Latest news with #Rafaela
Yahoo
a day ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Sox Outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela Draws Comparisons to Pete Crow-Armstrong
Red Sox Outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela Draws Comparisons to Pete Crow-Armstrong originally appeared on Athlon Sports. Pete Crow-Armstrong's breakout 2025 season has showcased all the tell-tale signs of MVP-level talent. His skillset, which combines power, speed, contact-hitting, and Gold Glove defense, makes him one of MLB's few five-tool players. However, PCA differentiates himself from the other five-tool players by excelling in all aspects of the game. Advertisement Thus far, PCA is establishing himself as one of the game's top talents. But there are some out there that think a Boston Red Sox outfielder isn't far behind. According to Chad Jennings of The Athletic, Boston thinks centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela is close to, not just a breakout, but a PCA-type breakout. Jennings had this to report: 'The easiest path for the Boston Red Sox to promote top prospect Roman Anthony, give him regular playing time, and perhaps jolt their lagging offense would be to move versatile center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela to the infield and use Anthony in center. Boston Red Sox center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela (3), right, celebrates catching a fly out against the Detroit Han / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images "It hasn't happened, in part, because the Red Sox see Rafaela as one of the truly elite defenders in baseball and believe he may be on the verge of a breakout akin to what the Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong has delivered this season.' Advertisement Rafaela hasn't exactly seen much success at the plate this season, hitting to the tune of a .252/.296/.411 slash line with 6 home runs (made history with shortest walk-off home run on Wednesday) and seven stolen bases. At a mere glance, a performance at this level isn't reminiscent of PCA at all. When not including his defense, his .296 on-base percentage has made him a contributor to the team's ever-growing litany of woes. Still, Jennings thinks his stats don't truly represent his talent, and he may be right. Rather than his stat line, Jennings points to Rafaela's metrics to make his point. When looking at PCA's Baseball Savant page alongside Rafaela's, they both look nearly the same. Both barrel the ball at similarly high rates, have near-identical fielding metrics, sprint at similar speeds, and draw walks at low rates. Besides the low walk rate, everything else is a plus. Rafaela also makes more hard contact than PCA. But even if the PCA comparison turns out to be a little bit of a stretch, should Rafaela just find the right launch angle and draw more walks, he could still be a five-tool asset for Boston. Related: MLB Insider Creates Wild Red Sox-Padres Trade Idea This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 5, 2025, where it first appeared.
Time of India
a day ago
- Sport
- Time of India
Ceddanne Rafaela creates history with shortest walk-off home run of Statcast era
Image Source: Getty On June 4, 2025, Ceddanne Rafaela hit a historic homer at Fenway Park. His 308-foot walk-off homer vs the Los Angeles Angels won the game 11-9, the shortest walk-off homer since Statcast started in 2015. The ball just curled around the Pesky Pole and saved Boston from a sweep. This was a big hit for the team and for the fans to cheer about. Ceddanne Rafaela's record-breaking moment With the score tied 9-9 in the ninth inning, Ceddanne Rafaela came to bat with one out. Abraham Toro had just hit a single, keeping Boston's hopes alive. Facing Angels pitcher Brock Burke, Rafaela swung at an 86.9 mph changeup and sent the ball 308 feet to right field. According to this was the shortest walk-off homer in the Statcast era, which started in 2015. The hit wouldn't have been a homer in any other MLB park, making Fenway's short right-field wall key. It was reported that Rafaela, at 24, is the youngest Red Sox player to hit a walk-off homer in 25 years. His teammates, like Jarren Duran, cheered the team's fight after falling behind early. This clutch hit showed Rafaela's growing talent and thrilled Boston fans. Also Read: Projecting early MLB All-Star rosters for AL and NL - makes the cut? Red Sox's gritty comeback The Red Sox fought hard to set up Rafaela's game winner, never giving up after being down. Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito had a rough first inning, giving up 4, but Boston came back with 5. The Angels went back up, but the Red Sox tied it in the 4th and 7th. Rafael Devers had a big single in the 8th to tie it 9-9. Reliever Cooper Criswell kept the Angels from scoring in the ninth, giving Rafaela his chance. Reports suggested that this win was huge for the 30-34 Red Sox, who avoided a sweep after two close losses. The team now heads to face the strong New York Yankees. Rafaela's recent hot streak, with homers in three straight games, shows he's becoming a key player. This exciting game proved the Red Sox's determination to keep fighting. Rafaela's short homer wasn't just a game-winner; it made baseball history. The Red Sox, energized by this win, hope to keep the momentum going. Fans will long remember this day when a small swing brought a big victory.
Fox Sports
a day ago
- Sport
- Fox Sports
Last Night in Baseball: Red Sox win on the shortest walk-off homer... ever?
