Nick John

Fresh off the first five-hit game of his career and the birth of his second child, Alex Bregman is back in Boston, along with Hunter Dobbins. Nick Sogard is back in Worcester, and Michael Fulmer's fate is yet to be determined. Before the Boston Red Sox kicked off their homestand with a four-game series against the Chicago White Sox, they made a series of roster moves. Following the birth of his second child, Alex Bregman will be reinstated from the Paternity List. Bregman missed the finale of the Tampa Bay Rays series, flying back to Boston to be with his family as they welcomed their second child. Now that Bennet Bregman has made his debut, Alex Bregman will return to the lineup. In his last game, the right-hander broke out, going 5-for-5 with two home runs and four RBIs. It was his first career five-hit game. The corresponding move was optioning Nick Sogard back to Triple-A Worcester. The utility player was recalled for the final game against the Rays but did not play. The team opted to have Romy González start at third base instead. Sogard has shown the ability to learn and play any position he's asked to play. He’s played every position besides catcher, center field, and pitcher since joining the organization. His defensive versatility makes him an incredibly important depth piece for the team. So far on the season, he’s played in 12 games for Worcester, hitting .159/.275/.205 in 44 at-bats. The Red Sox also made moves on the pitching side. The team recalled right-hander Hunter Dobbins to start the first game of the four-game series. Dobbins made his major league debut back on April 6, making a spot start in the second game of a doubleheader against St. Louis. In his debut, Dobbins pitched five innings, working his way around eight hits and two walks. He only surrendered two runs and struck out five. Dobbins has pitched twice in Worcester, both times in relief of a player on a rehab appearance. The two appearances haven’t been as good as his start with the Red Sox, only lasting a combined 6 2/3 innings and resulting in eight runs on seven hits, four of them home runs. With Richard Fitts on the injured list there’s a chance Dobbins could stick around in the majors for a bit, dependent on what the team decides while Lucas Giolito continues to rehab. To make room for Dobbins on the active roster, the team designated Michael Fulmer for assignment. Fulmer signed a two-year minor league deal with the Red Sox prior to the 2024 season with the intent of rehabbing throughout 2024 and hopefully making the team in 2025. The right-hander was reassigned to minor league camp at the end of spring training and opened the year with Worcester in the rotation. Making three appearances, two starts, Fulmer pitched to a 3.09 era in 11 2/3 innings. The former Rookie of the Year looked rather dominant for Worcester, striking out 18 batters and only allowed four runs on seven hits. Following the news that Fitts would be placed on the IL, Fulmer was selected to the active roster. He would only pitch one game with the team, the opening game of the Tampa Bay series. In it, he threw 2 2/3 innings while allowing three runs on four hits, a home run, and two walks. He also struck out two. Whether the 32-year-old will make it through waivers is unknown, and there's no guarantee he returns to Worcester, as he could refuse an assignment there. View full article

In the second part of this three-part series, we discuss Brandon Clarke, who is currently running a 1.42 ERA in Single-A Salem. It's been a while since the Red Sox were known for their pitching development successes. You could argue that the last dominant starter they drafted and developed was Jon Lester. That looks to have changed since Craig Breslow’s hiring and overhaul of the pitching infrastructure. Although the top of the rotation is still populated with trade and free agent acquisitions, many pitching prospects are showing their growth early on this season. When Breslow was hired, one of his key points was overhauling the team’s pitching development, not just at the major league level, but also throughout the entire organization. His first act was hiring Andrew Bailey as the pitching coach to work on a new philosophy with the major league staff, but he didn’t stop there. Breslow continued to improve the infrastructure, hiring Driveline Baseball co-founder Kyle Boddy as an advisor and bringing in Justin Willard, who had formerly been the Minnesota Twins’ pitching coordinator, as director of pitching. The additions seem to be working out. Minor league pitching is improving, and pitchers are beginning to gain attention. On Thursday, we discussed Juan Valera. Today it's Brandon Clarke's turn. Selected in the fifth round of the 2024 draft, Brandon Clarke has been generating a buzz. After his first two starts this season, he's starting to look like a steal. The left-hander turned 22 on April 10, the same day as his professional debut. In that game, he threw four perfect innings, striking out five batters and needing only 40 pitches. Of those 40, he managed to generate nine whiffs, nearly 