BOSTON, MA—The Boston Red Sox today announced the winners of the organization’s 2019 Minor League Awards:

• Offensive Player of the Year: 1B/3B Triston Casas
• Defensive Player of the Year: INF Ryan Fitzgerald
•  Pitcher of the Year: RHP Thad Ward
•  Baserunner of the Year: OF Jarren Duran
•  Latin Program Position Player of the Year: OF/1B Darel Belen
•  Latin Program Pitcher of the Year: LHP Nixson Muñoz

 Additionally, right-handed pitcher Trevor Kelley has been recognized as the 2019 recipient of the Lou Gorman Award. Created in 2011, the award is given annually to a Red Sox minor league player who has demonstrated dedication and perseverance in overcoming obstacles while working his way to the major league team.

 The 2019 Minor League Awards are selected by the Red Sox baseball operations department and minor league roving instructors. The recipients will be honored during a pre-game, on-field ceremony at Fenway Park tomorrow prior to Boston’s 1:05 p.m. game against the San Francisco Giants.

Casas, 19, completed his first full season of professional baseball, having been selected by the Red Sox in the first round (26th overall) of the 2018 June Draft. In 118 games for Single-A Greenville and two for High-A Salem, the left-handed hitter batted .256 (110-for-429) with an .830 OPS, 26 doubles, five triples, 20 home runs, 81 RBI, and 66 runs scored. He was recognized by the South Atlantic League as both a mid-season and post-season All-Star, as he ranked second in the league with 49 extra-base hits. Casas is the first Red Sox minor leaguer to hit as many as 20 home runs in a season—all before turning 20 years old—since Xander Bogaerts did so in 2012. Casas was signed by Willie Romay.

Fitzgerald, 25, spent the entire season with High-A Salem, making 108 starts at shortstop, eight at second base, and five at third base. At shortstop, he posted a .960 fielding percentage with 18 errors in 448 total chances. Selected as both a mid-season and post-season All-Star in the Carolina League, the left-handed batter hit .271 (125-for-461) over a team-leading 127 games with 65 RBI. Signed as an undrafted free agent in 2018, Fitzgerald has played in 207 games between Single-A Greenville and Salem, primarily appearing defensively at shortstop (190 games) while batting .272 (212-for-779) with 11 home runs and 103 RBI. He was signed by David Scrivines.

Ward, 22, made 13 starts with Single-A Greenville and 12 with High-A Salem in 2019. Between the two clubs, the right-hander was 8-5 with a 2.14 ERA (30 ER/126.1 IP), a .198 opponent batting average, 157 strikeouts, and only six home runs allowed. He surrendered three earned runs or fewer in each of his 25 starts, including seven scoreless outings of at least 5.0 innings. Selected by Boston in the fifth round of the 2018 June Draft, Ward was named a South Atlantic League mid-season All-Star. From the beginning of the season until he was promoted to Salem on June 20, he led the league in ERA (1.99), strikeouts (87), and opponent batting average (.194). Ward was signed by Stephen Hargett.

Duran, 23, batted .303 (157-for-519) with 46 stolen bases, 24 doubles, eight triples, and five home runs in 132 games between High-A Salem (50 games) and Double-A Portland (82 games). The left-handed hitter was leading all of Minor League Baseball in batting average (.387) and on-base percentage (.456) at the time he was promoted to Portland on June 3, and was hitting .404 through May 30. After batting .208 in his first 41 games with the Sea Dogs, he went 47-for-161 (.292) in his final 41 games from July 21 through the end of the season. For his efforts with Salem, Duran was named the High Class A Player of the Year by Baseball America. He was signed by Justin Horowitz.

Belen, 19, led the Dominican Summer League Red Sox Blue with a .281 batting average (68-for-242), 51 runs scored, and 104 total bases during his first professional season. The right-handed hitter also totaled 11 doubles, five triples, five home runs, and 39 RBI over 64 games for the club. Belen hit .308 (33-for-107) with an .850 OPS in his last 28 games of the season, scoring 21 runs during that time. The Dominican native appeared defensively at right field (25 games), first base (15), left field (eight), and center field (two), recording three outfield assists. Belen was signed by Manny Nanita.

Muñoz, 18, led the Dominican Summer League Red Sox Blue with a 2.40 ERA (16 ER/60.0 IP), the 11th-lowest mark in the league. In 14 appearances (eight starts) for the club, the left-hander went 5-2 while recording 62 strikeouts and issuing just five walks. Each of Muñoz’s last eight outings were starts, during which he posted a 2.72 ERA (12 ER/39.2 IP) with a 0.91 WHIP. The Nicaragua native struck out a season-high 10 batters without issuing a walk over 4.0 innings on July 3 against the DSL Dodgers Bautista. Muñoz was signed by Rafael Mendoza.

Kelley, 25, made his major league debut this season. Selected in the 36th round of the 2015 June Draft out of the University of North Carolina, the right-hander’s first big league appearance came in the Red Sox’ 10-6 win at Toronto on July 2. He spent most of the season with Triple-A Pawtucket and was named both a mid-season and post-season All-Star by the International League. He led the league in appearances (52) and tied for the lead in saves (12), going 5-5 with a 1.79 ERA (13 ER/65.1 IP), 63 strikeouts, a 1.10 WHIP, and a .216 opponent batting average. Minor league left-handed hitters this season batted only .096 (9-for-94) with a .380 OPS against Kelley. He was signed by Todd Gold.