Red Sox's Brayan Bello fans 18 in first two Double-A starts

Brayan Bello is dominating Double-A at the onset of the 2022 campaign. Photo by Dustin Bradford/Getty Images

Red Sox top pitching prospect Brayan Bello fans 18 in first two Double-A starts

Originally posted on Sportsnaut | By Jason Burgos | Last updated 4/19/22

Brayan Bello is one of the bright young talents in the Boston Red Sox farm system, and in 2022 he has quickly shown why.

Bello — a native of the Dominican Republic — was one of four players that landed on Keith Law’s Top 100 prospects in baseball list in January. Along with the annual Baseball America and Baseball Prospectus lists, it is one of the most influential rundowns of the best rising talents throughout the MLB’s minor-league system. That’s impressive for a 22-year-old who only signed with the franchise as a teenager in 2017.

In 2021, Bello began his season in High-A ball and was outstanding in his first six starts, posting a 2.27 ERA, 2.82 FIP, and a 36.9% strikeout rate compared with a 5.7% walk rate. Those strong numbers forced the team to promote the young star to the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs last June.

Bryan Bello could force a promotion to Boston Red Sox Triple-A soon

While there were some bumpy moments for Bello during his second half in Double-A, he still showed a great deal of promise when he had two exhilarating performances in August. One where he struck out nine during six innings of one-hit ball, and another where he fanned 11 in five 1/3 innings. The positives in his performances were too much to ignore and he landed a spot on the American League squad in last summer’s Futures Game.

Well, just like he got off to a fast start in High-A after mixed results the level below last year. In 2022, he is off to another nasty (in a good way) beginning in Double-A. In two outings, Bello has 18 Ks in just 10 innings. His most recent start on Sunday was his bumpiest when he gave up two solo home runs in a loss where he still struck out eight and only walked one in five innings.

This follows his gem last week when he struck out 10, had a single walk, and no runs given up in five innings. Currently, he has the lowest WHIP, second-best opponent’s batting average and most strikeouts on the Sea Dogs’ pitching staff (via Milb.com).

While it may be a stretch to expect him to be on the Red Sox roster in 2022 if he continues this kind of play he could be setting himself up for a 2023 rotation spot after a promotion to Triple-A sometime this summer.

This article first appeared on Sportsnaut and was syndicated with permission.

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