25% of his pitches thrown in that game. Clarke showcases a lot of swing-and-miss potential thanks in part to a fastball that sits 96-99 mph and can top out at 100 mph. He'll need to work on his command, but it has the potential to be a plus pitch. Clarke throws a traditional slider that sits 87-90 and can miss bats with 2-to-8 movement when he snaps it off tightly. He also throws a sweeper that sits 81-85 with horizontal break. He also tried to use it to generate whiffs instead of locating it in the zone. While the slider is viewed as potentially being an average pitch, the sweeper is viewed as a fringe-average pitch. Finally, the changeup is his fourth and final pitch, sitting 87-89 mph. It’s currently his weakest pitch as it is graded below average. Clarke is still young, working his way through his first few professional appearances, but so far one thing is certain: he can generate swings and misses. While he didn’t pitch as deep into the game during his second start, he was still dominant. Needing 49 pitches to make it into the third inning, Clarke lasted 2 1/3, allowing a single run on two hits and a walk. Even more exciting were the six strikeouts and 11 whiffs. Many are already wondering whether Clarke's stay in Salem will be a short one. While he’s not thrown many innings, the Red Sox have not shied away from promoting pitching prospects quickly, including Connelly Early, Blake Wehunt, and Hayden Mullins. All three pitched in Greenville with little or no time at Salem. So far, through just 6 1/3 innings, Clarke has managed to generate 20 whiffs. That skill will make him a valuable arm, if not in the rotation then definitely as a bullpen piece. There's no organization in today's game that doesn't appreciate the ability to miss bats. View full article

In the first of three entries on promising pitching prospects, we tackle Juan Valera, who is currently running a 3.52 ERA in High-A Greenville. It's been a while since the Red Sox were known for their pitching development successes. You could argue that the last dominant starter they drafted and developed was Jon Lester. That looks to have changed since Craig Breslow’s hiring and overhaul of the pitching infrastructure. Although the top of the rotation is still populated with trade and free agent acquisitions, many pitching prospects are showing their growth early on this season. When Breslow was hired, one of his key points was overhauling the team’s pitching development, not just at the major league level, but also throughout the entire organization. His first act was hiring Andrew Bailey as the pitching coach to work on a new philosophy with the major league staff, but he didn’t stop there. Breslow continued to improve the infrastructure, hiring Driveline Baseball co-founder Kyle Boddy as an advisor and bringing in Justin Willard, who had formerly been the Minnesota Twins’ pitching coordinator, as director of pitching. The additions seem to be working out. Minor league pitching is improving, and pitchers are beginning to gain attention. We'll highlight three such pitchers in the coming days. The youngest and perhaps the most exciting prospect is Juan Valera, an 18-year-old who signed as an international free agent back in 2023. Valera, who opened the 2025 season with Greenville after pitching 23 innings in Salem last season, is likely to make a few Top 100 Prospects lists if he continues to throw like he has to open the season. Appearing in two games so far, Valera has thrown 7 2/3 innings, striking out nine and hitting 100 mph. His control may need work, as the young flamethrower having walked five batters already, but it’s hard not to be excited for his development. Valera uses a simplified wind-up that's similar to throwing from the stretch, utilizing a three-quarters arm slot. He currently throws four pitches: a fastball, slider, sweeper, and changeup. The fastball is currently his best pitch, sitting 96-98 mph and topping out at 100 mph. It shows bat-missing potential up in the zone. If Valera's command and control can improve, the pitch could become a plus-plus offering for the young right-hander. Valera's slider is his second-best offering. It takes on a 10-to-4 break and sits around 89-92 mph. Valera looks for chases below the zone, and it appears to be an average to above-average pitch. The changeup is an interesting pitch, sitting 91-94 mph, not a ton of separation from the fastball in terms of velocity. It’s been said that the shape can vary, sometimes looking closer to a two-seam fastball and sometimes looking closer to a typical changeup with fade and drop. The pitch itself has bat-missing ability, but Valera will need to work on it for it to reach the potential of an average to above-average pitch. Finally, Valera's sweeper is the weakest of the four pitches, sitting around 86-88 mph with horizontal break but not much depth. He struggles to find consistency with it and because of that it’s currently viewed as a fringe-average pitch. Valera dominated in his second start of the season, tossing four innings of one-hit baseball. The only hit was a home