MLB Notebook: Miguel Bleis injury, WooSox’ Shane Drohan learning Triple-A hitters, Marcelo Mayer settling into Double-A

The Red Sox farm system was dealt a major blow Saturday as top outfield prospect Miguel Bleis is going to miss the remainder of the season due to left shoulder subluxation, per a source. Bleis is expected to have surgery and is expected to be ready for next season. 

The 19-year-old was placed on the injured list with Single-A Salem after straining his shoulder on a swing back on May 31 and has been out of action since. 

Earlier this season, Baseball America listed Bleis as a potential breakout candidate in the Sox system. 

"Bleis has tools, youth and production on his side. Now, he needs to shore up his approach and get a better handle on breaking balls to truly tap into his talents. How well he does that will largely determine his future, but the upside is there to be a superstar in the coming years," per Baseball America. 

Bleis was off to a slower start to begin the season, he was hitting .230 with one homer, 16 RBI, 11 stolen bases and a .607 OPS in 31 games. Prior to his injury, he was playing center and right field for Salem. 

The Dominican Republic native is currently ranked as the No. 2 prospect in the Sox system according to Baseball America and was recently ranked as the No. 86 prospect out of 100. The Red Sox originally signed Bleis for $1.5 million in January 2021, effectively making him the highest-paid player of the international signing class that year. 

Bleis was a breakout player in the Dominican Summer League in 2021 and was red hot with the Florida Complex League hitting .301 with five homers, 27 RBI, 18 stolen bases in 40 games. 

Shane Drohan Adjusting to Life in Triple-A

The Red Sox have been slowly elevating their prospects within the system over the last few weeks. One pitcher that had been turning heads was left-hander Shane Drohan. The 24-year-old tore up Double-A lineups owning a 5-0 record while posting a 1.32 ERA and striking out 36 batters in six starts. His dominant numbers in Portland earned him a promotion to Triple-A Worcester in mid-May. 

Since his call-up, Drohan has seen the level of competition between Double-A and Triple-A is drastically different. He has not been the dominant Drohan that he was with the Sea Dogs. The southpaw wasn't sharp in his debut, he was tagged for three home runs in his five innings of work, with three of the four hits he allowed clearing the wall. He walked three and struck out six.

“It’s definitely different, it’s definitely a jump I would say. It’s just a lot more experience up here, guys know what they really need to do, especially when they’re hitting, really good approaches, they know when to take and when to swing. They’re just really in control,” said Drohan to BostonSportsJournal.com.

Following a call-up from Portland on May 15, Drohan has a 1-1 record and 6.27 ERA across four starts with Worcester. He has allowed 14 earned runs, 15 strikeouts and 16 walks over 18 2/3 innings. 

Drohan is settling in and adapting to life in Triple-A and is enjoying the new challenge of facing the quality of hitters this level of professional baseball has to offer. 

“I enjoy the challenge, it’s never going to be easy, I enjoy when it gets a little tough. I think that’s when you really find out a lot about yourself and the player that you are, and the person that you are. I pride myself on when things get tough I’m going to dig my toes into the ground, I’m not going to give in,” said Drohan.

The Florida State product offers a five-pitch mix within his arsenal, a four-seam fastball, sinker, slider, changeup and curveball. Since his promotion to Triple-A, he's been sinker heavy on the mound, throwing it exclusively including 42 sinkers in his last start on June 4 against the Louisville Bats.  

"He uses a cutter too, with his sinker, but he uses more of a four-seam fastball that has action that runs. It's tough sometimes on databases, certain pitches will get tagged a certain way. He uses a little more sinker but uses his cutter too. His breaking ball he uses but hasn't a ton yet. He'll run four seams up top making it look like his sinker," said Chad Tracy. 

As Drohan continues to make more starts at the Triple-A level he will continue to find ways to fine-tune his craft on the mound. 

“I wouldn’t necessarily say I’ve made any big adjustments, it’s really been more like reassuring myself of my routine, reassuring myself that I have really good stuff and that I can challenge guys with it,” said Drohan. 

There is no doubting that Drohan's stuff plays at this level and he will continue to get better at understanding how the hitters at the International League level approach preparing for opposing pitchers. 

“I would say that’s the biggest difference, the approaches are a little bit better, competition is better,” added Drohan. “The competition day in and day out, it’s what I like to do, I like to compete."

Marcelo Mayer Settling into Portland

Red Sox top prospect Marcelo Mayer looks the part of the blue-chip prospect that has fans buzzing about his potential as he rises through the system. The 20-year-old is currently settling into Portland nicely after his promotion almost two weeks ago. 

Mayer hit his second homer with the Sea Dogs on Friday night, the two-run blast came on a 1-1 count after Akron Rubberducks pitcher Jack Leftwich hung an 84 mph curveball that he didn't miss. Both of Mayer's home runs with the Sea Dogs have come from his pull side. Mayer added strength to his 6-foot-3 frame the last few seasons and he is starting to see the benefit of hitting the ball into the air.