enlarge Gordon Chibroski/Staff Photographer

Jason Place, who celebrated his 21st birthday in the spring, has struggled early in his career, but still showed enough for the Red Sox to want to challenge him.

enlarge Gordon Chibroski/Staff Photographer

Josh Reddick is 22 years old, in his second year with the Portland Sea Dogs. He’s also the oldest player in an outfield that’s gone from players in their mid-20s to those in their early 20s in just one season. But it’s also an outfield that has the potential to continue to rise with the Red Sox.

enlarge Gordon Chibroski/Staff Photographer

Ryan Kalish slumped early in the season after being called up from Class A, but has come on strong in the last month, with some power and a flair for steals.

 

 

PORTLAND — Josh Reddick would arrive at the Hadlock Field clubhouse last year carrying a box of goodies from Dunkin' Donuts. He was just a 21-year-old kid and seemed to stick out from others on the veteran Portland roster.

Now 22, Reddick is the old man of the Portland Sea Dogs' outfield.

In one season, Portland went from a team with outfielders in their mid-20s to players who still have fresh memories of their high school graduations.

Reddick turned 22 in February. Reid Engel hit 22 in May. Ryan Kalish and Jason Place celebrated their 21st birthdays in the spring.

All could end up in the major leagues, just not real soon.

"We've got some pretty talented kids, but they're kids," said Sea Dogs Manager Arnie Beyeler.

Bubba Bell, 26, and Aaron Bates, 25, patrolled the Hadlock outfield to start the season. And last year Portland had outfielders Bryan Pritz (then 26), Jeff Corsaletti (25), Zach Daeges (25), Jay Johnson (25) and Sean Danielson (25).

Corsaletti has been traded, and Johnson and Pritz were released. The others are in Triple-A, with Bates making his major league debut last week at Fenway Park.

The Red Sox drafted Reddick in the 17th round in 2006, the same year they drafted Place (first round) and Kalish (ninth). Engel came out of high school the year before, in the fifth round.

Getting a player out of high school is not usually cheap. Boston gave Place a $1.3 million signing bonus. Kalish got $600,000, Engel $150,000 and Reddick $140,000.

Obviously there is a gamble involved because scouts have to project how a teenager will develop. High school outfielder Mickey Hall was taken in the second round of the 2003 draft and given $800,000. He did not reach Portland until the second half of 2008 and batted .231. Hall became the player to be named in the trade with Cleveland for pitcher Paul Byrd.

College players arrive more developed. Jacoby Ellsbury helped Portland win the 2006 Eastern League title as a 23-year-old. He then helped Boston win the 2007 World Series.

The younger kids arrive with more to learn.

Reddick was the classic example. His forte is making contact, and early on he would swing at nearly any pitch around the strike zone. The Red Sox wanted him to be more selective.

Reddick had trouble adjusting and hit .214 in 23 games in Portland last year.

This year, Reddick is hitting .271 with 12 home runs (and 22 walks) in 49 games, despite missing five weeks with a strained oblique.

"I'm not trying to do too much," he said. "I'm just taking deep breaths in the box and not trying to think too much up there."

The Red Sox also teach their minor leaguers about nutrition. Reddick finally got the hint. No more doughnuts.

"My body was shutting down. I was not taking care of it the way I should," Reddick said. "I'm focused on that a lot and I feel good."

Engel began the season in Portland, which was a surprise, after an injury-filled 2008 when he batted .248 in Class A. Engel is the backup and was batting .270 in May, but has slumped since, now down to .237.

Kalish was also slowed by an injury, breaking the hamate bone in his right hand in 2007. He began 2009 in advanced Class A Salem, batting .304 in 32 games before his promotion.

Kalish began his Double-A career by going 1 for 21 (.048) and was still hitting only .195 on June 16. He has batted .293 (39 for 133) since. He has three home runs and seven stolen bases.

"Things are hopefully going up," Kalish said. "You put pressure on yourself to do more than you can."

Jason Place can relate to putting pressure on yourself. Since being drafted in the first round (one spot ahead of Red Sox reliever Daniel Bard), the expectations are there.

"I have a tendency to speed up the game," Place said, "getting your nerves all up, and feeling like you're trying to hit the ball 500 feet."

Since hitting .292 in...