This carpenter is throwing 99 mph in Red Sox camp
Ian Browne
@IanMBrowneFORT MYERS, Fla. -- Even with a fastball that has been clocked as fast as 99 mph this spring and a cutter that is turning into a weapon, lefty reliever Cam Booser isn¡¯t listed in MLB Pipeline¡¯s Top 30 list of Red Sox prospects.
After all, you seldom call a 31-year-old player a prospect. Especially one who just experienced his first Major League Spring Training.
But don¡¯t let that fool you. Booser¡¯s storyline is as unique as it gets. And even though Booser was re-assigned to Minor League camp on Monday morning, he pitched himself onto the radar as someone who can help the Red Sox at some point this season.
¡°Cam is throwing 98-99 [mph] from the left side,¡± said Red Sox manager Alex Cora. ¡°He was able to land his offspeed pitches for strikes. This started in the second part of the season last year in [Triple-A] Worcester. That¡¯s the reason he was here [in big league camp], and he did an amazing job.¡±
What is striking about Booser -- who had a 2.25 ERA, eight strikeouts and zero walks over eight innings in seven Spring Training outings -- beyond his stuff is the journey he¡¯s gone through to get to this point.
On Nov. 17, 2017, after several years of dealing with a variety of obstacles (Tommy John surgery, labrum surgery, a broken back following a bike accident, a 50-game suspension for testing positive for marijuana and self-admitted attitude problems), Booser retired from baseball.
This was shortly after the Twins -- the organization with which he spent five years -- tried to convert him to an outfielder. That didn¡¯t take.
¡°I was so far behind at that point,¡± said Booser. ¡°I was 25 and hadn¡¯t seen live pitching in a while. I had some stuff going on off the field with some mental stuff and some other things that I needed to figure out, and kind of figure out who I was away from the game.¡±
Make no mistake about it: This wasn¡¯t a man taking a break. This was a man stepping away from the game.
In fact, Booser stepped into a whole new profession when he returned to his hometown -- carpentry.
¡°I joined the local carpenters union back in Seattle, Local 41,¡± said Booser. ¡°I worked for the company that my dad was a part of for a long time. When I originally retired, I thought that was it. I didn't have any plans of coming back.¡±
How would Booser rate himself as a carpenter?
¡°I was all right,¡± Booser said. ¡°I think I¡¯m a better welder than I am a carpenter. I was doing acoustical ceilings, so we did a lot of Amazon buildings, Microsoft buildings. A lot of high rises in downtown Seattle.¡±
So how did Booser find his way from carpentry back to pro baseball in 2021 with the independent Chicago Dogs?
¡°I started doing lessons back home with a couple of kids,¡± Booser said. ¡°In that process, you have to throw with them to get loose a little bit and I was a little tentative when I first started. I was afraid my arm was going to hurt, but it actually felt really good.
¡°After the kiddos would leave, I would stay in the dark and throw into a net by myself for a couple of months. And through that process, I found out that my arm felt better than it ever had with that time off. One day, I got on the mound and my fastball was pretty good, 97-98 [mph]. So we figured, ¡®Let's give it a shot.¡¯ I met with a trainer back home the next day and went out there to [independent] ball in 2021, and it¡¯s been a great journey ever since.¡±
A year later, the D-backs signed him to a Minor League contract. And prior to the 2023 season, the Red Sox did the same, promoting him to Triple-A Worcester for the first time in his career. By the second half, he was one of the best relievers the WooSox had. Boston re-signed him as a Minor League free agent this offseason, accompanied with the somewhat surprising news he had received an invite to Major League camp.
¡°I didn¡¯t expect an invitation by any means,¡± said Booser. ¡°I was incredibly grateful for the opportunity and still am. It's been a really fun journey. And, you know, everybody's got a story.¡±
Booser hopes the best part of his story is yet to come. That, of course, would be a callup to the Majors.
¡°I mean, whenever that day comes, if it comes, it'll be out of my hands, but I think my job is to go out there and be the best version of myself each and every day,¡± Booser said. ¡°I know I might not have my best stuff every day, but if I can be the best competitor I can be and the best teammate I can be, I think I'll put myself in a pretty good position.¡±