Coming into the 2023 season, Red Sox first base prospect Albert Feliz had hit 10 career home runs in 106 professional games. Thanks to a power-filled second half, he was able to match that total with Low-A Salem last year.

As a 21-year-old, Feliz got into 90 games for Salem in 2023. The right-handed hitter slashed .242/.315/.407 with 17 doubles, one triple, 10 home runs, 45 RBIs, 39 runs scored, 29 walks, and 121 strikeouts over 333 plate appearances.

Nine of those team-leading 10 home runs came after the calendar flipped from June to July, as Feliz slugged a stout .497 in his final 48 games (185 plate appearances) of the year. During that impressive stretch, he recorded both the second four-hit game (July 6) and multi-homer game (August 31) of his young career.

Among the 71 hitters who made at least 300 trips to the plate in the Carolina League last season, Feliz posted the 11th-highest slugging percentage, isolated power mark (.165), and line-drive rate (24.4 percent). He also ranked 30th in batting average, 24th in OPS (.723), and 26th in wRC+ (104), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Feliz saw the majority of his playing time with Salem come at first base, as he made a team-high 48 starts there while only committing six errors in 382 chances. Elsewhere, the burly 6-foot-2, 200-pounder logged 131 1/3 innings in left field (where he recorded three outfield assists) and 14 innings in right. He also pitched in one game (Aug. 25), which is something he has done in each of the last three seasons.

Feliz, who turns 22 in April, is not currently regarded by any major publication as one of the top-ranked prospects in Boston’s farm system. The Dominican Republic native originally signed with the Red Sox for $400,000 as an international free agent coming out of Santo Domingo in July 2018.

After a strong pro debut in 2019, when he went deep nine times in 66 Dominican Summer League games, Feliz’ career was interrupted by the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020. As a result of the pandemic, Feliz did not make his stateside debut until July 2021. His first game in the rookie-level Florida Complex League actually came on the three-year anniversary of his signing date (July 2).

In the time that has passed since then, Feliz has established himself as a bat-first prospect with plus-plus raw power to the pull side and some holes in his swing. Couple those issues to make contact with a limited defensive profile, and it becomes clear that Feliz still has some work to do on the developmental side of things.

With that being said, Feliz is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to High-A Greenville for the start of the 2024 minor-league campaign. The Drive are fresh off winning their second South Atlantic League title and open their season on the road in early April.

(Picture of Albert Feliz: Gary Streiffer/Flickr)