Failed Prospects Pt. 18: Sam Travis

 Just a one-card post to show off today, and I figured it would be a good time to talk about Sam Travis.

Sam Travis was a second round draft pick by the Red Sox in the 2014 draft.  He was immediately successful in the minors.  In his first season, he hit .316/.351/.467 with seven home runs and 44 RBIs.  He followed that up with an even better season in his second year in the minors, reaching Double A and hitting .307/.381/.452 with nine home runs, 78 RBIs and 19 stolen bases.  At this point he looked like the team's first-baseman of the future, and given that he was already in Double A, that future looked soon.

He spent the entire 2016 season in Pawtucket, but his hitting took a step backward.  He hit just .272/.332/.434 with six home runs and 29 RBIs.  Some of that was due to injuries as he played in just 49 games.  But his numbers were going in the wrong direction.  Instead of looking like he would become the first-baseman in 2017, the team brought in Mitch Moreland.  Travis started the 2017 season back in Pawtucket.  His numbers again declined, to .270/.351/.375 with six home runs and 24 RBIs in 82 games.  Despite that, he did get a call-up to the Majors, playing in 33 games, but hitting just .263/.325/.342 with no home runs and one RBI in 83 plate appearances.

2018 saw Travis back in Pawtucket for a third season.  Again, his numbers failed to impress.  He hit .258/.317/.360 with eight home runs and 43 RBIs.  His speed was completely gone by now, as he stole just one base.  He again played in the Majors, but for just 19 games, hitting .222/.263/.389.  He did hit his first Major League home run and drove in seven runs.  In 2019 he had a little bit of an uptick in his numbers, hitting .275/.362/.432 with seven home runs and 33 RBIs in 68 games.  He was given a longer look in the Majors, but despite some increased power, he still could not get much going.  Travis hit .215/.274/.382 with six home runs and 16 RBIs.  

Unfortunately, that was it for Sam Travis in Boston.  In January, he was shipped to Texas in exchange for reliever Jeffrey Springs.  In his career with Boston, Travis hit .230/.288/.371 with seven home runs and 24 RBIs.  He just was not able to take the next step after Double A.  He failed to live up to his early promise and did not hit nearly enough to be a regular first-baseman at the Major League level.  Travis did not appear in the Majors with Texas in 2020 and was released last month.  His future is very much up in the air.