Iglesias steals two, Lavarnway excelling
Speed and power. That was the combination the Pawtucket Red Sox used Thursday night to beat the Rochester Red Wings,…
Category: Ryan Lavarnway
Ryan Lavarnway traces success back to one conversation
In a sense, it was the verbal equivalent of a high-and-tight fastball — a pitch that sends a batter sprawling…
Q+A with prospect catcher Ryan Lavarnway
Ryan Lavarnway was previously interviewed on Fire Brand July 17, 2008. At that point, Lavarnway was rehabbing from a broken scaphoid bone in his left wrist after being drafted in the sixth round of 2008.
Lavarnway has gone on to be a major contributor to Greenville's playoff push, as the Drive are currently in the championship series. With 21 home runs, Lavarnway has had an extremely impressive season for a 22-year old catcher: .285/.367/.540. There is some thought that Lavarnway could be the Red Sox's first homegrown full-time catcher since... forever. Ryan was kind enough to take some time out of his busy schedule and answer some questions...
A Year Removed from the Shortstop Logjam
Twelve months ago, I was eagerly looking forward to today because it would be then that the logjam at the shortstop position in the low-minors could be resolved. There were five guys: Oscar Tejeda, Yamaico Navarro, Kris Negron, Will Middlebrooks, and Ryan Dent; that could potentially play the position down the road. Luckily, not all five guys were on the same team, but it sure was something to worry about had they all progressed at the same rate. There were certainly plenty of variables that typically unscrew these logjams, such as injuries, lack of production, etc. To quote Sox Director of Player Development Mike Hazen, "things like these will work themselves out, we just have to make sure to get everybody equal opportunity".
Well, Mike was right. Oscar spent the first few weeks in Extended Spring Training with arm issues and is more suited for third base. Navarro played very well and is now a top ten prospect. Negron struggled to make consistent contact in Greenville before becoming a product of Clear Channel Stadium in Lancaster. Middlebrooks was never really given a shot at shortstop and is handling third base well. And finally, Dent has failed to make much contact and is more than likely going to switch to either second base or center field. That leaves Navarro as the only one who will be playing the majority of his time at the shortstop position.
SOX ON DECK: Sox draftee Ryan Lavarnway answers questions
The Red Sox drafted Ryan Lavarnway, 20,