Red Sox Minor League Weekend Recap: Mickey Gasper Slugs, Witherspoon and Eyanson Make Pro Debuts

Red Sox Affiliate Overview (April 3 - April 5)

Triple-A Worcester Red Sox
Series at St. Paul Saints (Minnesota Twins): 5-0
Season Record: 6-2

Double-A Portland Sea Dogs
Series at Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees): 1-1
Season Record: 1-1

High-A Greenville Drive
Series at Greensboro Grasshoppers (Pittsburgh Pirates): 0-3
Season Record: 0-3

Low-A Salem RidgeYaks
Series at Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles): 2-1
Season Record: 2-1

Triple-A Worcester Red Sox

Season Record: 6-2
Series Opponent: St. Paul Saints (Minnesota Twins)
Series Standing: 5-0

April 3: Friday's game against the Saints was cancelled due to rain. It was the second consecutive game affected by inclement weather.

April 4: The WooSox beat the Saints 5-3 on Saturday behind dominant pitching and solid hitting.

Jake Bennet got the start for the WooSox on Saturday and was nails through five innings of work. He struck out four and allowed only one hit in his second start of the season. His ERA remains at 0.00 through eight innings on the season. Behind Bennett was Jacob Webb, who gave up one hit in two innings in his second appearance of the season.

Things started to unravel for the WooSox when Kyle Keller entered the game. The righty gave up three runs on four hits through just an inning of work. With a two-run lead, Tayron Guerrero took the bump with a save opportunity. He did just that, striking out one and sealing the game for the WooSox.

At the plate, all of Worcester’s runs came via the long ball. In the first inning, Mickey Gasper took one deep off Zebby Matthews with one man on. Then, in the third inning, Nick Sogard and Nate Eaton launched back-to-back solo shots to add onto the lead. Just an inning later, Tsung-Che Cheng got to Matthews once more, the fourth home-run of the game for the WooSox. 

It was a well rounded effort from the WooSox, who took the third game of the series. 

April 5: The WooSox swept a doubleheader on Sunday, completing a series sweep. 

Red Sox top prospect Payton Tolle got the start in the first game of the afternoon. He turned in six innings of solid work, but isn’t yet at the same level of dominance that he was last season. He gave up two runs (one unearned) on four hits, including a leadoff home run. On the bright side, he struck out seven and got the win for Worcester. Noah Song came in in the seventh inning, holding the Saints at bay and earning the save after one inning of no-hit ball. 

At the dish the WooSox were solid if not a little lackluster. They recorded just seven hits, but managed to get the job done. Allan Castro went two-for-three, and Kristian Campbell drove in his fourth RBI of the season in the seventh inning on a single to left field. 

The second game of the afternoon made up for any lack of offense in the first. The WooSox won 11-9 in an extra-innings thriller. 

It was a bullpen game for Worcester, as Seth Martinez got the start. He gave up one run on a solo blast, but struck out three in two innings. Tyler Samaniego and Wyatt Olds pitched a combined three innings, giving up five runs and three hits. Devin Sweet entered the game with a save opportunity, but gave up two runs on three hits as the Saints forced extra innings. Reidis Sena came up clutch for the WooSox, pitching three innings of one run ball to seal the sweep. 

The offense came to life in the second game, totaling 11 runs on 10 hits and drawing eight walks. Mickey Gasper continued his excellent start to the season, crushing a 405-foot homer in the first, and a grand slam in the second to put the WooSox up 5-0. Then, Kristian Campbell launched his first homer of the year, marking the second straight day with back-to-back homers for the WooSox. Late in the tenth inning, Nick Sogard hit a ground-rule double that drove in Jason Delay, grabbing an 11-9 lead. 

The WooSox complete the five-game sweep and head back to Worcester for the first homestand of the season beginning on April 7.

Double-A Portland Sea Dogs 

Season Record: 1-1
Series Opponent: Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees)
Series Standing: 1-1

April 3: The Sea Dogs were dealt a drubbing on Friday at the hands of the Patriots, losing 18-2. Portland gave up 22 hits, and only had three of their own.

Blake Wehunt took the mound for Portland, but didn’t last long. Over ⅓ innings of work, Wehunt walked one, and gave up three earned runs, including two home runs. 

It was all downhill from there for the Sea Dogs. Cooper Adams took over, and promptly gave up another five runs over one and ⅓  innings. Patrick Halligan came in next, giving up four runs on six hits in one and ⅓ innings.

Micheal Sansone was the lone bright spot on the bump for Portland. He struck out four in three innings and gave up one run on five hits. To finish the game, Max Carlson gave up another five runs in two innings, capping off a disastrous outing for the Sea Dogs pitching staff. 

On the other side of the ball, Portland simply couldn’t get their bats going. Top-five prospect Franklin Arias accounted for two of the Sea Dogs' three hits on the day, and drove in one of their two runs. The only other player to record a hit was Max Ferguson, who hit a solo home-run in the fourth inning. 

April 4: The Sea Dogs avenged their disastrous Friday outing with a 1-0 win on Saturday. 

It was a low-scoring affair anchored by a solid five innings of work from John Holobetz, who earned the win. He gave up just two hits and walked two while striking out 3 in his first appearance of the season. In relief, Isaac Coffey and Erik Rivera were excellent, allowing a combined two hits in four innings. Rivera earned the save, registering three strikeouts in two innings.

