Gage Ziehl Brings A High Floor to Red Sox's Farm System

The Boston Red Sox pulled off one of their more questionable trades of the offseason, where they managed to move Jordan Hicks to the Chicago White Sox. Going with Hicks to Chicago was David Sandlin, two players to be named later and $8 million. Returning to Boston was pitcher Gage Ziehl and a player to be named later.

Ziehl, who was drafted in the fourth round of the 2024 draft by the New York Yankees, is now with his third organization in three years after being traded to the White Sox for Austin Slater. The right-hander appeared in 22 games, making 21 starts as he split time between Single-A, High-A, and Double-A. He tossed 107 innings while striking out 90 batters and walking just 19. Ziehl doesn’t follow the typical profile that Craig Breslow tends to target in pitching as he stands just six feet tall and doesn't possess elite extension, but he has been described as “compact but strong and durable”.

The right-hander holds a deep arsenal, featuring a cutter, sweeper, slider, four-seam fastball, changeup, and curveball all thrown with a repeatable high three-quarters delivery. Doing so has allowed him to locate his pitches with precision. Of all his pitches, the changeup stands out as his premier offering.

In 2025, batters whiffed on 24% of his changeups, with the pitch generating a 34% strikeout rate. Batters also only managed an average exit velocity of 81 mph. Despite that, the pitch was only thrown eight percent of the time, a number that should see an increase under Boston’s pitching development program.

While Ziehl may not be overpowering (his fastball averaged just 92.2 mph last season), he showed an ability to throw strikes (67.7 strike percent) while limiting walks (4.2% rate), two traits that will allow him to move through the minors quickly. Dependent on contact management, Ziehl relies on his assortment of secondary offerings to help generate weak contact.

His Baseball America scouting report states that his fastball was “tweaked to generate more cut in 2025." It also suggests that he won't be able to add a ton of velocity down the line, though that may not matter since “Ziehl relies on his mid-80s sweeper and 89 mph cutter, throwing those two pitches nearly 70% of the time with near-even distribution. His sweeper has above-average spin rates and is his best swing-and-miss offering."

Unless Ziehl’s secondaries can make a leap in quality, he’s likely destined as an up-and-down starter or long-relief reliever at best. At worst, he would provide organizational depth for the upper minors and be an emergency call-up. After a strong campaign in 2025, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see him open the 2026 season with Double-A Portland.