 |
| Groome (L); Kopech (R) |
With all the emphasis on position player prospects
Yoan Moncada,
Rafael Devers and
Andrew Benintendi (who may be beyond prospect-level now), it's easy to forget about Boston's lurking stating
pitching prospects. Specifically, they have two 'studs-in-waiting'—port-sider
Jason Groome and righty
Michael Kopech. Groome, you may recall, was stolen with the 12th overall pick in last year's draft—after being rated as the #1 overall choice a few months earlier. After some haggling, he was signed for a sizable bonus. He is compared to
Madison Bumgarner because of his sick fastball-curveball repertoire. Kopech—taken late in 2014's first-round, has topped out at 105 MPH in the minors. He has a troubling "
Ebby Calvin 'Nuke' LaLoosh"-type personality, however, that's already gotten him in trouble. With any luck, though, he could become the wackiest Red Sox pitcher since
Bill Lee. In any event, there are two blue-chip starting pitching prospects not far away from Fenway—which
could allow
Dave Dombrowski to be a
little bolder in his off-season mound-related moves.
