Infielder Red Sox Traded Away For Garrett Crochet Quietly Turning Into Star While Marcelo Mayer Struggles
The Boston Red Sox acquired Garrett Crochet before the start of last season, and one of the prospects they traded away is quietly turning into a star.
The Red Sox traded Kyle Teel, Braden Montgomery, Chase Meidroth and Wikelman Gonzalez to the Chicago White Sox. Teel was the headline prospect going back to Chicago, and in 78 games last season, he looked like he could be a great player for years to come. However, Meidroth is also establishing himself as a big leaguer.
Last season, Meidroth made his debut and hit .253 with a .659 OPS. While he showed some flashes, this season he is looking like a much better player, and is helping the White Sox outplay their low expectations. They are currently in postseason position, although there is plenty of season left to play.
Meidroth is hitting .269 with a .732 OPS this year. He has a fielding run value of plus-three and an outs above average of plus-one. He has five home runs, already matching last season’s total. He is fifth on the team in RBIs.
Meidroth was the Red Sox’s No. 19 prospect when they traded him. They were likely comfortable trading him, knowing they were getting an ace and they had Marcelo Mayer, who was the No. 1 prospect in the organization at the time. Mayer was the No. 15 prospect in all of baseball at the time.
He was projected to be a better big leaguer than Meidroth, but so far, that has not been the case. Meidroth has played in 82 more games than Mayer as a big leaguer so far, but even just this season, the numbers are not close. Meidroth has 22 more hits in just four more games played. He has a better average, on-base percentage and OPS. The only thing Mayer has done better is steal bags. Mayer has three stolen bases to Meidroth’s two.
The Red Sox likely do not regret dealing Meidroth since they got Crochet in return. However, they may feel frustrated seeing Meidroth help the White Sox play great while their own team is still trying to get on a roll.
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