run in the fourth inning. Valera only needed 60 pitches to make it through the start, generating five whiffs to go with his two strikeouts. The whiffs are the most interesting factor, as Valera was coming off a High-A debut in which he generated 11 whiffs. In that start, Valera demonstrated more of his strikeout potential, mowing down seven batters in just 3 2/3 innings pitched. While not every pitching prospect will pan out, the Red Sox are giving themselves plenty of chances to develop pitchers for the major league roster. Many other prospects such as Luis Perales, David Sandlin and Connelly Early are generating buzz as they climb prospect lists, but there are many others who have impressed the organization with their stuff and development. So far, the overhaul of the team's pitching infrastructure is setting the Red Sox up nicely for the future. View full article

Tanner Houck was the Red Sox ace in 2024. He's now sitting on a 9.16 ERA. What's going on? Monday night saw the Boston Red Sox get completely destroyed by the Tampa Bay Rays, losing 16-1. While it was an ugly game all around, it was especially bad for starter Tanner Houck. Houck struggled from the get-go and failed to make it out of the third inning. In total, Houck pitched 2 1/3 innings, allowing 12 runs, 11 of them earned, on 10 hits. The right-hander also allowed two walks while striking out only a single batter. He threw 61 pitches, meaning that he averaged 5.1 pitches per run. The 10 hard-hit balls he allowed outnumbered his nine swinging strikes. Houck had trouble finding the zone, though his 26.5% chase rate was a slight improvement on his full-season mark. There was some talk that Houck may have been tipping his pitches, especially as he had a similar pitching line when he threw against the Rays near the end of spring training. Houck’s struggles may be a bit deeper than that, however. The right-hander had a rough spring, and his struggles carried over into the regular season. He has not looked like the All-Star pitcher he was a year ago. Some hoped he'd turned a corner after an excellent start against the Blue Jays, pitched into the seventh inning and only surrendering a single run despite frigid temperatures. That was not the case. A deeper look into Houck's season so far raises some interesting concerns. First off, ditching his four-seam fastball entirely in 2024, he’s gone back to it a little bit in 2025. So far, he's thrown it 7% of the time. On Monday night he threw six four-seamers, all of them in the zone, but none put in play. In 2024, Houck was practically a three-pitch pitcher, relying on his sweeper, sinker, and splitter for roughly 98% of his pitches. Unfortunately, advanced stuff metrics like Stuff+ and PitchingBot say that the four-seamer is much worse this year than it was in 2023. Houck's sinker isn't sinking like it did last year. In 2024, his average movement on a sinker was 16 inches of horizontal break and an induced rise of 0.4 inches. In 2025, those numbers have increased to a tail of 17.1 inches and a rise of 1.1 inches. He's also leaving the pitch over the middle of the plate much more often, rather than hitting the edge, and opponents are batting .407 and slugging .741 against the pitch. Houck's splitter is getting hit hard as well, and the issue seems to be more about location than break, as he's no longer locating on the edge of the plate like he did in 2024. His splitter has mostly been used against lefties, and when he keeps it down and away, he's successful. He's been leaving it out over the plate, however, and the pitch has a .389 batting average. The sweeper might be the least of his concerns, as it's generated the most of his whiffs at 34.1% and has been a solid putaway pitch, resulting in nine strikeouts. The pitch is a bit tighter this year, losing two inches of horizontal break. The sweeper has been a pitch he’s been able to rely on so far, but if he can’t get the other two pitches to get back to their 2024 state, he may be in for a rough season. The lack of strikeouts has definitely been Houck's biggest issue, and location is a big piece of the puzzle. His pitches have been catching a lot more of the middle of the plate, and when he's missed the zone, he's missed by too much to induce chases. His strikeout percentage has dropped from 20.7% in 2024 to 12.6% in 2025, while his walk percentage has risen from 6.5% to 10.3%. Add to that a hard-hit rate of 54.5%, and it's clear that not much is going right for Houck. The combination of worse stuff and worse location is hard to overcome. Houck isn't missing bats or inducing soft contact like he once did. The biggest change may be his fly ball rate. His career rate sits at 19.4%, but he's currently at 24.2%. WHouck should be trying to get batters to be on top of his sinker and splitter, driving them into the ground. When he does that, he can rely on the team's improved infield defense, especially when he struggles to generate whiffs. Instead, batters have been getting under the ball, driving them into the air with force, as we saw in the two home runs that Houck allowed on Monday. There’s no denying that something is wrong with Houck to begin the season. It could be something mechanical, or he could just be struggling to find his rhythm. But if the Red Sox are going to have a shot at a playoff run, they will need Houck to figure it out. View full article

