Well it took 23 games, but the Boston Red Sox top catching prospect, Blake Swihart, went yard on Thursday hitting his first career home run. It came in the third inning of Minnesota Twins’ starting pitcher Tommy Milone. It was a solo shot with two outs, and it sailed over the Green Monster seats and out into the street. It put the Red Sox up 3-0 at that point, but they were unable to hold on.
Swihart, 23, was drafted in the first round of the 2011 draft by the Red Sox. His time in the majors may have come sooner than expected due to the injury of Christian Vazquez. Vazquez is out the entire 2015 season as he had to undergo Tommy John surgery in early April.
So far this season, Swihart is batting .218 which is to be expected making the jump to the big leagues for a catcher. His defense is something the Red Sox and their fans should be happy with as he is yet to make an error.
The Red Sox have lost two in a row and have fallen five and a half games back of the New York Yankees in the American League East. They will play weekend host to the Oakland Athletics for three at Fenway, before heading out on a quick road trip to Baltimore.
John Ginder
John has recently graduated from the University at Albany with a B.A. in History and is currently finishing his Master's Degree there as well in secondary education. After being away from school for over two decades he decided to go back and work towards his dream of becoming a social studies teacher.
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