FORT MYERS, Fla. -- One way for a prospect to make an early impression at Spring Training is to arrive, well, early.

Nick Yorke, Boston’s first-round pick in the 2020 MLB Draft, was already on the grounds at Fenway South and ready to get to work even before pitchers and catchers arrived at the beginning of last week.

As a position player, Yorke -- who ranked sixth among Red Sox prospects in MLB Pipeline’s most recent rankings -- wasn’t required to be in town until Sunday. But the second baseman realizes this is an important year for him, one in which he's likely to advance to Triple-A Worcester, perhaps as early as the start of the season.

With all the recent buzz surrounding Top 100 prospects Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, Kyle Teel and Ceddanne Rafaela, Yorke has fallen under the radar. But in the eyes of Red Sox manager Alex Cora, Yorke remains an important player to watch.

“He’s another kid who has been very diligent as far as following the program,” said Cora. “He's always here [in Fort Myers] towards the end season. He shows up early. And whatever [player development] has asked him to do, he's done.”

Yorke’s first three Minor League seasons have been quite different from each other.

In his first year in the system, he played 76 games at Single-A Salem and 21 at High-A Greenville, posting a .928 OPS. Then came the sophomore slump, as Yorke battled injuries and hit .231 with a .668 OPS at Greenville in 2022.

Last season at Double-A Portland fell somewhere in between, with Yorke starting hot, slumping after the All-Star break and finishing strong. In 110 games, he had a line of .268/.350/.435 with 13 homers and 18 stolen bases.

“Last year, I took away that it was a step in the right direction,” Yorke said. “Human nature, I always want to do better than what I showed. I’m just really excited to get out there in '24 and show what I can do.”

This should be the season in which Yorke will be able to prove exactly who he is.

“I feel really good,” Yorke said. “I feel like I know what I need to do to get myself ready for the season. And you know, once you do it more than two years, three years, you’re getting used to the lifestyle of it all. It’s been good.”

In a 2021 Spring Training where organizations made a lot of decisions based on COVID guidelines, Yorke came to Major League camp as an 18-year-old just eight months removed from high school.

Three years later, he's making his return to big league camp.

“My first year, I didn’t really know anyone, didn’t want to step on any toes, didn’t have a great relationship with a lot of guys because I was coming in fresh,” Yorke said. “I was 18 years old, coming in with 27-year-olds. But having three years under my belt now -- and having three years in Spring Training before and meeting all those guys the first year I did do big league camp -- it’s just made this transition to be in this camp a lot easier.”

Cora looks forward to seeing how Yorke has evolved.

“I was very impressed with the body of the at-bats a few years ago, being able to control the zone, hit the ball to right-center [field],” Cora said. “He's a big kid now. He’s not the same guy we saw in Spring Training of '21, and it's a big season for him. He comes here to gain experience and to see how it works. Looking forward for him to get a few at-bats at second base, move him around and get him more athletic so he’s up to the speed of the game at this level and see where it takes us.”

In a forward-thinking move, the Red Sox agreed to a two-year, $10 million deal with three-time All-Star closer Liam Hendriks on Monday. According to MLB.com’s Mark Feinsand, the contract includes performance bonuses that can bring the value up to $20 million and includes a mutual option for 2026.

If Hendriks pitches this season, it will be a bonus. The righty underwent Tommy John surgery on Aug. 2, and he hopes to return on the early side of the 12- to 14-month recovery timeline.

Kenley Jansen, the subject of recent trade rumors, is Boston’s current closer. He is a free agent at the end of the 2024 season.

At his best, Hendriks is a dominant pitcher just one year removed from back-to-back All-Star seasons with the White Sox in 2021 and '22. He posted a combined 2.66 ERA with 75 saves in 127 appearances over that span.

In what feels like a Spring Training of transition for the Red Sox, with the club putting more of a focus on young players, it was refreshing to hear what first baseman Triston Casas said on Sunday.

The first baseman expressed his love for Boston and the Red Sox, and he said that he hopes to be one of those players who signs a long-term extension well before free agency.

“Yeah, of course. I want to be here forever,” Casas said. “So this is not a bad place to play. It's actually the best, I think. So I'd love to be here.”

Casas said there have been some early discussions, but nothing “enticing” enough was presented for him to sign thus far.

While it was somewhat surprising to see the Red Sox subtract a quality arm from their bullpen in righty John Schreiber , it made sense when you consider the following: Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow traded from a position of strength (righty bullpen arms) to help patch up a major area of weakness (Minor League starting pitching).

In acquiring David Sandlin from the Royals for Schreiber, the Red Sox believe they’ve added someone who can be in their rotation down the road. Sandlin is now ranked as Boston's No. 19 prospect.

“He’s someone that we had identified early on as someone that we think is on the rise, has the makings of a legitimate starting pitcher,” said Breslow. “And I think we've talked for a while about our right-handed relief depth -- that’s something we feel strongly about, something we feel confident in. And we’ve talked about the need when the opportunity exists to create more starting pitching depth. So I think this was one example of a chance to do that.”

The scouting report on Sandlin, who had 87 strikeouts over 66 2/3 innings in an injury-shortened 2023 season?

“[His] fastball as an amateur was kind of low 90s [mph],” said Breslow. “In pro ball, it’s been up to 98, 99. He pitches at probably 95 to 97. He has a good breaking ball and a change that we see room to optimize. So it was a combination of kind of raw stuff, projection and a chance to maybe tweak the usage a little bit and improve performance.”

If Schreiber had any bitterness about being traded in the first week of Spring Training, it didn’t show. Instead, he expressed gratitude for getting the chance to get his career on track in Boston after the Tigers released him.

“I have nothing but good things to say about this organization,” said Schreiber. “Before they claimed me off waivers, I was in one of my darkest places mentally. They gave me a chance to find myself again and I tried to make the most of it when I came over here. They gave me an opportunity to succeed. I can't thank them enough for what they've done for me.”

Schreiber was traded in the middle of Saturday’s team workout. After the trade, he went back to the clubhouse and exchanged hugs and handshakes with most of his teammates.

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