Nick Yorke, one of the top prospects in the Red Sox organization, went 3-for-5 with a homer, double, triple, three runs and two RBIs to lead Double-A Portland to a 12-3 victory over Erie on Friday.
MLB Pipeline ranks Yorke Boston’s No. 5 prospect. Baseball America ranks him the Red Sox’s No. 7 prospect while SoxProspects.com has him listed at No. 6.
He’s batting .274 with a .416 on-base percentage, .532 slugging percentage, .948 OPS, three homers, five doubles, one triple, 17 runs, four RBIs, 13 walks and 15 strikeouts in 17 games this season.
The second baseman, who just turned 21 earlier this month, dropped in the prospect rankings after a tough year in 2022.
The 2020 first round draft pick entered ‘22 ranked No. 31 on Baseball America’s Top 100 list after being named 2021 Red Sox minor league offensive player of the year. But he finished the season unranked after slashing .231/.303/.365/.668 in 80 games at High-A Greenville.
Injuries were part of why he struggled. He dealt with turf toe, back stiffness and wrist soreness, according to Baseball America. He hit much better in the Arizona Fall League this past offseason, going 26-for-76 (.342) with 10 extra-base hits in 19 games.
Ceddanne Rafaela went 2-for-5 with a double, three runs and two RBIs in Portland’s win Friday.
He has gone 14-for-34 (.412) over an eight-game hitting streak to raise his slash line to .310/.347/.423/.770.
Jordan homers
Blaze Jordan, a 2020 third round draft pick, went 3-for-6 with a homer in High-A Greenville’s doubleheader Friday.
The 20-year-old is batting .292 with a .343 on-base percentage, .508 slugging percentage, .851 OPS, three homers, three doubles, one triple, eight runs, 13 RBIs, four walks and 17 strikeouts in 17 games for Greenville.
Hickey hits first homer
Catcher Nathan Hickey went 2-for-3 with a homer, two runs and two RBIs in Greenville’s second game, a 9-1 win over Hudson Valley.
The 23-year-old, who Boston drafted in the fifth round out of Florida in 2021, is batting .295 with a .446 on-base percentage, .523 slugging percentage, .969 OPS, five doubles, one triple, one homer, seven runs, four RBIs, 11 walks and 13 strikeouts in 13 games.
