Traditionally the Red Sox have excelled at developing position players, and over the years the club’s homegrown standouts have usually been hitters. Yet recently that’s started to flip, and now the majority of the club’s top prospects are pitchers for the first time in decades, if not ever.
But that’s not to say the club doesn’t have any young hitters with promise.
Henry Godbout, the top hitter selected by the Red Sox in last summer’s draft, enters his first full professional season as one of the club’s most intriguing position player prospects. The 22-year-old infielder made an immediate impression in High-A Greenville during his brief pro debut late last summer, batting .341 with six doubles and a .950 OPS in 13 games, and Friday night he hit a solo home run in the Spring Breakout prospect showcase.
Compared to fellow top picks Kyson Witherspoon, Marcus Phillips and Anthony Eyanson — all pitchers who have essentially become the club’s new Big Three — Godbout has flown somewhat under the radar. But if his early production is a harbinger of things to come, that could quickly change.
A three-year starter at the University of Virginia, Godbout boasts elite contact skills and posted some eye-popping numbers during his time in college. In three seasons he batted .321 with a .929 OPS and nearly as many walks (69) as strikeouts (70), earning Second Team All-American honors as a sophomore.
Speaking to the Herald in Fort Myers earlier this spring, Godbout said the level of competition he faced in the ACC has been comparable to what he’s seen in the pros so far, which has made for a relatively smooth adjustment.
“I feel like if I get on the field anywhere I can compete with anyone, so that wasn’t crazy,” Godbout said. “But from a lifestyle perspective, woke up a little bit later, everything is geared towards baseball, so figuring out how to navigate that and get your body right is probably the biggest thing.”
The Red Sox selected Godbout at No. 75 overall with the compensatory pick acquired after losing Nick Pivetta in free agency to the San Diego Padres. Though Godbout played second base in college and wasn’t necessarily known for his defense, the Red Sox are developing him as a shortstop, at least at first.
Brian Abraham, the club’s senior director of player development, praised Godbout’s offensive acumen, saying he’s going to get on base, see good pitches and hit the ball hard. The key will be improving his ability to drive the ball in the air, something the organization has made a point of emphasis for all of its young hitters.
“He does a lot of things really well,” Abraham said. “Great kid, really good work ethic, a natural leader, a guy who can stay up the middle for us in the infield, but does a lot of things really well and we’re excited to get him to play.”
The Red Sox’s bat speed program has become renowned within the industry, and Godbout doesn’t have to look far for an example of what could be possible if everything goes well. Two years ago Kristian Campbell, who also starred in the ACC at Georgia Tech and was drafted with a compensatory pick, blew through the Red Sox system and earned himself an eight-year contract extension largely thanks to the incredible bat speed gains he was able to achieve in his first year.
Godbout said he’s already seen some “pretty significant gains” and that he hopes he can follow a similar path as Campbell.
“I think my skill set definitely aligns with that type of trajectory, being a bat to ball guy, having good swing decisions, so adding some more power will obviously elevate that a little bit,” Godbout said. “But he’s a great player and I’m not trying to be like anyone else, but seeing him have that success definitely supports the idea that this organization can elevate guys who have good bat to ball.”
Currently ranked as Boston’s No. 11 prospect by MLB Pipeline, Godbout will most likely start the season in Greenville again, though a promotion to Double-A Portland could easily be in the cards if he hits well out of the gate.
But ultimately Godbout hopes to one day don a Red Sox uniform in Boston, something he’s dreamed about his whole life despite growing up in New York City.
“My dad is from Shrewsbury, Mass,” Godbout said. “So I mean, if your dad is from the Mass area you’re kind of a Red Sox fan no matter what.”
Needless to say, getting the call that he’d been drafted by his childhood team last summer turned what was already a special moment into something unforgettable.
“It was definitely a dream come true,” he said.