Red Sox Minor Lines: Jalen Beeks dominates again

Pawtucket W 6-3

Rusney Castillo, CF: 1-5, 1 R, 2 K

Jeremy Barfield, DH: 0-4, 1 R, K

Ivan De Jesus, 2B: 3-5, 1 2B, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 K, 1 E

Chad De La Guerra, 3B: 0-4, 2 K

Mike Miller, SS: 3-4, 1 RBI, 1 E

Jalen Beeks: 5.2 IP, 3 H, 2 R, 1 BB, 11 K (93 pitches)

Bobby Poyner: 1.1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K (20 pitches)

Williams Jerez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 0 K (15 pitches)

Beeks is, to put it simply, on another level right now. The lefty is coming off a strong 2017 when he came in with a refined and simplified delivery while still being able to miss bats, and he’s only been better at Triple-A this year. After this latest dominant outing in which he didn’t allow his first hit until the fifth inning of work, he’s at a 1.37 ERA through his first 19 ²⁄₃ innings with a whopping 37 strikeouts and only six walks on the season. He was added to the 40-man roster this past offseason, and it’s looking more and more like his impact will be sooner rather than later.

Portland PPD

Salem L 1-5

Brett Netzer, 2B: 1-4, 2 K

Roldani Baldwin, C: 0-4

Bobby Dalbec, 3B: 1-4, 1 R

Jake Thompson: 4.1 IP, 2 H, 2 R, 1 ER, 4 BB, 7 K (86 pitches)

Joan Martinez: 1 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 0 BB, 2 K (10 pitches)

It was a really slow day for the Salem offense as the Red Sox High-A team was slowed down for the first time in a while. The pitching is still the most intriguing part of this roster, and it was a mixed bag for Thompson in this one. On the one hand he showed off the best swing-and-miss in this game and didn’t seem too easy to square up as he allowed just a couple of hits. On the other hand, the control has been an issue for much of the year and it led to some inefficiency, which has also been an issue through five starts. It’s a step in the right direction, but there’s still work to do for the 2017 fourth round pick.

Greenville L 2-7

Lorenzo Cedrola, RF: 0-4, 1 K

Cole Brannen, CF: 0-3, 1 BB, 1 R, 1 SB

Victor Acosta, 1B: 2-4, 2 2B, 1 R, 1 RBI, 1 K

C.J. Chatham, DH: 2-4, 1 2B, 1 RBI

The Drive finally snapped their 14-game losing streak on Friday, but they got back in the L column on Saturday with a rough all-around day. The pitching was the big issue, though no big names took the mound. On offense, Brannen continued to struggle and Cedrola is showing some rust, but Chatham is still looking good when he’s in the lineup. That said, it is a bit concerning that he is playing on such an inconsistent basis and that he’s in the DH spot for most of his games right now. Acosta, meanwhile, has been on a roll lately as the 21-year-old is hitting .373/.439/.510 on the year and he has multiple hits in three of his last four games.

Player of the Day: Jalen Beeks was easily the best player in the system on Saturday, and he’s probably been the best player in the system for the early part of the 2018 season. The lefty has made four starts on the season and he’s won this fake award in three of them. That seems like a pretty good ratio, if we’re being honest. I was one of the highest on Beeks coming into the year, and while it’s way too earlier for a victory lap I also have no shame so I’m starting to run in circles.