Catch up on a snowy opening week in the Red Sox organization. All four of Boston’s full-season affiliates played this past week, though some games were called off due to unexpected snow. TRANSACTIONS Red Sox recalled RHP Hunter Dobbins from Worcester Red Sox optioned RHP Hunter Dobbins to Worcester Red Sox traded RHP Quinn Priester to Milwaukee Brewers for CF Yophery Rodriguez Red Sox optioned RHP Cooper Criswell to Worcester Red Sox selected the contract of RHP Robert Stock from Worcester Red Sox placed C Connor Wong on the 10-day injured list Red Sox recalled RHP Josh Winckowski from Worcester Red Sox recalled C Blake Sabol from Worcester Red Sox designated RHP Robert Stock for assignment Worcester released LHP Matt Moore Red Sox sent RHP Liam Hendriks on a rehab assignment to Worcester Red Sox selected RHP Michael Fulmer from Worcester Red Sox signed C Yasmani Grandal to a minor league contract Red Sox placed RHP Richard Fitts on the 15-day injured list Talk Sox Minor League Content When Should the Red Sox Promote the Big Three? Worcester Woocap: Woosox Split Soggy Series With Syracuse Mets The Red Sox Are Reloading The Farm With Yophery Rodriguez After Dominant Start, Could Shane Drohan Be Back to His Old Self? Fifth-Rounder Brandon Clarke Tosses Four Perfect Innings in Pro Debut Keep An Eye On Salem’s Franklin Arias Week In Review Triple-A: Worcester Red Sox Overall: 5-8 Last Week: 2-3 Shane Drohan struck out eight batters in 3 2/3 innings pitched. Liam Hendriks made two rehab appearances (two innings total) and struck out four and allowed a single hit. Roman Anthony picked up seven hits, several with an exit velocity over 100 mph. Anthony, Marcelo Mayer, and Vaughn Grissom are all tied for the team lead with two home runs. Hunter Dobbins has pitched in relief of a rehabbing pitcher in both of his appearances (6 2/3 innings). Anthony leads the team with an OPS of .884. What’s Next: The Woosox head for Rochester to play a six-game series against the Rochester Red Wings. Rain is in the forecast, though the temperature will be higher than it has been in Worcester. Double-A Portland Sea Dogs Overall: 5-2 Last Week: 2-2 Ahbram Liendo has started off hot, with five hits in 14 at-bats. After being optioned from Worcester, Corey Rosier leads the team in OPS at .857. Rosier also leads the team in hits with six and RBIs with nine. Max Ferguson has been a threat on the bases, going 6-for-6 in stolen base attempts. David Sandlin has looked good in his two appearances (nine innings). He’s only allowed three runs and struck out nine batters. Yordanny Monegro made his season debut, throwing 3 1/3 innings and striking out six. Tyler Uberstine leads the pitching staff with 14 strikeouts on the season. What’s Next: After having two games canceled due to weather, Portland heads on the road to face off against the Hartford Yard Goats in a six-game series. High-A Greenville Drive Overall: 3-5 Last Week: 2-3 Nazzan Zanetello has been getting on base with a .452 OBP thanks to his eight walks. Yophery Rodriguez made his organizational debut, going 2-for-5 with a double and triple. In his four games, he’s put up a .944 OPS. Marvin Alcantara leads the team with a .364 batting average. Andy Lugo’s three doubles have him leading the team in both doubles and extra-base hits. Hayden Mullins has made two pitching appearances (one start) and thrown eight scoreless innings with 13 strikeouts. Juan Valera has made two starts for Greenville. The 18-year-old has impressed in his 7 2/3 innings. Jojo Ingrassia leads the team in strikeouts with 14. What’s Next: Greenville comes home for a six-game series against the Winston-Salem Dash. The weather looks beautiful, as the temperature is expected to hit the low 80s on Saturday. It’s the perfect weather to go and watch the young prospects. Low-A Salem Red Sox Overall: 4-5 Last Week: 1-5 Franklin Arias has been the best hitter in the Red Sox organization through his first nine games, hitting .412 on the year with a .987 OPS. His three doubles are also tied for the team lead with Antonio Anderson. Freili Encarnacion has five extra-base hits, which leads the team. His OPS is currently 1.059, thanks to his .677 slugging percentage. Antonio Anderson is off to a hot start, going 8-for-26 with three doubles. Joe Vogatsky, who the team acquired from Pittsburgh for Enmanuel Valdez, has pitched in three games (8 1/3 innings) with 15 strikeouts. Brandon Clarke made his professional debut on his birthday, throwing four perfect innings. Blake Aita leads the team in innings pitched with 10. He has a 0.80 WHIP in his two starts. What’s Next: Salem returns home to play a six-game homestand against the Lynchburg Hillcats. View full article

