Worcester Red Sox's Brightest Star Comes from Curacao 

Curaçao is an island of just 171 squared miles and 162,000 inhabitants located in the southern Caribbean Sea. Its capital, Willemstad, is the birthplace of multiple major league players including Jonathan Schoop, Jurickson Profar, Roger Bernardina, Andrelton Simmons and the most recent World Series champion with the Atlanta Braves, Ozzie Albies. But possibly, none of these players have the projection and natural talent of the 22-year-old, Ceddanne Rafaela. The multifaceted and multi-lingual player (Rafaela speaks English, Spanish, Dutch and Papiamento) is developing his career with the Boston Red Sox organization and carries his island in his heart.

"For me it was the best thing that happened to me, was being born [in Curacao], an island that I love very much, the people are very beautiful there, very friendly. I love the beaches and everything [in Curacao]," Rafaela said when asked about his home.

He began to experience success at age 12 in the 2012 Little League World Series playing with the Caribbean team. From that moment, scouts already categorized him as one of the players to keep an eye on, calling him a "polished hitter," "excellent contac," "great balance and sight." Defensively, scouts highlighted his fluidity and aggressiveness by comparing him to Kenny Lofton, the former Cleveland Indians outfielder, Gold Glove winner and six-time All-Star. Rafaela remembers Williamsport as the first big moment of his young career. "That was a dream come true, for me since I was a little boy, I saw that as a dream before I wanted to be a professional and all that was step by step, so I wanted to go there and it was a dream for me," he said.

Five years later, Rafaela signed as an International free agent with the Red Sox in July 2017 thanks to scouts Dennis Neumann, Rolando Pino and Todd Claus. He made his professional debut a year later with the team's academy in the Dominican Republic, and from there, he kept climbing the minor league categories.

After a hiatus due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Rafaela returned to activity in 2021 with the Salem Red Sox and the following year was promoted to High-A's Greenville Drive, but after only 45 appearances, he made his AA debut with the Portland Sea Dogs. In the winter of 2022, he decided not to take a vacation and traveled to Puerto Rico to play in the Winter League with the Criollos de Caguas, an experience in which he learned a lot from players like Vimael Machín and New York Mets shortstop, Francisco Lindor.

For 2023, Rafaela returned to Portland where he had activity in 60 games, and after 70 hits, 18 home runs and 37 RBI, he was promoted to Triple-AAA Worcester, where he immediately became a fan-favorite due to his personality and electric game.

"Here I feel very good, I arrived, and the team accepted me very well with a lot of affection and with whom I am always sharing the most, I think is with Enmanuel Valdez and with Mosqueda, Crook and Abreu," said Rafaela. The chemistry seems to be mutual between Rafaela and Worcester.

The charisma, athletic ability, and desire to compete have the young man from Curacao as the second-best prospect in the Red Sox organization only behind the former 1st Round Pick, Marcelo Mayer, according to MLB.com. This could mean extra pressure, but Rafaela approaches it with a level head.

"I think that not letting it come to your mind, and always having your feet on the ground and knowing where you come from, always having a humble mind, that has always helped me not to think about what I should not think about and just play ball."

In addition to that pressure, Rafaela will have to deal undeniably with comparisons to one of the most important Red Sox players in the last decade, Xander Bogaerts. Both Bogaerts's hometown of Aruba and Curacao are part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. However, the young prospect displays humility in the face of these comparisons.

"First, if you are compared to a player of that category, you have to feel very proud and more with Xander for the person outside baseball that he is, who is a tremendous person," said Rafaela. "One of the most humble people I have met in my life and if you are compared with a player like that it is a privilege for a young man."

Now, the sky is the limit for this star. Despite his youth, Rafaela has two clear goals:

"I think the dream is to play in the big leagues, that's my main goal and when I get there try to keep myself because it's the goal, play many years in the big leagues," he said. It is also his dream to play in the World Baseball Classic with the Netherlands. "That's also a goal for me, I had the opportunity this year, but I try to develop more this season and I think the next one, with God's favor, if they invite me, of course I'm going to play with them."

For now, Worcester is fortunate to be a mainstay in the formation of a player with the potential to be a mega star, and they look forward to the moment in the future when any WooSox fan can say: "I remember when Ceddanne Rafaela played at Polar Park."