*Apologies for the bad writing, as this is my first ever community post on FanGraphs.*
At the time of this writing, it’s been 7 days since rosters expanded in the major leagues. Still, the International League(AAA) home run leader has yet to appear in a major league game season. Since the 2000 season, there have been three International League home run champions that had not appeared in a major league game that same season. Bryce Brentz, leading that league with 31 home runs and winner of the Triple A Home Run Derby, is about to be fourth.
The Red Sox of the old days have the reputation of being offensive powerhouses by working long at bats and possessing big power in the middle of the lineup. This year, it’s been quite the opposite. Red Sox…show more content… Brentz certainly has the prospect pedigree, being drafted by Red Sox in the first round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft out of South-Doyle High School. Once rated as the #5 prospect in the Red Sox system, he stood out with his plus raw power. Fangraphs Kiley McDaniel had this to say about him a few years back: “Brentz has easy plus raw power from the right side and is a solid athlete, but it doesn’t translate to defense, where his fringy arm limits him to left field. There’s some holes, lots of swing and miss and trouble with spin from right-handed pitchers, but also 20-25 homer power with a floor of a solid platoon bat.”
The key word here is “solid platoon bat”, something he’s finally evolved into this year. This year, down in Triple AAA, when facing left handed hitters, Brentz was hitting .279 with nine home runs, 25 RBIs, and 17 walks. His OPS against lefties is 391 points higher than Chris Young’s OPS in the majors this season(.957 OPS). Rhys Hoskins, who took the Majors by storm, was the only player ahead of him in the IL in terms of wRC+.
Brentz has worked with PawSox hitting coach Rich Gedman who has suddenly changed him. Bryce Brentz has turned into a major home run threat by introducing a toe-tapping procedure. I think it’s time to believe that after 6+ seasons in the minor leagues, Bryce Brentz finally has things figured…show more content… Off the top of my head, I could name off a few minor leaguers who don’t deserve this spot over Brentz. Most notably, the Walk Machine himself, Henry Owens. Owens was sent down to AA to work on mechanics, but instead, he’s walking 8.68 batters per 9 in Double AA. Ben Taylor, who made the Opening Day roster for the Red Sox has had considerable minor league success, but the results haven’t translated to the Majors. He’ll most likely end up as a career middle reliever or minor league journeyman. Sure, these players have their uses, but they don’t deserve their spots as much as Brentz does. Additionally, after Chris Young becomes a free agent next year, Brentz can serve as the 4th outfield for the Red Sox in 2018. If the Red Sox don’t add Brentz to the 40-man by the offseason, he’ll become a free agent. It’s almost guaranteed that a team such as the Athletics or the Reds would be willing to give him a
