Red Sox Minor League Report: Portland Wins Behind Terrific Pitching For Second Straight Night

[Ben Lofy]

Let's see how the Red Sox affiliates fared on Sunday afternoon to wrap up Fourth of July weekend.

Triple-A Worcester Red Sox

Series @ Syracuse Mets (New York Mets): 3-3

Season Record: 41-42

Worcester salvaged the series split with a 7-3 win in the finale behind early offense.

Raymond Burgos got the nod on Friday afternoon and turned in a one-run outing. Across 4⅔ innings, Burgos allowed four hits and a walk, letting a solo run cross home plate. He struck out three before WooSox Manager Iggy Suarez made a call to the bullpen. Eduardo Rivera took an inning and ⅓ of relief work, sparking what was a solid combined effort from the Worcester bullpen. Rivera allowed a hit and a walk, earning the win before Tyler Uberstine took over in the seventh. Uberstine turned in a perfect inning, striking out two and lowering his ERA to 3.05. Sam McWilliams was up next in the eighth inning. McWilliams allowed two runs on one hit and two walks in one inning of work, but kept the game from getting out of hand. Wyatt Olds took the final frame, sealing the win with a two-strikeout perfect inning.

The WooSox took advantage of the good pitching with a solid performance at the plate. Andrew Knizner led the way with two RBIs as Tyler McDonough, Mickey Gasper, and Max Ferguson each contributed two hits. In the first, Gasper stepped up to the plate with runners on the corners. He proceeded to crank a double to the right field wall, driving in McDonough. With Gasper on second and Vinny Capra on third later in the inning, Allan Castro hit a groundball single to left, driving in Capra and advancing Gasper to third. To add to the early offensive surge, Castro and Gasper executed a double steal of second and home, tacking on another run. Knizner drove in Castro shortly thereafter, adding two more runs to the lead. Holding onto a four-run lead in the sixth inning, Ferguson gave the WooSox some insurance as he drove in Kristian Campbell on a single to left. Capra added some extra comfort as he drove in Brett Harris on a sac fly later in the inning.

Double-A Portland Sea Dogs

Series vs. Altoona Curve (Pittsburgh Pirates): 4-2

Season Record: 43-37

Portland trounced Altoona 10-0 to claim the series win in decisive fashion.

On Saturday, Patrick Sandoval and Anthony Eyanson combined for an excellent game. On Sunday, Blake Wehunt and Jedixson Paez did them one better. The duo of Wehunt and Paez let up only two hits amidst nine shutout innings. Wehunt got the ball rolling, earning his fourth win of the season for his five inning efforts. He has been dominant as of late and is a serious candidate for a call-up to Triple-A. On Sunday, Wehunt walked four and allowed just one hit, accumulating nine strikeouts as his ERA dropped to 3.38. Paez entered in the sixth inning, looking to shut down the rest of the game. He did just that. Paez allowed just one more hit and struck out eight more batters while not issuing a single walk. It was a dominant effort from both pitchers as they set up the Sea Dogs offense perfectly.

Portland’s offense took full advantage, tallying ten runs and ten hits. Franklin Arias and Marvin Alcantara recorded two RBIs each as the Sea Dogs got the scoring started early. Alcantara sparked a four-run second inning with a two-run shot to center field, scoring Brooks Brannon. Later in the second, Matt Frazier dashed home on a wild pitch as Nelly Taylor advanced to third. Ahbram Liendo drove Taylor in with a one-out single to center field as Portland grabbed a four-run advantage. One inning later, Nate Baez added another run to the lead as he scored on another wild pitch. In the sixth, Brannon clubbed a homer of his own to center, making the lead 6-0. With the game out of reach, Franklin Arias joined in on the fun in the seventh inning, singling on a ground ball with two runners in scoring position. Liendo and Caden Rose scored as a result. Arias then scored later in the inning on a bases-loaded hit-by-pitch. In the eighth, Raudelis Martinez added insult to injury with a bases-loaded groundout, scoring Rose one final time.

High-A Greenville Drive

Series @ Winston-Salem Dash (Chicago White Sox): 1-5

Season Record: 31-47

Greenville fell 8-3 in the finale of a disappointing series.

Devin Futrell, who pitched six shutout innings his last time around, was battered around during his start on Sunday afternoon. Futrell allowed two runs in each of the first three innings, lasting through the fifth inning. Across the five frames, Futrell allowed seven runs on 11 hits in what was easily the worst start of his season. Calvin Bickerstaff entered in the sixth inning, looking to do some damage control. Bickerstaff was successful for the most part, allowing one more run on three hits as he struck out one. Finally, Matt McShane took the eighth and final inning in perfect fashion, striking out two.

Antonio Anderson was the only member of the Drive to record a multi-hit game on Sunday as Greenville couldn’t replicate their strong offensive showing from Saturday. It was Isaiah Jackson who first put the Drive on the board, hitting a solo home run in the second inning. Facing a five-run deficit in the fifth inning, Mason White did his part to close the gap, hitting a solo shot of his own. Justin Gonzales drove in Anderson in the eighth on a groundout, but it had little effect as Winston-Salem had opened an eight-run lead.

Low-A Salem RidgeYaks

Series @ Augusta GreenJackets (Atlanta Braves) : 3-3

Season Record: 31-47

Salem fell in the series finale 4-1 as the offense struggled mightily.

Trennor O’Donnell made his first appearance for Salem in 2026 on Sunday, grabbing the start. Unfortunately for O’Donnell, his first appearance was less than ideal as he earned the loss. Over three frames, he allowed two runs on three hits as he struck out four batters. Jose Bello took a bulk relief role on Sunday, pitching from the fourth through the sixth as he struggled as well. He allowed another two runs on three more hits as Augusta took advantage of the shaky pitching. Devin Gartrell took the final two frames for Salem, spinning a near-perfect outing. He allowed just one hit as he struck out five of the eight batters he faced, highlighting the day for the RidgeYaks’ staff.

Salem’s offense was nothing impressive on Sunday, accounting for just three hits and one run. The lone run came in the eighth, down 4-1. With Franklin Primera in the box, Justin Barry scored via a balk as Salem avoided the shutout. Barry, Primera, and Kleyver Salazar were the only Yaks to record a hit, each of them smacking a single. 

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