Stock Up, Stock Down: Which Red Sox Minor League Players Are Hot in September?

[Nick John]

The 2025 season has been an interesting one for the various farm teams in the Boston organization. While their records don't reflect as much success as previous seasons (see: the graduations of numerous top prospects), the various affiliates who comprise the farm system have had success with the manner in which their players have developed across the season.

Of course, for every Greenville that is fighting for a playoff appearance as the season winds down, there are teams like Portland and Worcester that are playing close to .500 baseball, due in part to the constant roster changes occurring at their levels and players needing to adjust to their new situations.

Minor league players are wont to suddenly get hot or go extremely cold. With that in mind, let's analyze some of the biggest winners from Boston's farm system over the past month.

1) OF Justin Gonzales .304/.363/.451, nine doubles, two home runs, nine RBIs

Gonzales is a name that has been on the radar of fans since he was named the top DSL player in 2024, which he followed up by playing in the 2025 Spring Breakout and Futures at Fenway South games. Since then, he’s done nothing but impress, as shown by his promotion from the Florida Complex League after just one hitless game.

Despite being just 18 years old, Gonzales has shown an ability to put the ball in play (17 strikeouts across 113 plate appearances in August). In that same span, he also walked the second most times in a month this season with eight, only trailing May’s 14 free passes.

Gonzales has spent the majority of the 2025 season with Salem, and the 18-year-old will get to spend the last bit of the season with Greenville as they fight for a playoff spot. Gonzales played some first base in 2024, but has only played in the outfield this year, where he’s split most of his time between center field and right field. Since being promoted to Greenville, though, he has exclusively played the corner outfield positions.

2) P Yhoiker Fajardo 23 2/3 innings, three ER, eight BB, 36 K, .159 opponent batting average

Acquired in an offseason trade with the White Sox for Cam Booser, Fajardo has exploded onto the scene in the lower levels of the minor leagues. He dominated in the Florida Complex League and after just 20 2/3 innings there, he was promoted to Salem... where he has only looked even better.

Across his time with Salem, Fajardo has pitched in 12 games and tossed 48 1/3 innings while holding batters to a .230 average. Armed with three pitches, Fajardo’s best pitch is a fastball that can top out at 97 mph. Between his fastball, slider and changeup, he’s been able to mix them to strike out 53 batters in Salem.

However, Fajardo really took off in August. Starting six games, the right-hander tossed 23 2/3 innings where he just looked overpowering to hitters. Across those innings, Fajardo limited opposing batters to just 13 hits and eight walks, good for a 0.89 WHIP while also surrendering just three runs.

The most impressive part of this run, however, would be the 36 strikeouts. In just a single month, Fajardo got nearly 68% of all his strikeouts with Salem. Fajardo will be an interesting name to keep an eye on for the 2026 season, especially if the Red Sox get aggressive and push him along to Greenville.

3) P Hayden Mullins 27.0 innings, five ER, 28 K, .196 opponent batting average, three wins

Mullins is no stranger to being talked about on the site, as he’s had a phenomenal season split between Greenville and Portland. A left-handed pitcher drafted back in 2022, Mullins was promoted to Portland on April 29 and hasn’t stumbled at all.

In 17 games with the Sea Dogs, he’s gone 7-2 with a 2.23 ERA across 80 2/3 innings pitched. In August, he turned it up a notch further. In five starts, Mullins tossed 27.0 innings while striking out 28 batters. Opponents also only mustered 18 hits off of him, good for a .196 batting average.

Seen as a pitcher who will likely move to the bullpen, Mullins continues to further the argument for developing him as a starter. With a four-pitch mix, Mullins has put himself onto a path of either staying in the rotation or becoming a dangerous middle reliever.

Honorable Mentions: P Dalton Rogers (35 strikeouts in 27 innings), C Gerardo Rodriguez (.931 OPS)

Despite the number of players who had a great August, there were some who disappointed last month.

1) OF Miguel Bleis .195/.263/.287, 26 strikeouts in 24 games

Bleis is no stranger to going on hot and cold streaks. Earlier in the season with Greenville, he went on a hot streak that seemed to show just why he was once a Top 100 prospect. But, just as often as he uncovers a torrid stretch, Bleis goes ice cold.

And in August, boy did he struggle. Appearing in 24 games, Bleis had 87 at-bats; of his 17 hits, 11 were singles, as his power vanished across the month. The bigger issue was the large amount of strikeouts compared to walks. The outfielder struck out 26 times while walking just six times. That isn’t ideal, especially when you’re struggling to put the ball in play to begin with.

August alone was also Bleis’ worst month of the season, a trend that many don’t want to see as the prospect attempts to finish his fifth season in the Red Sox's farm system on a positive note.

2) P Brandon Clarke 3.0 innings, 15.00 ERA, five ER, six BB, four K

Clarke had an up-and-down season in his first professional year. Looking unhittable in Salem after striking out 17 in 9 2/3 innings, he was quickly promoted to Greenville, where things have been a mixed bag.

Prior to a stint on the injured list, Clarke had been putting together a very good season, but upon his return, his performance trended downward. In four July starts, he only went nine innings, and things only got worse in August.

Clarke would only make two starts before being shut down. In those two starts, Clarke tossed a combined three innings where he allowed five earned runs and six walks. He also surrendered four hits and hit two batters across that span. His WHIP was 3.33 for the month of August.

Clarke is still incredibly talented as shown by his high strikeout numbers and armed with a fastball that can top out in triple digits, but these are the kinds of months that can set a prospect back.

3) P Zach Bryant 10 1/3 innings, 14 H, 11 ER, nine B, 12 K

Originally acquired back in February of 2021 from the Chicago Cubs for Josh Osich, Bryant has seen his time in the Boston farm system yield mixed results. After a 2021 season that saw him pitch rather well for Greenville, Bryant has seen himself stuck in Double-A with Portland since 2022, including missing all of 2023 and most of 2024 due to injury.

Bryant, who is in his age-27 season, has had an up-and-down campaign that has featured more downs than ups. August was his worst month of the season, however, as he struggled in 10 1/3 innings pitched. In that span, he surrendered 15 runs, 11 of them earned, on 14 hits and nine walks for a 9.58 ERA. His WHIP in that span was also 2.23. The only positive for him in August was striking out 12 batters, but otherwise, there wasn’t much to write home about for Bryant.

Bryant will be eligible for minor league free agency this offseason, and unfortunately for someone who grew up a Red Sox fan, it might be the end of his time in the system unless he turns things around in September.

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[Larry Cook]

I think hoboletz deserves a spot in the impressive list as well! He throws really well and just needs to tighten up the secondaries some more!!  

[Nick John]

17 hours ago, Larry Cook said:

I think hoboletz deserves a spot in the impressive list as well! He throws really well and just needs to tighten up the secondaries some more!!  

It was just a matter of numbers. Tried to keep it to just three players on each list. Honestly I could spend days just talking about all the arms the Red Sox have developed over the past two years

[Larry Cook]

11 hours ago, Nick John said:

It was just a matter of numbers. Tried to keep it to just three players on each list. Honestly I could spend days just talking about all the arms the Red Sox have developed over the past two years

Tolle and early up in Boston. Incredible year indeed for arms