The Red Sox rookie became the first player in more than 100 years to achieve the feat. Originally published on NBC Sports Boston

Versatility is a valuable skill in any professional sport, including baseball.

And there are few players more versatile in Major League Baseball this season than Boston Red Sox rookie Ceddanne Rafaela.

Rafaela 2024 has played multiple positions, primarily at shortstop and center field. In fact, he is the first player in over 120 years to play 60+ games at both the shortstop and center field positions. And He became a midfielder in the same season.

Rafaela is averaging a .257 batting average, 13 home runs, 57 RBIs and a .286 on-base percentage as a rookie this season. And as noted in the tweet above, he ranks No. 1 or No. 2 among rookies in many statistical categories.

He plays with the speed and skill that makes the Red Sox fun to watch and competitive. Boston begins a critical three-game road series against the Kansas City Royals on Monday night. The Royals trail the Red Sox by 2.5 games for the third and final wild-card spot in the American League.

Making the playoffs for the first time since 2021 would be a great result for the Red Sox. But you could argue that, at least up to this point, the season has already been a success due to the positive development many of the franchise’s young players have made.

Rafaela is near the top of this list, and it wouldn’t be surprising if he ends the 2024 season as a very strong candidate for the AL Rookie of the Year Award.