It was a slow day at the plate for Portland. They recorded only four hits, and struck out 11 times. The lone run of the game came on a third inning groundout from Ronald Rosario that drove in Tyler McDonough. No players recorded more than one hit, but it wasn’t necessary as the Sea Dogs grabbed the win. 

April 5: Sunday’s series finale was postponed due to inclement weather.

High-A Greenville Drive

Season Record: 0-3
Series Opponent: Greensboro Grasshoppers (Pittsburgh Pirates)
Series Standing: 0-3

April 3: The Drive fell 11-7 in a high scoring affair in Kyson Witherspoon’s professional debut on Friday.

Witherspoon worked through three and ⅓ innings, allowing four runs on six hits.  The 21-year-old is fourth in the Red Sox’s prospect rankings, and is the Sox’s top right handed pitching prospect in the system.

Following Witherspoon’s debut, Ben Hansen pitched a disastrous one and ⅓ inning, giving up six runs (five earned) and seven hits while digging the Drive deeper into a hole. Joe Vogatsky was solid in his first appearance of the season. Over three and ⅓ innings he gave up one run on four hits. Hudson White also made his professional pitching debut on Friday. The catcher/first baseman pitched a stellar inning in relief, giving up only two hits and no runs. 

At the plate, Justin Gonzales and Yoelin Cespedes provided the bulk of the Drive’s offense. The first two hitters in the lineup each had three hits in five plate appearances. Gonzales, who compared himself to Aaron Judge in Spring Training, demolished his first homer of the season in the first inning and accrued six total bases. 

Cespedes hit a double in the third inning, and was driven in on a two-run knock from Mason White, his first of the season. 

Despite the valiant efforts from Gonzales and Cespedes, the Drive left 10 men on base and lost their second straight to open the season. 

April 4: The Drive lost their third game in a row, falling 10-4 in the series finale to Greensboro. 

Anthony Eyanson got the start and had a solid outing. He struck out six in his professional debut, giving up three hits and one run over three innings. The 21-year-old is the tenth ranked prospect in the Red Sox system. Marcus Philips took over in the fourth, and only lasted ⅔ innings before being pulled. He walked three batters in the short time he was on the mound, giving up four runs (one unearned) on three hits and earning the loss. Calvin Bickerstaff came in in relief, turning in three and ⅓ innings of work, giving up two hits and striking out two. 

Things started to fall apart for the Drive when P.J. Labriola took over. The lefty gave up five runs on just two hits in an inning and ⅓. Hudson White took the mound for the second time in as many games, giving up one hit and striking out one to close out the game. 

Justin Gonzales built on his solid performance from Friday. He put his raw power on display, launching a home run for the second game in a row and driving in two runs. Yoelin Cespedes continued his streak of excellence, tallying three hits in five at-bats and maintaining .500 batting average. 

Despite the solid performances all weekend long from Gonzales and Cespedes, the Drive were unable to avoid being swept in their opening series.

Low-A Salem RidgeYaks

Season Record: 2-1
Series Opponent: Delmarva Shorebirds (Baltimore Orioles)
Series Standing: 2-1

April 3: The RidgeYaks lost 11-10 in brutal fashion on Friday. They led 10-6 at one point, but allowed five unanswered runs to lose the game. 

Madinson Frias got the start for Salem and got shelled through one and ⅔ innings. He gave up six runs on six hits and surrendered three walks. The difficult outing was redeemed by Adam Bates and Ethan Walker, who pitched a combined five innings. Between the pair, they gave up five hits and two runs while preserving the RidgeYak’s lead. 

Wuilliams Rodriguez entered the game with a save opportunity, but allowed three runs over two and ⅓ innings that gave the Shorebirds an 11-10 edge. 

The RidgeYaks were rock-solid at the dish, scoring 10 runs on eight hits. Anderson Fermin was excellent, drawing three walks and scoring three times. His solo hit was a line-drive homer that scored two and gave the RidgeYaks a 9-6 lead. Ty Hodge and Stanley Tucker were also solid at the plate. Hodge notched two hits, three runs, and two walks while driving in one run. Tucker hit a three-run blast in the second inning, and added an RBI single in the fourth. D’Angelo Ortiz, son of David Ortiz, drove in two runs on a sac fly and a double play. 

The RidgeYaks drew an eye-popping 10 walks, but couldn’t score when it counted.

April 4: The RidgeYaks returned to the win column on Saturday with a 5-3 win to claim the series. 

Salem’s pitching staff was excellent through eight innings, allowing just one hit. After a superb three innings from Christian Foutch, Devin Futrell came in and showed out. He allowed just one hit and one walk, and struck out six batters in four innings, earning the win. Harry Blum earned the hold, pitching a hitless one inning. Things began to go south once Griffin Kilander took the bump as Delmirva scored three runs in the ninth, but Kilander was able to stave off the upset.

Anderson Fermin was great yet again for Salem, he recorded two hits in four appearances and maintained a .500 batting average. Avinson Pinto scored twice and Frederik Jimenez walked three times, including once with the bases loaded. 

The RidgeYaks bounce back from Friday’s loss with a season opening series victory.