After two years in rookie ball, Red Sox pitching prospect Luis Cohen has been assigned to Low-A Salem for the start of the 2024 minor-league season.
Cohen originally signed with the Red Sox for just $10,000 as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in January 2022. The Tucacas native made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League shortly thereafter, pitching to a 2.89 ERA with 42 strikeouts to 14 walks over 13 appearances (12 starts) spanning 46 2/3 innings of work.
Last summer, Cohen made the jump to the Florida Complex League. The 20-year-old right-hander made a strong first impression in his stateside debut by earning July’s FCL Pitcher of the Month honors. Altogether, he posted a 3.46 ERA with 39 strikeouts to 14 walks in 10 outings (seven starts, 39 innings) for Boston’s Fort Myers-based affiliate.
Among the 48 FCL pitchers who eclipsed the 30-inning threshold in 2023, Cohen ranked 24th in strikeouts per nine innings (9.00), 12th in walks per nine innings (3.23), 16th in strikeout rate (25.3 percent), 15th in walk rate (9.1 percent), 11th in batting average against (.206), sixth in WHIP (1.08), eighth in line-drive rate (15.6 percent), 12th in ERA, eighth in FIP (3.85), and 17th in xFIP (4.56), per FanGraphs.
Listed at 6-foot and 172 pounds, Cohen throws from a three-quarters arm slot and has a high leg kick. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the righty operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 91-93 mph fastball that tops out at 94 mph, a 74-78 mph curveball that has depth, an 80-82 mph slider that has a horizontal break, and an 80-82 mph changeup that shows late fade.
