Kyle Teel: The Next Buster Posey?
The hype machine might be getting out of control when it comes to Kyle Teel. The Red Sox selected the Virginia catcher with the 14th pick in the 2023 MLB Draft. The Red Sox scouting director already called the pick a ‘no brainer’. The Cavaliers’ head baseball coach Brian O’Connor came over the top with even more praise.
Is Kyle Teel really that much of a sure fire prospect? O’Connor says Teel is the next Buster Posey!
“I heard on draft night somebody said (former Phillie) Darren Daulton, and I thought that was a pretty good comparison,” O’Connor said. “I would say defensively, it’s more like Buster. The reason that we feel that way is Buster was a converted shortstop as well. And I remember, when he played shortstop and then converted to catching, he would backhand pick balls like he was a middle infielder behind home plate. And Kyle does that.”
“It just shows how great of an athlete that (Teel) is that he could catch, but he could play second base,” O’Connor said. “He could play the corner spots in the outfield because he runs good enough and has a great arm. So the versatility’s great. I think first and foremost, he can catch. He can catch in the major leagues, but hey listen, we all know how some players’ careers go, that the bat really comes. A lot of times (MLB teams say) we need to move him to (a) different position to save him because the bat plays so much.”
“This year he really developed in that area, deciding when to go out and meet with pitchers at certain points in the game and what to tell them,” O’Connor said. “He’s got a really great baseball IQ. His father played five years of pro ball, was a catcher in professional baseball and has just been around the game his whole life. The baseball IQ is really high and I think he’s going to do a great job of helping manage a pitching staff.”
Red Sox fans everywhere are praying right now that he’s right. Boston really doesn’t have a long term answer at the catching position. It’s really Connor Wong‘s job right now who is solid defensively but doesn’t have a ton of punch in his bat. It sounds like Teel has a chance to become a franchise level catcher. The expectations are high for Teel given all the praise that has come his way since being selected by Boston.
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