The bats of the Boston Red Sox have awoken after a five-game slump to start the season. The Sox are 5-2 over their last seven games and have a positive run differential of 14. With two wins over the playoff-hopeful Orioles and a sweep of the St. Louis Cardinals, Boston heads into a crucial early season series against the Toronto Blue Jays. Here is a heat check on some of the hitters to look out for during this series and throughout the regular season.
Scorching Hot: Wilyer Abreu
Wilyer Abreu dealt with trade rumors all off-season and medical problems during spring training, but he is the talk of Boston after 11 games. The lefty leads the league in OPS and is second in batting average, hitting at a .424 clip. Abreu clubbed two home runs during the Red Sox’s opening day victory over the Texas Rangers, and has recorded at least one hit in nine of the 11 games played. He heroically stepped up to the plate in extra innings against the Cardinals on Sunday and hit a walk off single. The right fielder has been on fire in a short sample size leading to the question: Can this maintain? Obviously, Abreu will not hit .400 for the entire season, but his play right now is enough to keep him on this promising Boston team for a long time.
Rookie of the Year Candidate: Kristian Campbell
It took less than one week in the big leagues for Chief Baseball Officer Craig Breslow to ink Kristian Campbell to an eight-year, $60 million contract extension. Campbell got a hit in his first five games in the show and has reached base safely in every single game of his career so far. The rookie is already breaking records seven games in. Campbell became the first Red Sox rookie to have six extra-base hits in his first seven games since Will Middlebrooks in 2012. During that seven-game stretch, Campbell slugged two home runs and legged out four doubles. Campbell is setting a promising example for the future of Red Sox baseball, with top prospects Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer waiting in the wings.
Hot: Alex Bregman
The reigning American League Player of the Week has picked it up after a slow first few games of the season. Bregman went 11 for 27 during the week, including three hits, a home run and three runs batted in during Boston’s series clinching win against Baltimore on Thursday. Breggy also smacked a home run and was a triple shy of the cycle in Sunday’s 18-7 route over St. Louis. The top offseason acquisition for the Red Sox is continuing his dominance at Fenway Park from his days in Houston. He is seven for 21 in five games at Fenway this year with plenty more games to go as Boston hunts for the AL East crown.
Heating Up: Rafael Devers
An offseason filled with front office turmoil spilled over into the first five games of the season for Rafael Devers. After being permanently moved to designated hitter in favor of Bregman at third base, Devers was not too pleased with Breslow and manager Alex Cora. His lack of participation in spring training led to a 0-19 start to the season at the plate. Overreactions began to pour in from fans who were starting to turn on the superstar. It all changed when Raffy laced a double to right field last Wednesday against the Orioles. Devers got his confidence back and has been great since. The lefty compiled 10 hits over the next five games, including an opposite-field home run on Sunday. The previously 0-19 Devers now sports a batting average of .244, which can only keep climbing as the season progresses.
Cold: Ceddanne Rafaela
The utilityman struggled outside of the route versus the Cardinals on Sunday. Rafaela doubled his hit total in the game on Sunday, going from three to six hits. On a positive note, Rafaela has only struck out four times in 11 games compared to 151 strikeouts over last season. The 24-year-old needs to show some promise at the plate, or he could see his spot in the lineup dwindle as the top prospects make their way to the big leagues.