The Red Sox have signed outfielder Marcus Wilson to a minor league contract, as per MILB.com’s official transactions page. Wilson has been assigned to Double-A Portland.
There is plenty of familiarity between the two sides, as Wilson was a member of Boston’s organization for most of the 2019-21 seasons. The Sox initially acquired the outfielder from the Diamondbacks in an April 2019 trade, and then designated him for assignment to open up some roster space for moves at the 2021 trade deadline. The Mariners claimed Wilson on waivers, and his time in Seattle resulted in his first taste of Major League action. Wilson appeared in three games with the M’s this season, and though he struck out in four of six plate appearances, he at least banked his first official hit, walk, and run as a big leaguer.
After opting for minor league free agency following the season, the 26-year-old Wilson is now back with the Red Sox. A second-round pick for the D’Backs in the 2014 draft, Wilson has experience at all three outfield positions, though he has spent much more time as a corner outfielder than as a center fielder in the last two seasons. He has posted respectable numbers at the plate in the minors (including a .230/.355/.441 slash line and 30 homers over 792 PA at the Triple-A level), but Wilson’s offensive productivity has been limited by his propensity for strikeouts.
Wilson gives the Sox a known quantity as minor league depth as the team sorts its outfield mix. Alex Verdugo and newcomers Masataka Yoshida and Adam Duvall look to earn most of the everyday at-bats on the grass, while utilityman Rob Refsnyder, top propects Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela, minor league signings Greg Allen and Raimel Tapia or (when they’re not in the infield) Christian Arroyo or Enrique Hernandez could all be in the picture for outfield work.