Recapping Red Sox draft picks 31-40

The picks have come fast and furious on the third day of the draft, and rather than do 30 individual posts for each player, we’ll just do quick write-ups on each draftee, with ten per post.

Round 31 (Pick #940): Connor Berry, RHP, University of Oklahoma

The Red Sox started off their final ten-pick block of this draft with a Division 1 reliever in Berry. There’s not much scouting on Berry available that I can find, but he put up solid results despite not having the kind of overpowering stuff you’d expect from a drafted reliever. He finished with a 1.40 ERA — his third straight season with a sub-2.00 ERA for the Sooners — with 23 strikeouts in 19 ¹⁄₃ innings of work. He also recorded seven saves.

Round 32 (Pick #970): Bramdon Perez, OF, Miami Beach HS (FL)

The Red Sox went with another high school prospect in the 32nd round, and as is typical at this point in the draft there is not much information out there. All I can say is that he hit .560 in his senior year of high school. He’s likely committed to play college ball next year, but I can’t find where.

Round 33 (Pick #1000): Adrian Torres, OF, Americas HS (TX)

The Red Sox went with another high school pick here in the 33rd round, taking a Texas outfielder in Torres. He’s not a big kid, but he is listed as a center fielder and he was one of the better hitters in his area (El Paso) his senior year. He’s not committed to any Division I program next year, but rather New Mexico Junior College.

Round 34 (Pick #1030): Jared Poland, 2B, Cathedral HS (IN)

The Red Sox made a splash in the 34th round, taking the right-handed second baseman from Indiana. Poland is a highly-rated prospect, coming in at 272 on Baseball America’s rankings. Unfortunately, it seems unlikely that they’ll be able to sign the Louisville commit. If they do, they’ll get a guy who doesn’t profile great at any position right now but also someone who makes consistently good contact and should turn into a strong hitter.

Round 35 (Pick #1060): Jermiah Boyd, C, Hickory Ridge HS (NC)

The Red Sox are going very high school heavy at the end of this draft, which isn’t terribly surprising. If they unexpectedly lose out on some other picks, they could have some left over money to sign these. It’s not that simple — if you fail to sign a player you lose that pick’s slot value — but if you don’t like the college players available there’s no reason not to grab some high school guys. Anyway, Boyd is committed to Presbyterian College next year.

Round 36 (Pick #1090): Jake Dukart, 3B, Lake Oswego HS (OR)

Oh, hey, another high school pick. This time they grabbed an infielder in Dukart, but he doesn’t appear likely to sign. In fact, he doesn’t appear likely to stick with baseball. He’s committed to be a two-sport athlete at Oregon State University, but his focus appears to have shifted to playing quarterback after he decommitted from Arizona State’s baseball program.

Round 37 (Pick #1120): Davis Wendzel, SS, Baylor University

For the first time since the 31st round, the Red Sox went with a college player here. In Wendzel, however, they don’t have the same leverage as usual with a college draftee as he is another draft-eligible sophomore. The shortstop was a Big-12 second team All-American as a freshman, and he followed that up with a big sophomore year as well. In 58 games and 216 at bats, the righty hit .310/.435/.532 with eight homers and 22 doubles. He also appears to have a mullet based on his player page on the team website, so do with that information what you will.

Round 38 (Pick #1150): Art Joven, LHP, College of the Sequoias

Joven is a community college pitcher who throws in the high-80s based on past scouting reports. In 16 appearances this year (eight starts) he finished with a 3.54 ERA and 57 strikeouts in 56 innings of work.

Round 39: (Pick #1180): Shane Selman, OF, McNeese State University

Selman is a left-handed college bat who appears to have some real potential even if he wasn’t a very touted prospect heading into the draft. He appeared on the radar at times in 2017 as he was electric as a sophomore when he hit .333/.367/.615 with 14 homers in 53 games. However, his line fell to .273/.368/.473 in his junior year. Granted, that’s not a bad line but it also shows that opposing pitchers probably pitched around him a bit more in 2018. Still, there appears to be real power potential here.

Round 40: (Pick #1211): Zach Watson, CF, LSU

Boston didn’t pull any punches with their final pick of the draft, going with one of the best college players in the class. His best attribute is his plus-plus speed and that carries value on the bases and in the outfield. He’s not too shabby at the plate either, however, with a powerful swing the produces more line drives than home run pop but still does damage. He was ranked number 66 on Baseball America’s rankings and number 65 by MLB Pipeline. As a draft-eligible sophomore, it would be shocking if he signed.