Andrew Politi

Organization Prospect Rankings

• 
  Ranked Boston Red Sox #30 prospect in 2021
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox took Politi as an unheralded 15th-round selection in 2018 after a redshirt junior year in which he had a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, mostly out of the bullpen.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi entered pro ball with a mid-90s four-seam fastball that features elite spin and movement, as well as a mid-80s curveball that gave him the basis of a north-south attack. The addition of an 89-93 mph cutter in 2019 set the stage for a dominant performance at high Class A Salem over his final 50 innings of 2019, a run in which he posted a 1.42 ERA and struck out 63 batters. He moved from the bullpen to the rotation during that stretch, making five starts. Politi is also working on a changeup. The effort in his delivery leads to skepticism about his ability to start, but based on what he showed in late 2019 and then in 2020 at instructional league, the Red Sox will give him a chance in the rotation.
  
  THE FUTURE: Politi has the solid floor of a big league reliever with a chance that his cutter and changeup could open additional doors as an opener, bulk reliever or even starter.
• 
  Ranked Boston Red Sox #23 prospect in 2020
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox plucked Politi on day three of the draft following a redshirt junior season in which the righthander posted a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, punctuated by a dominant performance in the Big East Conference tournament.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi's stuff has not been an issue. In addition to his four-seam fastball, which features elite spin and movement as well as a low-to-mid-80s curveball, the Red Sox worked with the righty to add a high-80s cutter-slider hybrid. Politi's approach has been mostly hard, with limited usage and conviction with his changeup. Command, durability and ideal usages remain in question. Politi features a max-effort delivery with lots of moving parts, which creates a lot of stress not only physically but also on repeating pitches. Although never pitch-efficient, Politi did a better job throwing strikes with a refined mix and approach, most notably vs. lefthanders in the second half, when he posted a 1.42 ERA with a 33.2-percent strikeout rate while holding hitters to a .146 average and .443 OPS over his final 50 innings of the year, including five late-season starts.
  
  THE FUTURE: While Politi had success in the rotation late in 2019, pitch efficiency and getting deep in games are still a challenge. Despite spot starts since college, Politi appears best suited as a bulk reliever if he can continue to refine his command. He should begin 2020 in Double-A Portland.

• March, 2021 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox took Politi as an unheralded 15th-round selection in 2018 after a redshirt junior year in which he had a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, mostly out of the bullpen.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi entered pro ball with a mid-90s four-seam fastball that features elite spin and movement, as well as a mid-80s curveball that gave him the basis of a north-south attack. The addition of an 89-93 mph cutter in 2019 set the stage for a dominant performance at high Class A Salem over his final 50 innings of 2019, a run in which he posted a 1.42 ERA and struck out 63 batters. He moved from the bullpen to the rotation during that stretch, making five starts. Politi is also working on a changeup. The effort in his delivery leads to skepticism about his ability to start, but based on what he showed in late 2019 and then in 2020 at instructional league, the Red Sox will give him a chance in the rotation.
  
  THE FUTURE: Politi has the solid floor of a big league reliever with a chance that his cutter and changeup could open additional doors as an opener, bulk reliever or even starter.
• December, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox took Politi as an unheralded 15th-round selection in 2018 after a redshirt junior year in which he had a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, mostly out of the bullpen.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi entered pro ball with a mid-90s four-seam fastball that features elite spin and movement, as well as a mid-80s curveball that gave him the basis of a north-south attack. The addition of an 89-93 mph cutter in 2019 set the stage for a dominant performance at high Class A Salem over his final 50 innings of 2019, a run in which he posted a 1.42 ERA and struck out 63 batters. He moved from the bullpen to the rotation during that stretch, making five starts. Politi is also working on a changeup. The effort in his delivery leads to skepticism about his ability to start, but based on what he showed in late 2019 and then in 2020 at instructional league, the Red Sox will give him a chance in the rotation.
  
  THE FUTURE: Politi has the solid floor of a big league reliever with a chance that his cutter and changeup could open additional doors as an opener, bulk reliever or even starter.
• July, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox plucked Politi on day three of the draft following a redshirt junior season in which the righthander posted a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, punctuated by a dominant performance in the Big East Conference tournament.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi’s stuff has not been an issue. In addition to his four-seam fastball, which features elite spin and movement as well as a low-to-mid-80s curveball, the Red Sox worked with the righty to add a high-80s cutter-slider hybrid. Politi’s approach has been mostly hard, with limited usage and conviction with his changeup. Command, durability and ideal usages remain in question. Politi features a max-effort delivery with lots of moving parts, which creates a lot of stress not only physically but also on repeating pitches. Although never pitch-efficient, Politi did a better job throwing strikes with a refined mix and approach, most notably vs. lefthanders in the second half, when he posted a 1.42 ERA with a 33.2-percent strikeout rate while holding hitters to a .146 average and .443 OPS over his final 50 innings of the year, including five late-season starts.
  
  THE FUTURE: While Politi had success in the rotation late in 2019, pitch efficiency and getting deep in games are still a challenge. Despite spot starts since college, Politi appears best suited as a bulk reliever if he can continue to refine his command. He should begin 2020 in Double-A Portland.
• February, 2020 Scouting Report
  TRACK RECORD: The Red Sox plucked Politi on day three of the draft following a redshirt junior season in which the righthander posted a 5.44 ERA but struck out 12.6 batters per nine innings, punctuated by a dominant performance in the Big East Conference tournament.
  
  SCOUTING REPORT: Politi's stuff has not been an issue. In addition to his four-seam fastball, which features elite spin and movement as well as a low-to-mid-80s curveball, the Red Sox worked with the righty to add a high-80s cutter-slider hybrid. Politi's approach has been mostly hard, with limited usage and conviction with his changeup. Command, durability and ideal usages remain in question. Politi features a max-effort delivery with lots of moving parts, which creates a lot of stress not only physically but also on repeating pitches. Although never pitch-efficient, Politi did a better job throwing strikes with a refined mix and approach, most notably vs. lefthanders in the second half, when he posted a 1.42 ERA with a 33.2-percent strikeout rate while holding hitters to a .146 average and .443 OPS over his final 50 innings of the year, including five late-season starts.
  
  THE FUTURE: While Politi had success in the rotation late in 2019, pitch efficiency and getting deep in games are still a challenge. Despite spot starts since college, Politi appears best suited as a bulk reliever if he can continue to refine his command. He should begin 2020 in Double-A Portland.