Crimson Sox
Campbell, 22, hit his first residence run of spring coaching on Saturday.
Kristian Campbell appears poised to win the Crimson Sox’ beginning second baseman job.
Boston seems able to have him make his MLB debut on Opening Day towards the Rangers in Texas subsequent week, based on a report.
“The presumption round Crimson Sox camp is that he will probably be their second basemen [sic],” ESPN’s Buster Olney shared on X on Saturday.
Campbell, 22, has been competing with David Hamilton and Marcelo Mayer for second base this spring. Vaughn Grissom was additionally within the combine till he was optioned to Triple-A Worcester earlier this week.
Crimson Sox supervisor Alex Cora mentioned on Friday that the membership “has a fairly good thought” of who will win the beginning 2B job.
Whereas stories point out Campbell’s upcoming promotion to the large leagues, he hasn’t been knowledgeable if he will probably be on the Opening Day roster but, MassLive’s Chris Cotillo reported after Saturday’s sport.
Campbell is simply batting .174 with a .587 OPS throughout spring coaching, however he’s appeared to emerge as Boston’s choose for the position in latest days. He hit his first residence run of the spring on Saturday, lastly exhibiting off the facility he displayed within the minor leagues final yr.
Campbell, the No. 7 ranked prospect in baseball by MLB Pipeline, additionally made a formidable seize at second base on Saturday. He caught a line drive by diving to his left and held on to the ball as he crashed into the infield grime.
Second base has statistically been Campbell’s major place since being drafted by Boston in 2023 (51 video games at 2B in MiLB). Nevertheless, he’s additionally performed loads of shortstop (36) and middle discipline (25) with some third base and left discipline sprinkled in.
Campbell has performed spring coaching video games in left discipline this yr, but it surely’s clear that the Crimson Sox need him within the infield if he does make the Opening Day roster.
Boston’s infield coach Jose Flores spoke about Campbell’s progress at 2B and his probabilities of successful the beginning job.
“Clearly we didn’t get an opportunity to work so much at second base final yr,” Flores mentioned, through MassLive’s Christopher Smith. “That is the primary time all through spring coaching that we get to get some work carried out. However he’s come an extended methods. He’s really accepted the problem of attempting to get higher at that place and hopefully, have an opportunity making the large league membership.
“So I feel he’s come an extended methods, particularly turning double performs, which is definitely one thing that he wasn’t used to being on his blind aspect. I feel he’s come an extended methods and feels a hell of much more comfy doing that.”
If Campbell is certainly with the large league membership on March 27, it is going to cap off his year-long meteoric rise. He started final season at Single-A Greenville, the place he spent lower than three months earlier than being promoted to Double-A Portland.
Earlier than Campbell knew it, he made the leap to Triple-A Worcester, but once more lower than three months later. He appeared in 19 video games by means of the tip of the membership’s season.
Regardless of Campbell’s well-deserved fast minor league ascension, spring coaching proved that there will probably be rising pains on the MLB stage, even with a top-ranked prospect like himself.
However, becoming a member of an infield that would function Alex Bregman at third, Trevor Story at second, and Triston Casas at first ought to make for an thrilling Crimson Sox baseball season.
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