There is always baseball happening — almost too much baseball for one person to handle themselves. That's why we're here to help, though, by sifting through the previous days' games, and figuring out what you missed, but shouldn't have. Here are all the best moments from last night in Major League Baseball: The shortest walk-off homer maybe ever? It's difficult to know, given how measurements over time have worked and records have been kept, just how long the longest home run in MLB history was, or just how short we're talking when we say shortest long ball. We do know about the Statcast era, though, from 2015 onward, and at least we know where the fences have historically been kept at MLB ballparks, too. Which means that we definitely just saw the shortest walk-off home run of the Statcast era per MLB, at minimum, and possibly the shortest walk-off homer ever. Ceddanne Rafaela came up in the bottom of the ninth inning, with the Red Sox and Angels tied 9-9. Boston had already dropped the first two games of the series to Los Angeles — 7-6 and 4-3 — as their tumble down the standings continued. Rafaela would ensure the slide at least temporarily halted with one swing of the bat: 308 feet later, the Red Sox had won. The right field foul pole at Fenway, nicknamed "Pesky's Pole" owing to former shortstop Johnny Pesky wrapping a few around the pole in his day, sits 302 feet from home plate. There aren't a lot of homers hit there annually, despite the short distance, given that the right field wall begins to take a sharp angle backward to the point that Fenway, historically and in the present, is a poor place for lefties to hit homers. Dead center is 389 feet, the furthest point of the field is 420 feet out, and the midpoint of the fence in right is 380 feet. All of this means it's actually as tough to hit a homer from the left side of the plate as it is for righties who have to contend with the 37-foot wall out in left field keeping them from hitting anything but towering fly balls over the fence. There's that tiny spot tucked away near the Pesky's Pole, though, where a ball can just, whoops, home run, and Rafaela found it at the best possible time. This was the third homer Rafaela hit against the Angels in the series, with the other two going over the aforementioned Monster in left. More majestic homers they might have been, but this little one certainly counted for more. Both in the moment, and possibly historically, too. The Rockies swept the Marlins! It's okay if you want to read that in Russ Hodges' "The Giants win the pennant!" voice, given the achievement certainly feels as monumental as Bobby Thomson's "Shot Heard 'Round the World" with how Colorado's season has gone outside of this series. But they did it! The Rockies faced the Marlins in three games, and they won all three. They're still on pace for a record 131 losses, and the Marlins are now on pace for an even 100 defeats owing to these defeats, but that's something to worry about later. Right now, the Rockies have not only won their first season series of the year, but earned their first sweep, too, and can go for their fourth win in a row on Friday against the… oh. The Mets. Holders of the best record in the National League, and looking to take three of four from the NL West-leading Dodgers on Thursday. Listen, the important thing is that no one can take those wins away from you, Colorado, they are in the bank. Hey, that's still the basepath, it counts Wyatt Langford faced a dilemma as he ran down to first base. The problem? The Rangers' left fielder had hit a ground ball to short, and was likely to be out at first until José Caballero's throw was off target enough to pull Jonathan Aranda off of the bag. Aranda was still in Langford's path, however, and while he was on the ground, that was going to be a problem. Langford couldn't go left, he couldn't go right, but he could go over. And so he did. Beautiful form, just splendidly done. It's worth pointing out, too, that Langford was aware enough of what he was doing here as to make sure he landed on the bag with the front part of his foot, taking pressure off of both his ankle and his knee, and so that he could also easily bound past first base as if he had done it by running through the standard way. Aranda couldn't quite get the tag high enough from his position on the ground to nab Langford mid-hurdle, so instead, the Rangers got a baserunner. Sure, the Rangers ended up losing to the Rays in the end, 5-4, but hey: hurdles. Alonso, take a bow The aforementioned Mets already took two of the first three games of their four-game set with the Dodgers, but Wednesday's victory also gave them the season series over Los Angeles. And they can thank their pitching for that — starting pitcher Griffin Canning and the bullpen combined for nine 1-run innings with 10 strikeouts, one walk, and just six hits — but also Pete Alonso. Alonso went deep not once , but twice . The first shot was enough to give the Mets the W, as the two-run homer put them up 3-0. The second one was just for emphasis, as it gave the Mets a 6-0 lead in the eighth inning. Alonso drove in five of New York's six runs on the night, and they'd end up winning 6-1. Meanwhile… You flinched, Dodgers! Now you have to marry your mother-in-law! Want great stories delivered right to your inbox? Create or log in to your FOX Sports account and follow leagues, teams and players to receive a personalized newsletter daily! FOLLOW Follow your favorites to personalize your FOX Sports experience Boston Red Sox Ceddanne Rafaela Major League Baseball recommended Get more from Major League Baseball Follow your favorites to get information about games, news and more
New York Times
2 days ago
- Entertainment
- New York Times
Could Ceddanne Rafaela be the next Pete Crow-Armstrong? The Red Sox hope so
