Red Sox
Rafaela is slashing .302/.349/.520 with 20 home runs and 79 RBIs over 108 games in the minors this season.
The Red Sox gave one of their most promising prospects a call-up to the big leagues on Monday afternoon.
In the hours ahead of Boston’s series opener against the Houston Astros at Fenway Park, the Red Sox announced that they called up outfielder/infielder Ceddanne Rafaela from Triple-A Worcester.
The 22-year-old Rafaela is expected to make his big-league debut on Tuesday, with more reps in center field available after Jarren Duran landed on the IL with a toe injury.
Rafaela is considered one of the most intriguing prospects in baseball thanks to his versatile skillset, ranking as Boston’s No. 3 prospect (and No. 77 in MLB) by MLB Pipeline, while The Athletic’s Keith Law tabbed him as the Red Sox’ No. 2 prospect in his preseason rankings and the No. 48 prospect in baseball in his midseason update.
So what do the Red Sox have in a player like Rafaela? Here are five things to know about the Curaçao native.
1. Rafaela already has Gold-Glove potential in center field
Rafaela’s path to the big leagues has seemed all but inevitable for the last few years, due in large part to his sterling defensive capabilities. A versatile defender, Rafaela has made 84 starts this season in center field and 15 at shortstop during his stints with both Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester.
And even though Rafaela is a plus-defender in the infield, his talent shines while patrolling the outfield. His highlight reels with both Portland and Worcester are littered with instances where he has erased extra-base hits and runs off the scorecard by way of diving grabs and fence-climbing snags.
“Defensively, he’s ready right now,” Worcester Red Sox manager Chad Tracy told Alex Speier of The Boston Globe last week. “He could go up there and play as good or better center fielder than most of the guys that are up there. I firmly believe that.”
Rafaela, who was named the Red Sox’ minor-league defensive player of the year in both 2021 and 2022, should be good for at least a web gem or two for however long he remains up in MLB this season.
“This is my 20th year in the organization. I have never seen the guy that you could put in two premier positions on the diamond and he plays at that elite status. I’ve just never seen anything like it,” Sea Dogs manager Chad Epperson told Speier in September 2022. “He gets to balls with ease and has a knack to play the infield, always in charge of hops … You hear coaches that you talk to on the other team [say] he’s the best player in the league.”
2. He’s drawn comparisons to a former Red Sox star at the plate
Rafaela’s defensive talents were likely going to carve his path up to the big leagues at some point, even if he served as more of a utility player.
But his improved production at the plate has allowed him to soar up the Red Sox farm-system rankings.
So far this season, Rafaela is slashing .302/.349/.520 with 20 home runs and 79 RBIs over 108 combined games between Portland and Worcester.
Despite the jump in competition, Rafaela has actually improved since getting called up to Triple-A back in late June. After slugging six home runs and driving in 37 runs over 60 games with Double-A Portland, the Curaçao native has clubbed 14 home runs in just 48 games with Worcester.
Even though he’s not exactly the most imposing figure at the plate (5-foot-9), Rafaela can generate plenty of power at the plate thanks to his quick hands and bat speed. From August 1-5, Rafaela homered in five straight games for the WooSox.
Given his ability to barrel the ball consistently without much heft on his frame, Rafaela has drawn a few comparisons to another smaller Red Sox player who packed plenty of punch.
“I think of Mookie Betts really when I see him,” Rafaela’s Portland teammate, David Hamilton, told Chris Smith of MassLive.com last year. “He can do it all. He can hit. He can field. He can run. He can throw. So he’s a great player.”
3. His plate discipline still needs work
Given Rafaela’s already polished defensive play and production at the plate, why has it taken him until the final week of August to earn a long-awaited call-up to the big leagues?
It all comes down to plate discipline, which has been a regular hurdle for the promising prospect to overcome during his years in the minors.
“Swing decisions, for sure,” Tracy said of Rafaela’s primary focus during an interview with Boston.com earlier this season. “We knew he was a talented guy. We knew he was going to be able to hit, defend, all that . But the swing decision part was the next piece of the puzzle that needed to continue to improve.”
Some of Rafaela’s production has been a result of his aggressive habits at the plate, with the outfielder prone to chasing pitches and challenging whatever offerings are thrown to him.
So far this season, Rafaela has struck out 103 times and walked only 26 times in 444 at-bats between Portland and Worcester.
Improving plate discipline has been a long-standing directive issued by the Red Sox development staff when it comes to Rafaela’s growth.
As Alex Speier noted earlier this year, the Red Sox even limited Rafaela to just one swing per at-bat during spring training in order to drill down the goal of not chasing pitches.
Rafaela has made strides relenting off of pitches outside the zone, prompting his call-up on Monday. It’s a directive that he will need to continue to follow, given the challenges that await against MLB pitchers.
“Even the best hitters in the world are gonna chase sometimes,” Tracy explained to Boston.com. “They’re gonna chase up or down, they’re gonna chase out of the zone. The point for him is — let’s hone it back into an area that kind of hovers around what the average of what the rest of the league does.
And if we do that, with your ability, your bat-to-ball skills, then all of a sudden we’re eliminating 15 percent of the balls that we’re swinging at that we don’t really have a chance to barrel. We hone those in and then let’s see how many more balls now hit the barrel of your bat, which allows you to do serious damage.”
4. Rafaela set a Sea Dogs record for steals in a game
Rafaela’s defense and pop at the plate have allowed him to develop into a promising asset in Boston’s prospect pipeline. But his speed and aggressiveness on the basepaths also add another element to his repertoire that Boston will look to utilize this season.
Rafaela has stolen 36 bases in his 108 games between Portland and Worcester this season, headlined by a record-setting performance back in May.
During a 6-2 loss against the Somerset Patriots on May 13, Rafaela stole six bases for the Sea Dogs en route to a new franchise record. Rafaela was originally credited with seven stolen bases, with his final steal of third base in the ninth inning changed by the official scorer after the game to defensive indifference.
Rafaela’s six steals in a single game have only been achieved by four players in AL/NL history and were only matched once in the 21st century. Carl Crawford stole six bases for the Rays in a game against the Red Sox on May 5, 2009.
“He’s very toolsy. He pretty much has it all. He can hit, hit for power, he can throw, he can run,” Red Sox outfielder coordinator Corey Wimberly told Speier last July. “It’s hard to project guys, but I think he’s gonna be pretty good, man. I think he’s gonna be better than what people think. I think he’s really gonna be a superstar player. I really believe that.”
5. Rafaela’s family were clearly huge Atlanta Braves fans
As noted by Pete Abraham of The Boston Globe, Rafaela’s full name is Ceddanne Chipper Nicasio Marte Rafaela.
Sure enough, Rafaela was partially named after former Braves third baseman Chipper Jones because his mother, Rechilena, was a big fan. As was the case with many baseball fans growing up in Curaçao, the Braves were an easy team to root for with Curaçao’s own Andruw Jones on the team.
However, Rafaela did admit to Chris Smith of MassLive.com that he always liked the Red Sox growing up, with Manny Ramirez standing as his favorite hitter and Dustin Pedroia his favorite defender.
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