick Sogard's line-drive single, INF/OF Ceddanne Rafaela grounded into a force-out to set up first-and-third with one out in a tie game in the 10th inning.

Gasper pinch-hit for INF David Hamilton to face crafty left-hander Walter Pennington and fouled off two pitches in an at-bat that concluded in a seven-pitch walk to load the bases. The Red Sox won the game two batters later with a walk-off single by OF Rob Refsnyder, but Gasper's ability to slow the game down was a crucial factor in getting the game into Refsnyder's hands.

"After I took that first fastball, I was like 'Wow, my heartbeat's pretty slow right now,'" Gasper said in the WEEI postgame booth. "So I guess I was just oblivious."

The ability of both Gasper and Sogard to consistently slow the game down and produce for Boston in big moments has kept them in the Wild Card race despite their recent struggles. Their veteran approaches to the game have been noticed throughout their time in the minor leagues and have paid dividends in their short time in MLB.