A snow storm couldn't keep Roman Anthony from mashing in Worcester on Friday night. He certainly looks ready for the bright lights. On a cold and snowy Friday night in Worcester, top prospect Roman Anthony was as hot as could be. The snow would worsen to the point where Saturday's game to be rescheduled, but Anthony added three more hits to his total on the season. The outfielder managed to showcase his tremendous hitting potential in an otherwise ugly game and to keep fans wondering when he'll be called up to the Boston Red Sox. While the Woosox would go on to lose 9-2 on the night, Anthony was one of the few bright spots, recording two doubles and a single. What may have been most impressive, however, were the outcomes of his at-bats. Leading off in the bottom of the first, Anthony quickly fell behind in the count as Columbus pitcher Doug Nikhazy jumped ahead with two strikes. Anthony showed off his talent, roping the two-strike pitch into left field for a double. The ball was launched off the bat with an exit velocity of 103.8 mph, not even his hardest-hit ball of the night. After striking out in his second at-bat, Anthony got right back to work in the fifth inning, launching a two-run double into left field once again. This time, he took launched two-strike changeup low and away at 103.7 mph. Those were Worcester's only runs. In his final at-bat of the night, Anthony ripped another changeup for another double. This one was a little higher, around his waist, but on the outer portion of the plate. He pulled into right field, his hardest-hit ball of the night at 107.6 mph. The at-bat encapsulated the reason why the Red Sox and their fans are so high on Anthony. Despite the cold night and snow falling, he still managed to hit a pitch that on outer portion of the plate nearly 108 mph. Anthony had three of the game's 10 hardest-hit balls, ranking fourth, ninth, and 10th on the night. The only Worcester player with a higher exit velocity than him was teammate Marcelo Mayer, who lined out in the third inning with an exit velocity of 111.2 mph. After Friday’s game, Anthony is hitting .237 on the season, but that number doesn’t tell the whole story. Despite only having nine hits on the year in 38 at-bats, Anthony has been a much better hitter than it shows. With his on-base percentage sitting just under .400 at .396, he’s shown an incredible understanding of the strike zone and working walks. His slugging is currently sitting at exactly .500. When he is getting hits, they’re typically for extra bases. What may be most exciting about Anthony is his ability to barrel up the ball. In his 38 at-bats, he’s put the ball in play 21 times, with 10 barreled. His ability to hit the ball on the sweet spot is incredible and when he makes the jump to the majors, that should continue to help him succeed. The only question remaining is when the Red Sox will call Anthony up to the major league roster. Per the current collective bargaining agreement, a player needs to be on the major league roster or injured list for at least 172 days in a season to accrue a full year of service. That means a player who stays in the minor leagues for at least 15 days will not accrue a full year of service time. Anthony has already surpassed the amount of time required for a team to intentionally manipulate his service time and could be called up without accruing a full year. However, there may be another issue. Should he win Rookie of the Year, Anthony would gain a full season instead of the time he actually accrued, giving the team a further reason to keep him down. That's not to accuse the Red Sox of intentionally gaming the system, but it is a common practice and could be a factor in their decision-making. The decision to call Anythony up to the major league roster is entirely up to the Red Sox and depends on when they feel he is ready. Still, yhr eye test shows that the 20-year-old is ready for a test at the major league level. Whether it’s before the end of April or some point later in the season, one thing is for certain: Anthony will be a major league player by the end of the year. View full article

Good chance if he keeps this up he'll be up in Greenville sooner than later. He's impressed at every stop so far (even if just the Complex Leagues) and has turned into a better prospect than imagined. Once Mayer, Anthony and Campbell graduate don't be surprised if he moves into the top 3 for the Sox system

On a cold April night, Brayan Bello continued his rehab assignment as he works his way back to the Boston Red Sox. Following the start, Bello said he was “ready for whatever” and that he felt “100% healthy”, an encouraging sign for the Red Sox after starter Richard Fitts was removed from his start against the Chicago White Sox on Saturday afternoon. The original plan for Bello was to have one more rehab appearance, but with Fitts possibly going down with an injury, that might change the team’s plan. At the start of the game, the temperature was in the low 40s, but Brayan Bello pitched well despite the weather. In four innings, Bello surrendered four hits and three runs, but only two of them were earned. He also struck out five batters and did not walk anyone. Bello