Josh Ockimey

Position: 1B
Level: Double-A
Affiliate: Portland Sea Dogs
League: Eastern League
Born: 10/18/1995 (Age: 28)
Height: 6'1''
Weight: 215
B/T: Left / Right
Acquired: 5th Rd., 2014 MLB First-Year Player Draft (BOS)

Prospect Spotlight

Ockimey has been a nice development job by the Red Sox, steadily climbing the ladder and showing improvements each season since being drafted in the 5th Round in 2014 from a Philadelphia-area high school. He reached Double-A at the end of 2017 and has spent this season entirely at the level as a 22-year-old, and I saw him with Portland in late July.

A husky 6’1’’ and 215-pounds, Ockimey has good natural strength but lacks the athleticism and mobility to play anywhere but first base, meaning the bat is the key to playing time at the big league level. Offensively, the lefty-swinger is a three-true-outcomes type, mixing power and patience with plenty of strikeouts and a heavy platoon split. Facing more advanced pitching in the high-minors, Ockimey has mustered just a .202/.270/.327 line against southpaws—though he’s been excellent against righties, slashing a fantastic .276/.415/.528 with 12 of his 14 longballs. He utilizes a rotational swing with minimal pre-pitch movement, getting the front foot down early and able to track pitches deep into the hitting zone. Ockimey gets good hand and hip rotation, whipping the bat through with an aggressive path. A propensity to leak open with his front hip pulls him off pitches down and away, and this leads to most of the issues staying on the ball against lefties.

Given the defensive limitations, Ockimey needs to be able to handle lefties to play everyday in the big leagues so low on the defensive spectrum. He’s a high-character player who clearly has a mature sense of the strike zone and his swing. At the very least, the tools are here for a useful platoon bat and role player.