EXCLUSIVE: Dalton Rogers Talks Development, Pitching Changes Since Joining Red Sox

[Nick John]

“Each year, it’s been a development of pitches, and it’s been what’s allowing me to have the success I’ve been having this past season,” Dalton Rogers told me as he spoke about his time with the Boston Red Sox.

The left-hander finished the 2025 season in Double-A Portland, going 4-5 with a 3.52 ERA in 18 games with the Sea Dogs. More than anything, he showcased his development with a whopping 101 strikeouts in just 84 1/3 innings. Before making his Double-A debut, the pitcher had spent some time in Greenville, originally getting called up from Salem in 2023.

“The pitching coach there, Bob Kipper, was like, 'You’re showing some really good changeups,'” Rogers reminisced about his time in Greenville.

Rogers, who was drafted in the third round of the 2022 draft, has experienced quite the road to professional baseball as he lost his first season of college ball due to injury. He also changed his style of pitching once he got into professional baseball; Rogers was mainly a fastball pitcher in college, but has since undergone a drastic change in his pitch usage upon joining the Red Sox organization.

“In college I was 80% fastball,” Rogers explained. “Obviously, being in pro ball, you can’t throw fastballs every time.”

His changeup is viewed by members of the organization as possessing great potential, partly due to his similar arm release height and extension between his fastball and the off-speed offering. He spent his first full season focusing on developing his changeup, and upon entering his second full season in the pros, the focus shifted to a new pitch to compliment the two in his arsenal.

“We worked on a slider. To help compliment a changeup that goes arm side and a fastball that carries, a slider that goes glove side [is key],” Rogers said, discussing his three main pitches. A key takeaway as mentioned by Rogers is that he now had three quadrants of the zone covered thanks his primary offerings. While working on them, he also began to improve a curveball that he had previously used. The pitch becoming more of a focus in 2025 as he continued to improve his three main ones.

 

Rogers' development has not been with an eye on relief. Having pitched out of the bullpen his final season in college, Rogers saw a return to the rotation in his first season with the Red Sox. Across his first two full seasons, he appeared in 44 games making 42 starts. The 2025 campaign saw that plan change slightly, especially while with Greenville.

To open the season Rogers appeared in five games at High-A, starting just one.

“The Red Sox incorporated a piggyback. It allowed guys to have set days. Instead of a five-man rotation, you could have an eight-man with two starters throwing together,” Rogers explained. “How we do it is, we have pitch counts. To start the year, we were at about 60 pitches, and so Payton Tolle would start and I would come in behind him, We would have communications. He’s at about 50 pitches, I would get ready. I would treat it like I was starting. His last inning was my pre-game bullpen.”

With the offseason in full swing now, Rogers is preparing for 2026 after taking some time off from having his wisdom teeth removed. The left-handed pitcher will look to continue his great pitching from 2025 into next year, where it is likely that he'll make it to Triple-A Worcester at some point. Taking everything that he’s worked on since being drafted, Rogers continues to put the pieces together as one of the most intriguing pitching prospects in the farm system.

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