5 things to know about new Red Sox 2B Vaughn Grissom
Grissom hit his first career home run at Fenway Park in his major league debut.
Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow made his second big trade this offseason, dealing starting pitcher Chris Sale to the Atlanta Braves in exchange for infielder Vaughn Grissom on Saturday.
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Grissom will most likely play second base for Boston in 2024 despite fielding at shortstop the majority of the time this past season.
Here are five things to know about the new Boston second baseman:
Grissom hit his first career home run in his MLB debut at Fenway Park.
The new guy in town already knows a thing or two about succeeding in front of Red Sox fans.
In his major league debut at Fenway Park on Aug. 10, 2022, Grissom hit a 432-foot, two-run home run off Darwinzon Hernandez in the seventh inning that flew well over the Green Monster.
The right-handed batter rightfully flipped his bat after the fact, making an impact on Boston at just 21 years old.
“That was like a ‘We made it’ moment, I guess,” Grissom said postgame. “Like a ‘We did it’ type of feeling.”
The infielder made major league history in his first career game.
Not only did Grissom hit a home run in his first MLB appearance, he also stole a base.
He singled in the ninth inning and promptly stole second base. Grissom made history by doing so – he became the youngest player in major league history to hit a ball out of the park and record a steal in their debut.
The then-No. 1 ranked prospect in the Braves’ minor league system was just the 11th player to accomplish the feat.
Grissom didn’t play at the Triple-A level before being called up in 2022.
You wouldn’t have known it based on his historic first major league game, but Grissom hadn’t even made it to the highest developmental level before getting called up.
Atlanta promoted him to the big leagues before he got a chance to compete in Triple-A.
Grissom’s manager at the time, Brian Snitker, was impressed with the player’s historic debut performance against the Red Sox.
“He just seemed like a kid on the playground, pretty much just having a ball,” Snitker said postgame. “It’s genuine. That guy just really likes to play baseball … He did everything. He did great. Nothing fazed him. That power is real.”
He turns 23 years old on January 5, 2024.
Boston acquired an extremely young player in exchange for the 34-year-old Sale. Grissom is only 22 years old and will turn 23 on Jan. 5.
He was selected by the Braves in the 11th round of the 2019 MLB draft and opted to sign, hence his young age. Grissom had originally committed to play college baseball at Florida International University.
Instead of playing at the collegiate level out of high school, he has multiple years of minor and major league service under his belt.
Grissom slashed .330/.419/.501 in Triple-A in 2023.
While Grissom may have avoided playing in Triple-A in 2022, he began the 2023 season there with the Gwinnett Stripers.
The 22-year-old made the most of his opportunity and lit it up.
Grissom slashed .330/.419/.501 and owned a .920 OPS through 102 games in Triple-A. He logged 61 RBIs, 36 doubles, and eight home runs in 397 at-bats.
Grissom’s high on-base percentage was aided in part by his 45-game on-base streak, which lasted from June 28 to Sept. 19.
Additionally, the righty recorded a hit far more often than he struck out – Grissom collected 131 hits to his 56 strikeouts in 2023.
Boston surely feels that the player has a high upside and can produce for the club while being under team control for the next six years.
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