3 things to know about newly-drafted Red Sox prospect Matthew Lugo
Lugo, an 18-year-old shortstop from Puerto Rico, was one of the draft's top ranked prospects.
The Red Sox selected shortstop Matthew Lugo with the 69th overall pick in the MLB draft Monday. It was the Sox’ second pick of the evening and the second the team used on a shortstop. Lugo joined Cameron Cannon as the team’s top two picks in this year’s draft.
Lugo, an 18-year-old from Puerto Rico, attended the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy and is currently committed to the University of Miami if he does not sign with the Red Sox.
Here are three things to know about the Red Sox’ young infield acquisition:
Lugo was the highest-ranked prospect from Puerto Rico in this year’s draft.
Lugo, who stands at 6-foot-1 and 185 pounds, was ranked the 38th-best prospect in the draft by MLB Pipeline. He continues a strong tradition of Puerto Rican shortstops slotting high in the draft’s early rounds – according to MLB Pipeline, the island has seen at least one shortstop taken within the first 10 rounds of the draft each year since 2006.
“Lugo’s bat is what has stood out the most, especially over the summer and at the World Wood Bat Association World Championship in October,” reads his MLB.com profile. “He has an advanced approach at the plate, especially given his age, with a line-drive, up-the-middle philosophy. While he’s not nearly as big as [Carlos] Correa, Lugo looks the part already and has more pop from the right side of the plate than you might expect, with some feeling he could have better than average power in the future. While he’s not a burner, he runs well underway and is a solid athlete.”
On the 20-80 grading scale used for baseball players, MLB Pipeline rates Lugo at 50 and suggests he will be given the chance to play shortstop at the pro level before considering moving him to another infield position.
He didn’t just attend the Carlos Beltran Baseball Academy – Lugo is the former MLB star’s nephew.
Carlos Beltran retired from professional baseball in 2017 after a 20-year career in the major leagues. He founded the academy in 2o11 as a means better preparing young Puerto Ricans with dreams of making it in baseball. So far, the approach appears to have paid off: Baseball Reference lists 23 players currently signed with major league organizations who attended the academy, and its website says 98 percent of graduates play baseball at either the collegiate or professional level.
“It feels good to have the talent to represent my island the way they did.”
Matthew Lugo, the nephew of @MLB legend Carlos Beltran, is looking to be the next big name from Puerto Rico. 🇵🇷
More from @JesseSanchezMLB:https://t.co/wFtewp5AKG pic.twitter.com/l1w5R57Kpd
— MLB Pipeline (@MLBPipeline) May 30, 2019
MLB.com’s Jesse Sanchez reported last week that Beltran, who currently works as a special assistant to Yankees general manager Brian Cashman, has worked with Lugo as a personal coach.
“Matthew is a good and humble kid with tremendous ability, but the thing that impresses me most is his discipline and focus,” Beltran told MLB.com. “To be so young and be so focused is good. He’s aware of all the sacrifices you have to make to be a good player, and I think he has the right mentality to face the difficulties that come in pro ball.”
Alex Cora and the Red Sox appear confident in Lugo’s potential as a middle infielder.
Second-year manager Cora set some milestones in 2018 when he became the franchise’s first-ever Puerto Rican manager and the first Puerto Rican manager in baseball to win the World Series. After the Sox selected Lugo on Monday, Cora let the Puerto Rican flag fly on Twitter.
🇵🇷
— Alex (@ac13alex) June 4, 2019
Red Sox vice president of amateur scouting Mike Rikard told the Boston Globe he views Lugo as a “very talented young player.”
“He’s got really good tools,” Rikard said. “He, as well, has a chance to stay in the middle of the field, for sure. He’s got power potential. And he’s got speed to kind of push the game a little bit.”
Rikard also noted that Lugo has the same agent as Triston Casas, the Red Sox’ 2018 first-round draft pick.
