FARM REPORT: Sox' OF Prospect Manuel Margot

Ryan Fox

It's that time of the year as the baseball season comes to a halt for a few days as everybody prepares themselves for All-Star Week. This past Sunday was the Sirius XM Future All-Star game for minor leaguers eager to show their talents on the big stage. Though the casual fan consider it just a meaningless exhibition game, for true fans as well as baseball gurus, this game was a glimpse of the talent that these young men have and what they could mean for their respective organization in the future. 

During Sunday's game, two Red Sox prospects were able to showcase their talents. One was the No. 3 overall prospect in the Red Sox farm system, 3B Rafael Denvers. The other was the No. 4 overall prospect in the Red Sox farm system, OF Manuel Margot.

Quick Profile

Full Name: Manuel Margot
Born: September 28, 1994
Age: 20
Birthplace: San Cristobal, Dominican Republic
Position: CF
Bats: R
Throws: R
Height: 5' 11"
Weight: 170
School: N/A
Acquired: Signed as an International Free Agent on July 2, 2011

Background Prior to 2015

Over 4 years ago today (specifically 4 years and 11 days), Margot signed with the Boston Red Sox as a 17-year old International Free Agent out of the Dominican Republic. He officially made his debut in the 2012 season with the Dominican Summer League Red Sox of the Class Foreign Rookie Level. Margot officially made his professional debut on June 2, 2012 in a contest against the Dominican Summer League Mets. During which, Margot went 3-for-5 with 1 HR and 6 RBIs. For the rest of the way, Margot continued to slug his way through the Dominican Summer League as he finished the 2012 season with a .285 batting average (74-for-260) with 4 home runs, 45 RBIs, 49 runs scored, 33 stolen bases, drew 33 walks, had an OBP of .382, a SLG of .423, and an OPS of .805 in 68 games played. In the field, Margot played in the outfield in 65 games (63 in center field & 2 in right field) where he had a total fielding percentage of .984 (180-for183 fielding chances) with 3 errors. He was named a Dominican League All-Star and was named the 2012 Red Sox Minor League Latin Program Player of the Year as well.

Then in 2013, Margot was named the 17th overall prospect in the Red Sox Farm system (according to MLB.com). He also made his official domestic debut at the Short-Season Class A level with the Lowell Spinners of the New York-Penn League. However from July 24 to August 16, Margot was sidelined with hamstring injury and spent some time on the disabled list. Still in 49 games with the Spinners, Margot had a .270 batting average (50-for-216) with 1 home run, 21 RBIs, 29 runs scored, a club-leading 18 stolen bases, drew 22 walks, had an OBP of .346, a SLG of .351, and an OPS of .697. Margot also played in 47 at center field, drawing a .969 fielding percentage (125-for-129 fielding chances) with 4 errors and even assisted on a double play.

Prior to the beginning of the 2014 season, Margot was ranked the 5th overall prospect in the Red Sox farm system (according to MLB.com). He also was promoted to Single Class A where he played with the Greenville Drive of the South Atlantic League. In 99 games with the Drive, Margot had a .286 batting average (106-for-370) with 10 home runs, 45 RBIs, 61 runs scored, 39 stolen bases, drew 37 walks, had an OBP of .355, a SLG of .449, and an OPS of .803. He also played in 97 games at center field, obtaining a fielding percentage of .992 (258-for-260 fielding chances) with 2 errors.

Then on August 15, Margot was promoted to Advanced Single Class A to play with the Salem Red Sox. He finished with the 2015 season with the Red Sox, playing in 15 games with them, hitting for .340 (17-for-50) with 2 home runs, 14 RBIs, 4 runs scored, 3 stolen bases, drew 3 walks, had an OBP of .364, a SLG of .560, and an OPS of .924. He also played in 16 games at centerfield, drawing a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage (29-of-29 fielding chances). Margot was also part of the Salem Red Sox 2014 playoff run, hitting .091 (1-for-11) in 3 games as the team was knocked out by the Myrtle Beach Pelicans in the semi-finals.

Between Greenville and Salem, Margot played in 115 total games, had a .293 batting average (123-for-420) with 12 home runs, 59 RBIs, 65 runs scored, 42 stolen bases, drew 39 walks, had an OBP of .356, and had career-highs in SLG (.462) and OPS (.818). He also played in a total of 112 games in center field, obtaining a career high .993 fielding percentage (287-of-289 fielding chances) with 2 errors.

2015 Season

Prior to the 2015 season, Margot was ranked the 4th overall prospect in the Red Sox farm system (according to MLB.com and SoxProspects.com) and the 7th overall prospect in the Red Sox farm system (according to Baseball America). He began the year down at Salem, playing in 46 games with the Salem Red Sox. He recorded a .282 batting average, 3 home runs, 17 RBIs, 35 runs scored, 20 stolen bases, drew 11 walks, had an OBP of .350, a SLG of .403, and an OPS of .753. Margot also played in 42 games in center field, recording a .977 field percentage (126-for-129 fielding chances) with 3 errors and assisted on one double play. However during this season, Margot spent time on the disabled list (from May 13 to May 30) with shoulder soreness.

Then on June 22 (exactly 3 weeks ago), Margot was promoted to Double-A level to play with the Portland Sea Dogs in the Eastern League. In 19 games with the Sea Dogs, Margot has recorded a .278 batting average (20-for-72) with 1 home run, 13 RBIs, 10 runs scored, 5 stolen bases, has an OBP of .350, a SLG of .403, and an OPS of .753. As of right now, Margot has played in 19 games in center field and currently has a perfect 1.000 fielding percentage (53-of-53 fielding chances).

In most recent action, Margot played in the All-Star Futures Game for the World Team this past Sunday. Unfortunately he went 0-for-2 with a strikeout as the World Team lost to the USA Team 10-1.

But as we get ready for the second half of the 2015 season, everybody will be fixated on the growth and rising stock of Margot. Will he be patrolling the Fenway outfield or will he be used as a trade chip in the coming days before the July 31st MLB Trade Deadline? Only time (and Red Sox management) will tell.