Pawtucket Red Sox Update: Ryan Lavarnway, Ryan Kalish, Clayton Mortensen

Marc is on vacation until Monday, so apologies for any statistics that are out of date. Or, in an extreme scenario, any players listed here who have been traded and are no longer Red Sox.

Ryan Lavarnway, C

Lavarnway's June remains the high point of his season, with his July -- including his recent 10 games -- looking more along the good, not great path. That June was just oh so good, though, and it's the reason that you won't see a lot of tears among Boston fans if Kelly Shoppach is dealt before the July 31 deadline.

That being said, there's a lot Lavarnway can still pick up from catching everyday down in Pawtucket, and just waiting until 2013 for his chance to split time behind the plate. He also hasn't consistently crushed Triple-A pitching the same way he did in 2011, his first go of things, and while it's easy to wave off, maybe you don't want to do that, either. Lavarnway's a hitter with a ton of power potential, but he's not perfect by any means, and what's been a solid but unspectacular 2012 might be trying to hint that he's not completely finished as a product yet, and not just when behind the plate.

It also helps that the Red Sox, between Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Shoppach, are getting a 125 split-adjusted OPS+ at catcher, and are leading all of the majors with an Isolated Power of .265. Shoppach might not bring that much in return, unless someone is desperate, so extra time in the minors might prove more valuable to the organization than whatever they could get out of a deal in the next few days.

Ryan Kalish, CF

Kalish is back from his knee issue that kept him out of Pawtucket's lineup for a week, but he's been somewhat quiet since. He has three doubles in that stretch, but hasn't done much of anything else, with just a pair of walks and four hits otherwise in 26 at-bats since his demotion. His time in the minors this year is still a net positive, including his Pawtucket line of .323/.408/.581, but given his inconsistencies, injuries, and failure to master the level for more than a few weeks at a time as of yet, you'd like to see a lot more out of Kalish, especially with a soon to be gaping hole opening up in right field, should an off-season market arise for the services of Cody Ross.

That's kind of a lot of pressure on Kalish, but it's getting to be time for him to be ready, because the Red Sox will be ready for him. Other clubs have inquired on Kalish before the trade deadline, so it's not as if Boston is alone in their faith in him. That's a positive, and one hopes that Kalish can continue to hit well at Pawtucket for the next month, giving us all something good to think about over the winter months.

*****

Clayton Mortensen, RP

When Marco Scutaro was dealt for Clayton Mortensen, it gave some insight into the importance of having pitchers with options. Mortensen didn't seem like he fit into the Opening Day roster's plans, but injuries occur, and when they do, you need someone who is able to step in (and back out again) without much fuss, both in terms of production and their own expectations for their role. Mortensen is used to bouncing around between the minors and majors, and in his first season with Boston, has done an exceptional job of producing at either level.

His stock is most certainly up compared to where it was when the Sox acquired him, a credit to their front office and scouting staff. Whether Boston uses that to leverage Mortensen into a deal with another club before Tuesday's deadline, or simply lets him sit in Pawtucket, waiting for the next time he's needed, remains to be seen. But either way, he's been doing what's asked of him, and well.