BOSTON — The easiest path for the Boston Red Sox to promote top prospect Roman Anthony, give him regular playing time, and perhaps jolt their lagging offense would be to move versatile center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela to the infield and use Anthony in center. It hasn't happened, in part, because the Red Sox see Rafaela as one of the truly elite defenders in baseball and believe he may be on the verge of a breakout akin to what the Chicago Cubs' Pete Crow-Armstrong has delivered this season. Advertisement There is merit, some in the organization acknowledge, to the concept of Rafaela as a super utility man, especially if it opens outfield playing time for Anthony, but such a move would eliminate Rafaela's greatest strength — his center field defense — and could disrupt his encouraging signs of progress at the plate. Rafaela's hit the ball better than his statistics suggest, and even if he were to remain a slightly below-average hitter, his defense and base running have him on track to be a 4 WAR player according to FanGraphs. Only 12 outfielders (and only three center fielders) reached 4 WAR last season. Rafaela currently has the third-best fWAR among American League center fielders, his base running metrics are among the best in all of baseball, and only Crow-Armstrong has slightly better defensive numbers in center. Crow-Armstrong is a worthwhile comparison and perhaps a useful model. A year younger than Rafaela but with similar major-league experience, Crow-Armstrong has a profile remarkably similar to Rafaela's. Both are elite defenders and great base runners who swing and miss a lot but also have a knack for barreling the ball often. Their batted ball data on Baseball Savant — Crow-Armstrong on the left, Rafaela on the right — is not identical, but the contours are similar. Based on plate discipline and batted ball data, The Athletic's Eno Sarris found that Crow-Armstrong is indeed one of Rafaela's strongest comps of the past five years. Astros catcher Yainier Diaz is another, but so are less productive hitters Alex Kiriloff and Jordan Diaz. 'High-chase guys don't age well,' Sarris said, citing Josh Hamilton, Pablo Sandoval, Javier Báez and Tim Anderson, ' but they can be super exciting in their primes. I think I'd be excited about Ceddanne as an overall player, and maybe less so just as a bat.' Advertisement One clear difference between the two, however, is that Crow-Armstrong, a left-handed hitter, has pulled the ball with authority, something the Red Sox would like right-handed Rafaela do more often. Manager Alex Cora on Wednesday compared Rafaela's offensive development to that of Mookie Betts, who won an MVP award in 2018 when his pull percentage soared. 'And I think Ceddanne is learning how to do that,' Cora said. 'We're going to keep the conversations. I think he can take his shots to right field, especially later on when it becomes hot and the ball is going to carry that way, but most of the time here (at Fenway Park), it's a hard place to live in right-center.' As it is, Crow-Armstrong is an early MVP candidate while Rafaela is a potential Gold Glove winner with a 91 wRC+. That's a below-average offensive figure, but underlying metrics show Rafaela trending heavily in the right direction at the plate. Since his MLB debut in 2023, Rafaela has steadily cut down on his strikeouts while improving his hard-hit rate. He's slugging just .401, but Baseball Savant gives him an expected slugging percentage of .491, one of the 30 largest negative disparities between expected and actual slugging in the majors. Despite mediocre surface-level statistics, the Red Sox are encouraged by Rafaela's development at the plate. In the field, they see few better. Rafaela first gained prospect attention as a lower-level player with energy and a good glove at shortstop, but he really blossomed when he started playing center field in High A in 2021. His offense improved at the same time, and what had been a good defender in the infield became almost immediately an elite defender in the outfield. When Rafaela became a consensus top 100 prospect in 2023, The Athletic's Keith Law wrote that he had a chance to become a 70- to 80-grade defender in center field — the highest end of the scouting scale — while Baseball America noted that 'Rafaela's excellent first step in center field, plus speed, fearlessness and creativity offer elite defensive potential, and he can also play a solid shortstop.' The infield ability had become an afterthought. Advertisement Rafaela has lived up to his defensive billing. By almost every Statcast measurement, Rafaela has been the best defensive center fielder in the American League this season, but it's unlikely he would maintain that value as an infielder. Trevor Story's injury led the Red Sox to play Rafaela semi-regularly at shortstop last year, but he produced minus-7 outs above average at the position. The Red Sox believe Rafaela would improve with reps and fresh familiarity, but a move to the infield would almost certainly downgrade Rafaela's defensive impact and potentially wipe out much of his immediate value. It also would potentially throw a wrench in his steady progress in other aspects of the game. 'I'm the type of guy that, I'm not really worried about where I play,' Rafaela said. 'But it's helpful, of course, to just focus on that position and be me. I'm happy that I'm playing everyday center field. It's helping my body, too.' Anthony, the top prospect in baseball, has dominated Triple A as a 21-year-old, but he has yet to make it to the major leagues. The Red Sox have promoted their top infield prospects — Kristian Campbell and Marcelo Mayer — but finding at-bats for Anthony has proven more difficult. The Red Sox have one of the best outfields in baseball with Rafaela in center, Jarren Duran in left, Wilyer Abreu in right and Rob Refsnyder crushing lefties off the bench. Nearly all DH at-bats have gone to Rafael Devers, who's having the best offensive season of his career. That alignment — with Rafaela remaining in center — leaves little room for another outfielder, a crunch that chief baseball officer Craig Breslow seemed to acknowledge in a recent radio interview. 'Roman's time is coming,' Breslow said. '… We want to make sure when he comes up, not only is he ready, but there's runway for him to play.'
