Boston Red Sox outfielder Ceddanne Rafaela is looking to make organizational history this week, as he's in competition to win the Platinum Glove Award in the American League.

Rafaela captured the Gold Glove Award in center field earlier this week and is now eligible to win the Platinum, which gets announced on Friday. Cal Raleigh of the Seattle Mariners won the award in 2024.

As noted by Tyler Milliken of the Section 10 Podcast, the Red Sox have never had a Platinum Glove winner.

His defensive year

The 24-year-old Rafaela started 129 games in centerfield this season, but played in 141 games there overall, also getting 24 games of action at second base. In center, he posted an AL-best eight assists, but he also had an AL-leading five errors.

He posted a .985 fielding percentage and is known for his excellent arm and great range.

As noted by MLB.com:

Thanks to his elite speed, fantastic instincts and strong arm, Rafaela’s +22 fielding run value was second only to Giants catcher Patrick Bailey (+31).

Rafaela's development at the plate

Rafaela still is a bit of a free-swinger, as he posted only a .295 on-base percentage this year, but he did provide more offensive value than he has previously. He had a 95 OPS+ with 16 homers, 63 RBIs and 20 stolen bases. He walked only 28 times in 587 plate appearances, but with his speed, he is good depth piece at the bottom of the Red Sox order.

Other Sox news and notes

--Alex Bregman officially opted out of his contract and is a free agent

--Lucas Giolito will reportedly decline his end of a mutual option and is now a free agent

--Roman Anthony was named a finalist for the American League Rookie of the Year

--Garrett Crochet was named a finalist for the American League Cy Young

--Roger Clemens was put on the Contemporary Baseball Era ballot for the Hall of Fame, meaning he could finally hear his name get called to Cooperstown. He'll find out on Dec. 7

--Trevor Story has until Nov. 6 to decide if he's opting out of the remaining two years on his contract

RELATED RED SOX STORIES

ANOTHER COACH OUT? The Boston Red Sox could be set to lose another key member of brain trust this offseason. Here's the latest on Justin Willard. CLICK HERE: 

RED SOX'S CITY CONNECT UNIFORMS SETS MLB RECORD: Boston's Green Monster City Connect jerseys were a major hit among fans. CLICK HERE

RED SOX COULD PURSUE REUNION WITH SLUGGER: The Red Sox were named as a potential fit for Kyle Schwarber according to an MLB insider. CLICK HERE

JOIN THE CONVERSATION

Remember to join our RED SOX on ROUNDTABLE community, which is FREE! You can post your own thoughts, in text or video form, and you can engage with our Roundtable staff, as well as other Red Sox fans. If prompted to download the Roundtable APP, that's free too!