Red Sox Acquire Brad Emaus From Rockies

According to the Rockies' official Twitter feed, the Red Sox picked up additional Triple-A depth today in exchange for cash or a player to be named later. Consider Brad Emaus the replacement for Drew Sutton on the roster, should Boston need to dip that far into their middle infield reserves this summer.

Emaus was part of the mix at second base last year for the New York Mets, when their plan was to throw a bunch of not-second-basemen at the keystone and see which one stuck. Justin Turner ended up winning that particular battle, with Emaus spending most of the year in Triple-A instead.

He didn't stick with the Mets, though, as he was a Rule 5 player. The Mets flipped him from whence he came, north of the border in Toronto, and they sent him packing south again (but at a higher altitude) to the Rockies. 186 plate appearances for Colorado Springs later, Emaus had hit .313/.389/.564.

Exciting, right? Sort of! Colorado Springs also happens to be well above sea level, and while it isn't Coors, it might as well be when you're a pitching prospect. Emaus hit well, but had an assist from not only the notoriously hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League, but also his home park. Emaus' .313/.389/.564 looks less impressive when you consider the average PCL hitter finished at .286/.359/.448.

This is reflected in his projetions. ZiPS has Emaus down for .257/.327/.399 this year, and early PECOTA forecasts have him at .246/.311/.384. He's not much help defensively -- he's one of those utility players who lines up at infield spots but isn't necessarily playing them -- but if the now 26-year-old infielder sees his bat develops a bit more, he can be useful in a bench role.

Chances are good the Red Sox won't even see him in Boston, though, given the construction of the bench at present, but if someone in the infield goes down, Emaus might end up sliding up on the depth chart temporarily. In that case, it's better to have him than not have him, but don't expect too much.