With the 26th pick in the MLB Draft, the Boston Red Sox selected third baseman Triston Casas. Casas attended American Heritage High School in Florida, and will most likely sign with the Sox barring his commitment to the University of Miami. The 6′ 4″, 238 pound corner infielder has a comparison to Sean Casey and Freddie Freeman with his advanced barrel skills and ability to square up on pitches.
The Good:
Triston Casas was born in Pembroke Pines, Florida. The 18-year-old has a tall and athletic build, which is perfect for a first baseman that can contribute both offensively and defensively. However, he has proven to make strong throws while on the move, as a third baseman does regularly. Casas won the Richard W. “Dick” award in 2017 (given annually to USA Baseball’s top player), and seems to have a bright future ahead of him. Triston also has a major league approach during BP, which is a plus. Casas has a 95 mph exit velocity average and ranks in the 99.3 percentile among his draft class. Best of all, he has shown ability to hit the ball to all fields with ease. Overall, he is a kid with a lot of power, and will only continue to gain muscle mass and improve on his contact abilities.
The Not So Good:
Although Casas has shown he is a good hitter, he has also portrayed a bit of streakiness in his young career. He does have some areas in his swing to improve on, such as occasionally falling off to the side on his follow through. The most troubling thing that sticks out to me is that he had knee surgery performed in December of 2016 (x-ray shots below). This could be an injury prone thing, or it could be nothing to worry about. Power swinging players generate a lot of torque especially in their knees, so this should be something to keep an eye on in the future.
Wrapping up on Casas:
Overall, I think this kid could be something special. With the recent trouble that the Sox have had with corner infielders (Sandoval, Hanley, Chavis of the likes), this is a great move by the Sox organization.