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Has Roman Anthony forced Red Sox to make call-up decision? Alex Cora weighs in
BOSTON — Manager Alex Cora suggested March 28 that top Red Sox prospects Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer could force their way to the majors this season by dominating at Triple-A Worcester. Cora said it doesn't have to be an injury on the big league roster that clears a path for them. Advertisement 'I think it's the other way — they're gonna push us to make decisions,' Cora said back then. Anthony, who Baseball America ranks No. 1 on its Top 100 list, has been one of the best hitters in Triple A. The 21-year-old went deep on a 95.9 mph sinker in Worcester's 8-2 win over Durham on Tuesday. He is batting .322 with a .450 on-base percentage, .520 slugging percentage, .970 OPS, six homers, eight doubles, two triples, 18 RBIs, 33 runs, 37 walks and 38 strikeouts in 42 games (191 plate appearances) for Worcester. What more does he need to do to push the Red Sox to make a decision? Cora was asked that question before Boston's game against the Mets on Wednesday. Advertisement 'That's a great question. I understand where you're coming from,' Cora said. 'But we are where we're at. Right now we've got some guys here that are playing great baseball. We understand that at one point, I do believe they're going to be part of this. But as of right now, we haven't made that decision.' How could the Red Sox front office fit Anthony, a left fielder, on this current roster? Both shortstop Trevor Story and center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela have struggled at the plate. Story has the 22nd worst OPS (.617) among qualified major league hitters. He has one extra-base hit in his past 24 games. Rafaela has the 30th worst OPS (.646). Advertisement Boston could move Rafaela to a super utility role, slide left fielder Jarren Duran to center field and put Anthony in left field. That said, Rafaela has been better offensively this month (.281/.305./421/.726, 61 plate appearances). Cora described Rafaela's May as 'interesting.' 'We're still swinging a lot but we're hitting the ball hard,' Cora said. 'All the expected numbers are great. You look at the scoreboard and you're like, 'Eh.' ... We feel offensively it's a competitive at-bat. Last year, he went through stretches. He wasn't this consistent. Let's put it that way. Working hard on his craft. Still making adjustments (with mechanics).' So the Red Sox could keep Rafaela as an everyday player by moving him to shortstop and making Story a platoon player. In that scenario, Duran again would shift to center field and Anthony would play left field. Advertisement Sure, taking Rafaela out of center field makes the Red Sox worse defensively. Rafaela has the sixth best fWAR (0.9) among Red Sox players — despite how poorly he has hit — because of the value he provides defensively. But Duran is more than capable in center field, posting 17 defensive runs saved in 810 ⅓ innings there last year. Rafaela is not a Gold Glove-caliber shortstop at this point like he is a Gold Glove candidate in center (eight defensive runs saved, 380 ⅔ innings). But he probably would provide around the same production defensively as Story has given there. Story has been an elite defender throughout his career but he's in the 10th percentile in outs above average/range (-3) and the 18th percentile in fielding run value (-2) this year. Advertisement At some point, the Red Sox are going to have to make tough roster decisions. They can't just stand pat as the top prospect in baseball tears up Triple A. He has done what he needs to do to push the Red Sox to make a decision and force his way here. 'I don't say this lightly — I think he's the best minor league hitter I've ever seen," Red Sox first baseman Abraham Toro said earlier this month. 'I think he can be an absolute star in MLB. It just shows what he's doing.' Toro mentioned Anthony could pull the ball more often. Almost all his extra-base hits have gone to the opposite field and center and that is something that Anthony needs to do a little more. 'If he can pull the ball more often, he'll just be one of the best players,' Toro said. More On Red Sox Prospects Read the original article on MassLive.
