After finishing with a 78-84 record for the second season in a row and making no gains in the lottery, the Red Sox have ended up with the 12th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft. In 2023, the Red Sox brass drafted Kyle Teel with the 14th overall pick and he’s now viewed as a top 3 prospect in the system. There’s a different CBO leading the front office now with Craig Breslow at the helm, but a majority of the same cooks are still in the kitchen with Devin Pearson, Director of Amateur Scouting, looking to lead his second draft.
If Breslow is set to change the Red Sox drafting philosophy to invest more on pitching, it’s going to be a drastic shakeup. Ian Cundall of SoxProspects.com recently did a fantastic breakdown showing that the Red Sox have committed the lowest total bonus amount to pitchers of any organization since 2018. We know from Breslow’s time with the Cubs that they didn’t hesitate to draft pitching early with guys like Cade Horton and Jordan Wicks.
The last time the Red Sox drafted a pitcher in the first round was Tanner Houck back in 2017 out of the University of Missouri. It marked the second time in as many years that they selected an arm, with Jay Groome coming the year before from Barnegat High School. In the years since, neither have reached the starter ceiling many evaluators pegged on them.
There’s a long way to go with the 2024 Draft not taking place until July 14th, but I decided to dive into some names Red Sox fans should keep an eye on in the coming months when it comes to the 12th pick. Sadly, I won’t be including Chase Burns or Hagen Smith on this list. I love their stuff on the mound as much as anybody, but it’d be a shocker at this point to see them make it past the first 7 picks.