“It’s something I could always do,” said Ockimey, who was promoted last week to Triple A Pawtucket after hitting .254/.370/.473 with 15 homers in 90 games in Double A Portland. “I remember one of my furthest-hit balls in Little League was a home run to left-center field. It was almost by accident.

It’s not hard to look at Josh Ockimey and envision a promising future for him at Fenway Park. The 22-year-old features true line-to-line power from the lefthanded batter’s box, with a natural ability to drive the ball to the opposite field that has been the foundation of many tremendously productive Red Sox contributors.


“But as I started growing up and maturing, I always had that. I always had that swing or power that way. I never want to get away from that.”

With the benefit of the Maine Monster in Portland’s Hadlock Field, Ockimey was a force for the Sea Dogs, particularly at home. He hit .282/.403/.530 in his home park, and his .283/.417/.551 line against righthanded pitchers in Double A suggests a player with an offensive skill set to provide value in the big leagues.

He has backed that performance with a solid start in Triple A, going 5 for 20 with a pair of homers.

Yet prospect status, particularly in the upper levels, isn’t merely a function of what a player can do with the bat. The fact that a player like Adam Lind — who just last year hit .303/.362/.513 as a lefthanded bat with the Nationals — is currently unemployed after opting out of his minor league deal with the Red Sox serves as a stark reminder that teams aren’t willing to overlook defensive limitations just because of a bat.

Ockimey has hit a pair of homers since being promoted to Pawtucket. Louriann Mardo-Zayat/Pawtucket Red Sox

Ockimey understands that. He has spent his career working to challenge the perception that his first base defense is below average — and, in the eyes of some evaluators, potentially something that would consign him to designated hitter duties.


“I don’t know if we have a player in the organization who understands the importance of every single part of becoming a complete player as well as he does,” said Portland manager Darren Fenster. “With regards to the defensive side of things, it’s not something that you have to drag the guy outside to get work. He understands that it’s part of becoming a complete player.

“He’s put as much work into honing his craft defensively around first base as any player. The progression has been a little bit slower than what we all would have liked, but it definitely is not for lack of putting the time and effort and focus into the little details that come with becoming a good defender over at first base.”

Unquestionably, Ockimey has made strides. He views himself as having made “a huge jump” defensively since the Red Sox took him in the fifth round of the 2014 draft. Still, he shakes his head at suggestions that the position is not a difficult one to master.

He cites a number of challenging plays — the foul ball that starts in the stands and curls back by the first base bag, the righthanded cue shot that cuts wildly to the right of a first baseman at the last second, the one-hop throw across the diamond that hits the lip of the grass — in contemplating the challenges of the position.


“People say, ‘It’s just first base.’ You try catching that [one-hop throw],” he chuckled. “You don’t know if that ball is going to stay low or hit you in the face. It’s a lot tougher than what everyone thinks.”

In deference to that notion, Ockimey has put in tireless pregame work. While that’s helped to hone his skills, at times it’s made him almost mechanical rather than instinctual.

“All you have to do is trust that what you did in practice is going to transfer over to the game,” said Ockimey. “In June, I was like, ‘I’ve done all the work for five years straight. I’ve done a lot of work.’ I was like, ‘Hey, just go out there and trust it.’ If the ball is hit at me or thrown at me, I’m going to catch it.”

His big league future likely hinges on the degree to which that outlook takes hold.

Lind’s unemployed status — as well as an offseason free agent market that was unkind to defensively limited corner bats — serves as a reminder that while offensive statistics offer the easiest gauge of a player’s minor league performance, prospect status rests on elements beyond those.

THREE UP

■ Michael Chavis, after an unsteady start back in Portland, went on a tear in his first six games of August, going 11 for 19 with a .579/.652/.842 line while walking four times and striking out just twice.


■ Single A Greenville first baseman/left fielder Pedro Castellanos is starting to show the same hit tools that put him on the map as an intriguing prospect in short-season ball last year. In seven games this month, he’s hitting .536/.517/.750 with three extra-base hits and two strikeouts in 29 plate appearances, improving his season line to .300/.332/.387.

Castellanos shows untapped raw power in his 6-foot-3-inch frame, a fact that makes his ability to get the barrel of the bat to the ball particularly intriguing.

■ In short-season Lowell, 20-year-old corner outfielder Tyler Dearden has gone on a bit of a power surge in the last two weeks, hitting .306/.346/.633 with 4 homers and 4 doubles in 14 contests. The 2017 29th-rounder is hitting .296/.361/.465 and is one of five Spinners to be named to the New York-Penn League All-Star Game.

THREE DOWN

■ High A Salem lefthander Darwinzon Hernandez left an overpowering start Saturday (4⅓ shutout innings, 9 strikeouts) with a groin injury. However, the Red Sox believe there’s a chance he will pitch again before the end of the season.

Hernandez, 21, was amid a dominant run, going 5-0 with a 1.50 ERA, 51 strikeouts, and 18 walks in 36 innings over seven starts. He shows electric stuff, particularly a fastball up to 97 miles per hour and wipeout slider.

While he struggles to stay in the strike zone, opponents simply haven’t been able to square him up; he’s held batters to a .230 average and .305 slugging mark while allowing just one homer to the 417 batters he’s faced.


■ Also in Salem, righthander Bryan Mata remains shut down with a back injury that forced him out of a start July 26. With less than four weeks remaining in Salem’s minor league schedule, there’s a chance that the promising 19-year-old won’t pitch again until instructional league. He’s 6-3 with a 3.50 ERA, 61 strikeouts, and 58 walks in 72 innings.

■ Lowell outfielder Tyler Esplin, who showed an advanced offensive approach in his pro debut in 2017, has been unable to repeat his promising GCL results in the New York-Penn League. The 19-year-old is hitting .205/.285/.377, with particular struggles against lefties (.133/.235/.167).

Alex Speier can be reached at alex.speier@globe.com.