Three Red Sox Prospects Who Looked Great In The Spring Breakout Game

The Spring Breakout game has come and gone, as the Red Sox prospects unfortunately fell to the Orioles prospects in what was a close game. The idea behind the game is a great one, as it gives all 30 major league teams a chance to showcase their top prospects in a game worth little beyond bragging rights for the young players.

For any Red Sox fan, the roster was a look into the organization's possible future, as it was filled with both players knocking at the major league level and newcomers poised to make their own mark. Among the players on the roster that fans were excited to see were infielders Franklin Arias, Henry Godbout, and Mikey Romero, along with outfielders Allan Castro and Justin Gonzales. On the pitching side, fans got to see the likes of Anthony Eyanson, Marcus Phillips, and Kyson Witherspoon make appearances.

Despite the Red Sox ultimately losing 3-1, there were plenty of highlights and things to be excited about. We’re going to go over a few players who put on a good display during the showcase.

Anthony Eyanson – Talk Sox’s No. 10 Prospect

Eyanson, who was taken in the third round of the 2025 draft, may have been the Red Sox's most dominant pitcher in the game. Despite pitching only one inning, Eyanson looked nearly unhittable on the mound as it took just 14 pitches to strike out the side. Relying on his cutter, four-seam fastball, and curveball, Eyanson threw 10 of his 14 pitches for strikes. Of the 10 strikes, two were called while the rest were the result of the batters swinging. Eyanson generated four whiffs, three of them on his cutter.

Eyanson’s fastball was a pleasant surprise, as the pitch averaged 99.1 mph in his lone inning of work. He threw the pitch five times and, unfortunately, was unable to generate a single whiff with it. He did, however, top out at 100.2 mph in the inning. He also managed to get batters to chase the pitch on 50% of the batters’ swings.

The curveball was used the least, but it was the pitch he turned to in order to get each of his three strikeouts. It broke well, having a vertical break of -16 inches and a horizontal break of six inches, breaking in on left-handed batters, including a called third strike to the final batter he faced.

While it would have been nice to see Eyanson pitch a second inning (and had it gone to the bottom of the ninth, he likely would have), you can’t help but be impressed by his lone inning. The big question will be whether that velocity will hold up over multiple innings, or if he was letting it fly because it was just one inning. Regardless, the fact that he and the Red Sox turned a fastball that was around 93-95 mph in college into one that topped out at 100.2 mph in less than one year is impressive and points to a bright future for the pitcher.

Marvin Alcantara – Unranked

Alcantara was an interesting player in the game. Not ranked by Talk Sox (or any other sites that have Top 30 prospect rankings), Alcantara was previously viewed as one of the top position players on the Red Sox's 2022 Dominican Summer League team. While offensively he’s yet to replicate the results in affiliate ball, he has shown improvement, hitting .271/.344/.331 with four doubles, one home run, and 15 RBIs in 32 games with High-A Greenville before a promotion to Double-A Portland. While he struggled offensively with Portland (.226/.289/.298) in 87 games, he was only 20 years old at the time. Alcantara is also a much better defender than he is a hitter, being viewed as potentially being an above-average defender at both middle infield positions.

During the game, Alcantara struck out in his first at-bat but made up for it during his second and final at-bat in the sixth inning. Taking a 93.5 mph fastball that was left over the heart of the plate, Alcantara drove it on a line drive into the right-center gap for a double. Off the bat, Alcantara’s hit had an exit velocity of 98.8 mph, showcasing that while he may not have much power in his game, he could still develop into a doubles hitter if he manages to improve his hitting ability. The Orioles' pitcher at the time was Nestor German, the 12th-ranked prospect by MLB Pipeline.

More importantly, Alcantara’s defensive showing was where he made four plays, including a double play, and was involved in a runner being thrown out while trying to steal second base. Alcantara’s defense has always been his calling card, and it was on display Friday night.

While Alcantara will likely be playing second base in Portland this season due to Franklin Arias being there, his defense shouldn’t take a hit, and in theory, the middle infield duo should provide Portland with some of the best defense up the middle in Double-A. If his hitting comes around and he can be like the hitter he was in Greenville to begin 2025, the Red Sox could have another intriguing middle infield prospect.

Jake Bennett – Talk Sox’s No. 12 Prospect

Bennett, who was acquired for Luis Perales from the Washington Nationals back in December, is part of the 40-man roster and could potentially see time with Boston at some point in 2026. Tasked with being the starting pitcher of the Spring Breakout game, the left-hander did not disappoint. Tossing two innings, he allowed just one hit while striking out two batters.

Bennett used five of his pitches, tossing his four-seam fastball, changeup, cutter, sinker, and slider for a total of 25 pitches. Though he had different plans for his pitches depending on the batter. For left-handed batters, Bennett relied on his cutter, sinker, and slider, as these were the only pitches he threw. Against right-handed batters, he didn’t throw one sinker or slider and only threw one cutter. Instead, he tossed his fastball and changeup 18 times.

His fastball showcased great movement, averaging 13 inches of ride and 12 inches of glove-side run. The pitch averaged a spin rate of 2,172 RPM and was used for the only two strikeouts Bennett had on the day. One positive with his fastball was that it topped out at 95.1 mph, and he gained velocity on it during the game, going from 93.5 mph in the first inning to 94.8 mph on average in the second inning. Unfortunately, it did not generate much whiff on the six swings he got it to generate, only getting one whiff. He also gave up a hard-hit ball at an exit velocity of 102.9 mph that fortunately ended in an out. Despite that, it might have been his best pitch as he threw it for a strike 91% of the time, including four times for a first-pitch strike.

For Bennett, his changeup looked good despite being used just six times. It generated a whiff on the three swings and was hit twice, but very weakly. The pitch had an average exit velocity of 60.2 mph and was chased out of the strike zone 40% of the time. The changeup had four inches of vertical break and 12 inches of glove-side run.

The only real blemish on the outing was the hit Bennett allowed on a cutter. While it was just a single, the ball was crushed at 106.6 mph, which was fortunately hit into the ground by Orioles hitter Enrique Bradfield Jr. The pitch caught too much of the plate despite being down and away from the batter, and Bradfield Jr. shot it past Alcantara and Freili Encarnacion.

Bennett will still have some things to work on in 2026, especially after missing time in 2023 and all of 2024. Last season, he pitched 75 1/3 innings after returning from injury, making 19 appearances, and was also sent to the Arizona Fall League to make up for the time he lost. While he’s made strides, Bennett is still developing as a pitcher, and 2026 will be a big year for him.

Overall, the Spring Breakout once again showed that Boston’s ability to develop prospects on both sides of the ball has improved greatly over the last half-decade. The future looks to be bright for the organization, so long as they can agree on which prospects are key to the organization and which can be moved to improve the immediate team.

Interested in learning more about the Boston Red Sox's top prospects? Check out our comprehensive top prospects list that includes up-to-date stats, articles and videos about every prospect, scouting reports, and more!