led with his sinker, throwing it for 29 of his 64 pitches, with its max speed reaching 97.8 mph. The pitch averaged 95.8 mph on the night, picking up speed as the right-hander progressed into the game. In the game's first at-bat, he threw three straight sinkers, the pitches being listed at 94.5 mph, 94.2 mph, and 94.7 mph. Despite the heavy usage of the pitch, it was hit hard, generating an average exit velocity of 102 mph. In total, it generated 15 swings but only seven whiffs. Contact was made 75% of the time for the sinkers in the zone. The changeup and slider played off his sinker, the former being thrown 17 times and the latter 15. The changeup averaged an exit velocity of 80 mph, while the slider was hit a bit harder with an average exit velocity of 96.1 mph. Like the sinker, both pitches failed to generate many whiffs, as there were four whiffs between the two pitches. Bello also tossed his fastball three times, getting a swing against it each time, along with a whiff. Of the 64 pitches tossed by Bello, 34 of them were within the strike zone. Of the 30 thrown outside of the zone, he managed to get batters to chase 12, leading to a 70% strike rate. In total, opposing batters swung at 33 of his pitches and made contact in 21 of those swings. Bello’s first inning was a bit loud despite only surrendering a single hit, as all three balls in play had decent exit velocities. The highest being a single by Will Brennan at 99.3 mph. The second inning was the toughest for Bello as he surrendered three hits and three runs from a combination of hard-hit balls and some shoddy defense. The first four batters reached in the second inning as a leadoff triple by Micah Pries, followed by a 109.9 mph single by Kody Huff. Both hits were followed up by Petey Halpin singling before Dom Nuñez reached on an error by Abraham Toro. After that, Bello managed to limit the damage, getting Christian Cairo to fly out and then got Brennan on a groundout to Toro. The first baseman tried to turn two, but Worcester could only get one out making the score three to nothing. Bello would get the final out on a groundout before any more runs could score. Following the long second inning, Bello cruised through the last two frames, going three up and three down in both innings. He also got four of his five strikeouts in those two innings. The plan is to have Bello pitch one more rehab appearance, ruling him out from joining the team for the series in Tampa Bay. Those plans could always change now that Fitts has gone down, though. If the team feels it is best to have Bello get one more rehab start, they could turn to Hunter Dobbins to take Fitts’ next start. Despite Bello saying that he is at 100%, the fact that he only threw 64 pitches may make the Red Sox lean towards him getting an extra rehab start to ensure his conditioning is good instead of rushing him back to the big league club. Should he start again for Worcester, he is likely to pitch on Wednesday, and should everything go well, that would line him up to most likely pitch on April 21st for the Red Sox in the Patriots’ Day game. View full article

The 19-year-old shortstop is impressing with his bat as well as his glove. The Boston Red Sox continue to have one of the deepest farm systems in baseball. Many fans know about top prospects Kristian Campbell, Roman Anthony, and Marcelo Mayer, others are making strong impressions early on in the season. Infielder Franklin Arias has started off str ong in his first six games in Salem and may soon be a name to know too. Arias is a 19-year-old shortstop who signed as an international free agent out of Venezuela at the age of 17. Arias has shown solid range with smooth action and soft hands. Confident in his defense, he’s able to make difficult plays look rather routine and is viewed as possibly being an above-average defender at second base or an average defender if he sticks at shortstop. In Salem, Arias has split time between second base and shortstop with 10 games at the former and 26 at the latter. Originally considered a glove-first shortstop, Arias managed to surprise and impress the organization with strong underlying batted ball data. Playing in six games so far this season, Arias has 12 hits in 24 at-bats with only three strikeouts. Thanks to a simple right-handed stroke and advanced swing decisions for his age, he’s able to make repeated contact and avoid racking up strikeouts. In his first game of the season, Arias started off strong as he got three hits, including two doubles in his five at-bats. And that hot hitting has carried on since, as he’s gotten at least one hit and managed to reach base at least twice in every game. Arias played fantastically with both the Dominican Summer League Red Sox and the Florida Complex League Red Sox. In 2023, he played 37 games in the Dominican Summer League and absolutely raked batting .350. In 2024, he was even better in the Florida Complex League as he played in 51 games and managed to hit .355/.471/.584 with six home runs. Due to his great play, Arias was named the league’s top prospect. Aftrer a promotion to Salem in 2024, Arias slashed .257/.331/.378 in 36 games as an 18-year-old. Despite being one of the youngest guys in the Carolina League, Arias held his own and now, in a small sample size, he is putting the league on notice at the age of 19. While he hasn’t hit for much power so far (nine of his 12 hits are singles), he continues to put the ball in play and force the defense to make plays. Arias has only improved since his first stint at Salem and continues to impress not just those within the Red Sox organization but across baseball, making his way onto multiple top 100 prospects lists. Time will tell whether the hot start is just that or whether he will force his way to Greenville. View full article

The left-hander showed off his potential in a dominant outing in Salem. It was Red Sox prospect Brandon Clarke’s birthday Thursday night. It was also his professional debut, and he made sure to celebrate both milestones in style. To call his debut anything less than phenomenal would be an understatement. Pitching for the Salem Red Sox, Clarke showcased the potential that made him Boston’s fifth-round pick in the 2024 draft. Salem would go on to lose to the Fredericksburg Nationals, 7-4, and currently sits in second place in the Carolina League. The 6-foot-4 left-hander dominated in four unhittable innings. Needing just 40 pitches to retire all 12 batters he faced, Clarke looked like he didn’t belong in Salem. He struck out five and did not allow a single batter to reach base, recording nine whiffs and a 75% strike rate. Of his five strikeouts, four were on sliders and sweepers. The final one came on a 97-mph fastball. The Fredericksburg batters were off balance and unable to do anything against him. The lack of hard contact made the performance even more remarkable. Of the seven balls in play Clarke allowed, six were groundouts and one was a foul pop-out. Clarke has a low release height and good extension to go with a high leg kick and deceptive arm action. The left-hander uses four pitches: a fastball, slider, sweeper, and changeup. The fastball sits between 96 and 99 mph and tops out at 100. It lacks much movement, however, and his command and control of it are still works in progress. However, it has the potential to be a plus pitch. His slider flashes bat-missing potential. and he can snap it off with tight rotation when he’s on with it.. He has trouble landing it in the zone, but if he can be consistent with it, it could be an average pitch for him. The sweeper seems to be his strikeout pitch, with a long, horizontal break. He uses it when he needs to get a whiff. Just like the slider, however, he lacks consistency with it and it currently looks slightly below-average to average. The changeup is very much a work in progress, with reduced arm speed that serves as a tell. Clarke has the potential to be a multi-inning leverage reliever with the ceiling of a middle-of-the-rotation arm as he learns to make the most of his frame and velocity. The Red Sox are looking to develop him as a starter, and it's easy to dream on that potential after Thursday's performance. View full article

"The ball's coming out nice," said Hendriks, who struck out three of the four batters he faced in his first game action. Thursday night saw Liam Hendriks return for the Worcester Red Sox as they faced off against the Columbus Clippers. Hendriks started the game and looked comfortable in his first appearance since the end of spring training. On the injured list with elbow inflammation during his ramp-up from Tommy John surgery, Hendriks received a cortisone shot on Opening Day. Hendriks pitched a single inning, striking out three batters, including the first batter he faced, and allowed one weak infield single. Hendriks last pitched on March 20, and he threw 18 pitches in the first inning, relying mainly on his fastball and slider. He also tossed two curveballs during the game. Hendriks led with the slider, tossing it nine times. The pitch averaged 86.7 mph on the might, 1.3 mph below its average in 2023, the last time Hendriks pitched in the majors. The pitch worked well, earning five swings and misses. Hendriks threw his fastball even times, generating five swings but no whiffs. The pitch topped out at 95.2 mph and averaged 94.3 mph, a drop-off of 1.1 mph from his 2023 average. The lone hit of the inning came off the fastball, a slow roller to third with an exit velocity of 63.4 mph. Nate Eaton attempted to make a do-or-die play on it, but the runner was able to beat it out for an infield single. Hendriks located 14 of his 18 pitches outside the zone, focusing on earning chases with sliders low and away to right-handed hitters and in to left-handed hitters. Of his seven fastballs, four were located within the zone; the plan of attack was to focus on the upper third of the zone. In all, he earned chases on eight of his 14 pitches outside the zone, and five whiffs and five fouls on the 11 swings he induced. "I think I had more strikeouts today than I did all of spring training, which is nice,” Hendriks said after the game. “Good thing was it felt good, but more importantly, location-wise, it was a little better. It was a little easier to get to all of those pitches than it was in the spring.” Assuming he feels good over the next few days, Hendriks plans on pitching against the Clippers again on Sunday. “Ever since I got the shot on Opening Day, it’s been cruising pretty well,” he said. “I was able to do a couple of things differently over this last week that I wasn’t able to do all spring training. It was just my stubborn [expletive] just not willing to admit that I wasn’t quite 100% and trying to push through it that way. But ever since I got that shot in there, everything’s calmed down in there and the ball’s coming out nice.” View full article

