Red Sox OF prospect Jhostynxon Garcia recognized by Baseball America for breakout season

Originally posted on Blogging the Red Sox
By Brendan Campbell | Last updated Sep 27, 2024 11:34 PM ET

Earlier this week, Red Sox outfield prospect Jhostynxon Garcia was named a 2024 Second Team Minor-League All-Star by Baseball America.

Garcia came into the 2024 season with very little fanfare and was not ranked by Baseball America as one of the top 30 prospects in Boston’s farm system. The 21-year-old returned to Low-A Salem this spring and batted .258/.365/.517 with six doubles, one triple, five home runs, 19 RBIs, 20 runs scored, 14 stolen bases, 15 walks, and 25 strikeouts in 24 games (104 plate appearances) before being promoted to High-A Greenville in late May.

Upon joining Greenville, Garcia turned things up a notch offensively and slashed a stout .311/.371/.627 to go along with 14 doubles, two triples, 16 home runs, 37 RBIs, 44 runs scored, one stolen base, 12 walks, and 50 strikeouts in 53 games (229 plate appearances) for the Drive. The right-handed hitter then received another promotion to Double-A Portland in mid-August and closed the year by posting a .263/.320/.386 line with four doubles, two triples, two home runs, 10 RBIs, 14 runs scored, two stolen bases, six walks, and 24 strikeouts in 30 games (126 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs.

Go-ahead, Jhostynxon!

The 21-year-old outfielder blasted his first Hadlock Field home run in the @PortlandSeaDogs 3-1 win. pic.twitter.com/mUZDAoUnTl
— Red Sox Player Development (@RedSoxPlayerDev) August 23, 2024

Altogether, Garcia hit .286/.356/.536 with 24 doubles, five triples, an organizational-leading 23 home runs, 66 RBIs, 78 runs scored, 17 stolen bases, 33 walks, and 99 strikeouts in 107 total games (459 plate appearances) across three different levels in 2024. That includes a .274/.347/.506 slash line in 405 plate appearances against right-handed pitching and a .380/.426/.760 slash line in 54 plate appearances against lefties.

Among the 386 minor-leaguers who made at least 450 trips to the plate this season, Garcia ranked fifth in wRC+ (151), ninth in isolated power (.250), 10th in slugging percentage, 15th in OPS (.892), 53rd in batting average, 80th in speed score (7.1), and 127th in on-base percentage, per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Garcia saw playing time at all three outfield positions between his stops in Salem, Greenville, and Portland this year. With the Sea Dogs in particular, the 6-foot-215-pounder made 27 of his 30 starts in center field, where he recorded one outfield assist and committed two errors in 61 defensive chances.

Aptly nicknamed “The Password” because of his unique first name, Garcia originally signed with the Red Sox for $350,000 as an international free agent coming out of San Fernando de Apure, Venezuela in July 2019. His younger brother, Johanfran, signed with Boston in January 2022 and is still viewed as one of the organization’s premier catching prospects even after tearing his right ACL in early May and undergoing season-ending surgery.

The elder Garcia, meanwhile, is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 18 prospect in Boston’s farm system. If not for Kristian Campbell, the argument could be made that he was the organization’s top breakout performer this year. That is noteworthy when considering Garcia can become Rule 5-eligible this winter if he is not added to the Red Sox’ 40-man roster by the protection deadline in November.

Assuming he remains with the Red Sox in some capacity, though, Garcia — who turns 22 in December — is projected by SoxProspects.com to return to Portland in 2025.

This article first appeared on Blogging the Red Sox and was syndicated with permission.

More must-reads: