Red Sox Prospect Wears No. 34 and Has Other Similarities With David Ortiz originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
The Boston Red Sox have had the pleasure of watching some of the greatest players in Major League Baseball history put on their jersey.
At the top of that list is David Ortiz, the now 50-year-old former first baseman and designated hitter who is a Hall of Famer, three-time World Series champion, and 10-time All-Star.
All Ortiz did throughout his career was swing the bat at a ridiculously high level, finishing with 541 home runs and driving in 1,768 RBIs.
Anyone comparing a player to Ortiz is probably being a bit outrageous.
He's an all-time great for a reason, and any player reaching that level would be a major success.
However, the Red Sox might have a similar type of player waiting in the wings, even if they're a bit different for one important reason.
In the recent Top 100 Prospects list from MLB.com, the Red Sox saw Justin Gonzales ranked 79th. He wears number 34, is big just like the former left-handed slugger, and is also a Dominican Republic native who happens to swing it at a high level.
“Justin Gonzales -- ranked No. 79 in the updated Top 100 Prospects list -- dons David Ortiz's No. 34 for High-A Greenville and has the same size (6-foot-5, 210 pounds) and swagger as the Hall of Famer. Still just 19 years old, the Dominican native hits the ball as hard as any player in the system but needs to cut down on his ground-ball rate to truly tap into it,” Brendan Samson wrote.
Obviously, because Gonzales is a right-handed hitter, comparing the two might be a bit unfair, but a lot of other things check out.
The size, ability to leave the yard at any moment, and where they're from all bring a lot of excitement for Red Sox fans who are hopeful that they can find another Big Papi in the future.