Inside The Red Sox

Red Sox Predicted To Bring 6-foot-6 Outfielder With Huge Power To Boston

Is there room for another outfielder in town?
Jackson Roberts|
Jun 5, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of ball bags on the field during warm ups before a game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images
Jun 5, 2019; Kansas City, MO, USA; A general view of ball bags on the field during warm ups before a game against the Kansas City Royals at Kauffman Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Denny Medley-Imagn Images | Denny Medley-Imagn Images

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Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox have an interesting choice to make this year in the Major League Baseball Draft.

Because the Red Sox have so many young position players, especially outfielders, they might be inclined to take a starting pitcher with the 15th-overall pick. But a different strand of conventional wisdom says to take the best player available.

That's the approach the Red Sox took last year, nabbing Texas A&M outfielder Braden Montgomery with the 12th overall pick and eventually including him in the trade for Garrett Crochet, who is now one of the favorites for the American League Cy Young Award.

Will they take the same approach again with one of Montgomery's college teammates?

On Friday, CBS Sports' Mike Axisa predicted that the Red Sox would select 6-foot-6 Texas A&M outfielder Jace LaViolette with the 15th overall pick in the upcoming 2025 draft, which takes place on Jul. 13.

"LaViolette was the favorite to go No. 1 overall entering 2025, though a down spring likely bumped him into the middle of the first round," Axisa wrote.

"The Red Sox have not used a first-round pick on a pitcher since Tanner Houck in 2017 and getting LaViolette here would have been unthinkable a few weeks ago. He fits Boston's archetype as a big-time power threat, though his approach is not as refined as some of their more recent first-rounders (Braden Montgomery, Kyle Teel, etc.)"

LaViolette's stats did take a fairly sharp dip from 2024 to 2025, but it's not like he had an awful season in the SEC this year. He had a 1.175 OPS and 29 home runs in 2024, then dropped off to a 1.003 OPS and 18 home runs this season.

If a few bad weeks mean LaViolette lands in the Red Sox's lap, it could be amazing news in the long haul. The next question would become whether he somehow works into the outfield mix in the next few years or becomes the centerpiece of the next blockbuster trade.

More MLB: 3-Time MVP Mike Trout Has Advice For Red Sox's Kristian Campbell

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Jackson Roberts
JACKSON ROBERTS

Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Boston Red Sox On SI, please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org

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