Red Sox Want Ceddanne Rafaela To Continue Refining Approach

Ceddanne Rafaela’s breakout 2022 campaign seemingly brought the big leagues within an arm’s length.

In 2022, Rafaela went from a player who hit for average with little power to one who routinely drove the ball in High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland. He hit .299/.342/.539 with 21 home runs between the two levels, spending 71 of his 116 games with Portland. 

Between his time in Double-A and 19 more games in the Puerto Rican League last winter, Rafaela—who was added to the 40-man roster in November—arrived in camp with a solid chance of opening the year in Triple-A Worcester.

But coming out of spring training, the Red Sox instead returned Rafaela to Portland.

In large part, that decision reflected the team’s sense that the free-swinging Rafaela needed to further improve his swing decisions before moving up to Triple-A. He had one of the highest chase rates in the Double-A Eastern League in 2022—but did significant damage when swinging at pitches in the zone.

At big league camp this spring, experienced pitchers routinely got Rafaela to hack at pitches several inches off the plate. Red Sox coaches and officials frequently worked with the 22-year-old in an effort to improve his swing decisions, but at times the team worried that the pendulum swung too far away from the aggressive cuts that allow Rafaela to impact the ball.

“His baseball IQ is good. He understands there’s things that he needs to do better, but I think all the talk about controlling the strike zone, I think the strike zone controlled him for a little bit (in big league camp),” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said

“We want him to be aggressive. Learn how to control being aggressive—go, go, go, take. He understands that, so just keep going.”

Rafaela’s defense in center ensures that he will be a big league option, but the Red Sox remain hopeful that his callup will be as a more balanced player.

“He’s going to contribute,” Cora said.

SOX YARNS

— Lefthander Shane Drohan, who will open the year in Double-A Portland’s rotation, showed improved velocity in spring training, generally working at 91-94 mph with his fastball—up from 90-92 mph for most of 2022.

— Middle infielder Mikey Romero, drafted in the first round last year, was slowed in spring training by lower back discomfort that left him on the Low-A Salem injured list to start the year.