Boston Red Sox: MLB Player Comparisons for Each Top Spring Training Prospect

Boston Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski has raided the organization's farm system in the interest of winning now, including shipping away a bundle of top prospects to acquire ace Chris Sale from the Chicago White Sox this winter.

There's talent left in Boston's minor league ranks, however, and some of it will be on display this spring.

As we await Grapefruit League action, here's an interesting question: Which current MLB players do the Red Sox's top MiLB chips most resemble?

In making these comparisons, I'm considering position, tools and overall skill set. I am not saying that Player X will be the next Player Y. The idea is to highlight potential, not predict results.

I'm also sticking to current big leaguers only, so no Ted Williams versus Andrew Benintendi discussions. Sorry.

The five players listed are ranked based on my own analysis, but all retain rookie status and feature in the upper echelon of the prospect lists compiled by MLB.com, ESPN.com's Keith Law and Bleacher Report's Joel Reuter.

5. Brian Johnson, LHP

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MLB Player Comp: Rich Hill, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers

The No. 31 overall pick in the 2012 amateur draft, Brian Johnson owns a 2.60 ERA in 85 minor league starts and debuted with the Red Sox last season.

The southpaw features a low-90s fastball and plus curveball and changeup. He battled anxiety issues that shelved him in 2016, but profiles as a solid mid-rotation starter.

If that combination of good-enough velocity, strong offspeed offerings and durability doubts invokes Los Angeles Dodgers lefty Rich Hill, well, we're thinking along the same lines. 

Hill spent three seasons with Boston from 2010 to 2012, pitching entirely out of the bullpen, and returned to make four starts in 2015.

He broke through with the Oakland A's the following year at age 36 before a trade deadline swap to the Dodgers.

Boston hopes Johnson's path is less circuitous. But it would gladly take the results Hill finally achieved. 

4. Sam Travis, 1B

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MLB Player Comp: Edwin Encarnacion, 1B/DH, Cleveland Indians

A second-round pick by the Red Sox in 2014, Sam Travis has hit .303 in three minor league seasons. His power remains a work in progress, as he's managed 22 home runs in 245 games.

That makes the Edwin Encarnacion comp problematic. Travis is only 23 years old, however, and suffered a torn ACL in May. There's time for the pop to emerge.

Bleacher Report's Mike Rosenbaum noted it in 2014 when he wrote: "Travis' game parallels that of Edwin Encarnacion, as both players are undersized, right-handed hitting first baseman with plus raw power (especially to the pull side) and a good feel for hitting."

3. Jason Groome, LHP

MLB Player Comp: Clayton Kershaw, LHP, Los Angeles Dodgers

This one requires a preamble.

No one is saying Jason Groome is on a Clayton Kershaw trajectory. No one is saying anyone is on a Clayton Kershaw trajectory because that would be hyperbole on stilts. 

Here's what we know: Groome is a tall left-hander with electric stuff. He drew the Kershaw comp from a general manager in March, per Jon Heyman of Today's Knuckleball, before Boston drafted him 12th overall out of high school.

So far, he's fanned 10 in 6.2 innings between rookie ball and Low-A. He's also just 18 years old and not yet on the Red Sox's 40-man roster or among the team's non-roster invitees. 

The fact that he warrants mention in the same breath as Kershaw, however, should tell you all you need to know, hyperbole aside. 

2. Rafael Devers, 3B

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MLB Player Comp: Pablo Sandoval, 3B, Boston Red Sox

Calm down, Red Sox fans. I'm not talking about the Pablo Sandoval who has battled weight problems and posted a .242/.290/.361 slash line in two seasons with Boston after signing a five-year, $95 million contract.

Instead, when conjuring a comp for third baseman Rafael Devers, I'm invoking the Sandoval who displayed solid power and plus-plus contact skills in his first act with the San Francisco Giants. 

A slimmed-down Sandoval is trying to secure the third base job this spring. Devers could soon be pushing him for playing time.

The 20-year-old Dominican has hit .293 with an .805 OPS across three minor league seasons. He's listed at 6'0" and 195 lbs., a tad on the portly side, but combines bat-on-the-ball tendencies with raw power, soft hands and a strong arm.

Those qualities also describe Sandoval, though I'm not necessarily condemning Devers to the Kung Fu Panda's up-and-down career.

1. Andrew Benintendi, LF

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MLB Player Comp: Christian Yelich, LF, Miami Marlins

A corner outfielder with decent power, high on-base capabilities and speed, Andrew Benintendi doesn't have a lot of comps. Dexter Fowler sprung to mind, but it didn't quite work.

In many respects, that's a good sign for the 22-year-old Benintendi, who shone in a 34-game audition for the Red Sox last season and is now Boston's presumed everyday left fielder.

Nothing wrong with being incomparable, after all.

"It's not like I feel any extra pressure to live up to what other people are thinking because no one wants to succeed any more I do," Benintendi said, per John Perrotto of FanRag Sports.

If I have to pick a player to stack Benintendi next to, it'd be Christian Yelich, a career .293 hitter in four seasons with the Miami Marlins who has averaged double-digit home runs and stolen bases and snagged a Gold Glove in 2014. 

Yelich is 25 years old, meaning I'm contrasting two players on the rise. Fine. Keep an eye on their respective careers and see how far the parallel goes.

All statistics courtesy of Baseball-Reference.com unless otherwise noted.