Red Sox $50 Million Youngster Predicted To Make Huge Jump During 2025 Season

The Boston Red Sox have so many new top prospects to welcome to the team in 2025 that it's easy to forget about those that came along last year.

Sep 9, 2024; Boston, Massachusetts, USA;Boston Red Sox center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela (43) gets a base hit to drive in two runs against the Baltimore Orioles in the sixth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images David Butler II-Imagn Images

Rookie talent was a theme of the 2024 Red Sox, and Ceddanne Rafaela embodied the ups and downs of the season better than anyone. When things were going well, he could help carry the team, but he had massive swing-and-miss issues and struggled to find overall consistency.

Due to Trevor Story's shoulder injury, Rafaela spent roughly half of his time at shortstop, though center field is his best position. The Red Sox have stressed that they want the 24-year-old, who is locked in on a $50 million extension that runs through the 2031 season, to be the team's everyday center fielder in 2025.

With the arrivals of Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony, there's been speculation that Rafaela could wind up serving in a super-utility role if he fails to take a leap offensively. But one insider doesn't foresee that being an issue.

On Sunday, Sean McAdam of MassLive proved to be bullish on Rafaela's 2025 outlook, projecting his strong spring stats into a major leap forward, both offensively and defensively.

"Now that he’s shown improvement when it comes to strike zone judgment, I’m expecting a huge season for Ceddanne Rafaela. It should help, too, that he can focus on just one position this year," McAdam wrote. "Put me down for an .800 OPS, 20 homers and 30-plus steals...and maybe a Gold Glove."

In 2024, Rafaela managed 2.7 rWAR, 15 home runs, and 19 steals. But he had a 46.4 percent chase rate, which was in the bottom one percent of all hitters, and also ranked near the bottom in whiff rate, walk rate, and xwOBA.

This spring, Rafaela is 11-for-36 (.306), but most encouragingly, he has six walks to just four strikeouts. That gives him a .405 small-sample on-base percentage, and even if he ticks down from that in the regular season, he'll land in a good place.

It's a pivotal year for Rafaela, and a 20-30 season with a Gold Glove, as McAdam projects, would cement his status as a long-term fixture of the Red Sox lineup.