Brooks Brannon signs an autograph for a young fan this summer while with the Salem Red Sox. (Bob Sutton / Randolph Record)
Former Randleman standout Brooks Brannon will be one of the youngest players in the Arizona Fall League, which is a circuit for some of the baseball’s top prospects.
“I was ecstatic,” Brannon said of the selection. “I knew it was very prestigious. It was a really good feeling.”
Brannon, a catcher in the Boston Red Sox organization, has played parts of three seasons as a professional since he was drafted in 2022 in the ninth round following his final season with Randleman, which won Class 2A state championships in his last two seasons.
Brannon, 20, is the youngest player on 40-player roster for the Mesa Solar Sox. He’s one of three catchers listed for the Solar Sox.
“This is an opportunity to get extra game reps in,” he said. “A good third of my season was taken away because of the knee (injury). I’m just excited to have this experience. I’m itching to get back on the field.”
His Mesa teammates will include first baseman Xavier Isaac, a Tampa Bay Rays minor leaguer from Kernersville and offseason workout partner with Brannon, who also lives in Kernersville.
Brannon played this year for Class A Salem (in Virginia) in the Carolina League, batting .251 with six home runs, eight doubles and two triples and 24 runs batted in across 54 games. He also played eight games with Boston’s rookie-level Florida Complex League club in the spring as part of an injury rehabilitation following knee surgery.
“I feel like the season went really well,” Brannon said. “I didn’t perform as well as I’m capable of all the time. But it’s not a sprint. It’s a marathon.”
He said he was most happy to complete the season in good health because his pro career has been interrupted a few times.
“The biggest highlight to me was staying healthy and I got through the season,” he said. “The last two years have been riddled with injuries and made the seasons more difficult.”
Even though he played as a first baseman at times for Salem, he said catching remains his primary position. Coming off the surgery, he said playing in the infield reduced some potential wear and tear.
After some time at home, Brannon spent a couple of weeks of additional training in Fort Myers, Florida, where the Red Sox have their offseason headquarters. He was leaving this week for Arizona.
The AFL begins Monday, lasting a little more than five weeks.
Brannon is one of eight Red Sox minor leaguers in the fall league. Since the beginning of the Arizona Fall League in 1992, more than 3,000 of its players have reached the major leagues.
