It is safe to say that the Boston Red Sox are not going to make the playoffs this season. In fact, it appears as though the Red Sox are en route to their third last place finish in the past four seasons. The major signings of the offseason just have not worked out, especially in the Boston pitching staff.
However, the cupboard is not bare when it comes to pitching prospects. The Red Sox had three solid pitching prospects at the minor league level in Eduardo Rodriguez, Brian Johnson and Henry Owens, each of whom appeared on various Top 100 prospect lists prior to the start of the season. For all of the struggles the Red Sox have had in the starting rotation this year, the future would appear bright, at least based on the young arms.
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While Johnson and Rodriguez have already made their major league debuts this season, Owens has been left in Pawtucket. That, however, is set to change, as Owens will reportedly join the Boston Red Sox on Tuesday, making his major league debut and taking Rick Porcello‘s place in the starting rotation.
Farrell confirms Henry Owens will start Tuesday at Yankee Stadium.
— Brian MacPherson (@brianmacp) August 2, 2015
The 36th overall selection in the 2011 MLB Amateur Draft, Owens steadily climbed up the Boston Red Sox minor league ladder, reaching AAA last season. This year has been a bit of a struggle, if one looks strictly at his 3-8 record, but Owens has seemingly pitched better than his record would indicate. In his 122.1 innings of work, Owens has a 3.16 ERA and a 1.144 WHiP, striking out 103 batters. There is concern with his walk rate, as Owens has allowed four walks per nine innings over his 518 minor league innings, including 56 walks this year.
In fact, Owens performance, at least in terms of his ERA and WHiP, may be misleading. Owens has allowed a .234 batting average on balls in play, far below the league average of .306. Given his command issues, coupled with Owens being more of a fly ball pitcher, as his 32.8% fly ball rate is 7.7% higher than the league average, it may be fair to say that Owens has been rather lucky this season.
Owens is not the type that is likely to blow the opposition away with his stuff. With a fastball that sits in the low 90’s and a solid changeup, Owens relies more on his innate feel for pitching to get the opposition out. If a 22 year old could be considered to be a ‘crafty lefty,’ Owens would fit that bill.
The key for Henry Owens as he looks to establish himself in the Boston Red Sox starting rotation will be how well he can command his pitches. Otherwise, given his fly ball tendencies and command issues, Owens could be in for a rough debut this season.