Had another decent appearance as he continues to ramp back up. Don't have the exact number but managed to get 16 whiffs yesterday in under 4 innings. He's someone I'd keep an eye on as a possible bullpen piece later in the season or next year

Despite his early-season struggles, when it mattered the most against the Cardinals, Rafael Devers showed why he's one of the most feared hitters in the game. There are several moments that can change the entire outcome of the game. Whether it’s a clutch hit, a defensive stop or even just a walk, a simple thing can have huge ramifications. The flashiest plays don't always lead to wins, and any contribution can be important. This was on display just this past Sunday, as the Red Sox and Cardinals battled it out in the first game of a doubleheader. In the bottom of the ninth inning, the Red Sox fought hard to get back into the game, down by two. Facing arguably one of the top closers in the game in Ryan Helsley, their chances did not look good. Despite the unlikely odds of winning, they fought and clawed their way into a chance, managing to make it a one-run game and loading the bases with two outs. The Red Sox also had the one player they would usually want stepping to the plate: Rafael Devers. Devers’ early season struggles have been covered at length, but he had been turning it around over the past few days. He entered the game five for his past 11, then hit his first home run of the season up into the Monster seats. He was truly back. The at-bat was going to be a battle for both sides; two stars facing off with the game on the line. Helsley started out strong, throwing a fastball clocked at 100.9 mph middle-in. Whether that was its intended location or not, it was the perfect spot to throw based on Devers’ early season struggles. Middle-in is one of Devers’ preferred spots; he's run an 82% swing percentage there. Unfortunately, he has not had much success there, at least early in the season. He'd whiffed on 44% of them and had yet to turn one into a hit. Helsley followed it up with a slider that you can’t help but think was a mistake. All game he struggled to control the pitch but refused to abandon it. He had the slider 52% of the time entering the game, but it was not a trusty pitch on the day. Overall, he threw 18 of them with only 44% in the zone and just a 20% chae rate. In total, only eight of his sliders landed in the strike zone and only two outside of the zone were chased. Fortunately for him, Devers did not swing at the middle-middle slider, choosing to take it and fall behind in the count as he had two strikes on him. This was where the patience Devers showed throughout the season paid off. Quite a few hitters would get jumpy down 0-2, especially with two outs, bases loaded, and the tying run at third base. Devers remained calm, taking the next pitch, a slider in the dirt. Despite having a fastball he could throw at 100 mph, Helsley and the Cardinals continued to go with the slider that had been unreliable all afternoon. The fourth pitch continued that trend, another slider middle-outside. Devers let it go right by him and didn’t offer again. He had worked the count back into something more favorable, two balls, two strikes, and he was showing Helsley he was not going to chase. All season, he showed that pitches outside the zone had to look convincing to get him to chase and none of Helsley’s sliders were doing the job. Still, Helsley tried the slider once more, and just like the previous three sliders, Devers did not swing. Instead, he watched as Helsley tried to backdoor it into the upper-outside portion of the zone. He couldn’t get it to break enough as Devers watched it pass by once more and now had a full count. This was when Devers’ patience cornered Helsley. He was not going to chase a slider, and with the bases loaded Helsley could not risk throwing another, given his spotty command. He went with the fastball, and everyone watching knowing that it was coming. Devers was prepared, staring down the pitcher as he readied himself. Helsley threw the sixth and final pitch of the at-bat, the closest one to the strike zone since getting ahead with two early strikes. Devers didn’t swing at it, however. The pitch was too far off the plate. It was a close pitch for the situation, but Devers could tell it would be too far off the plate, landing just outside at the bottom of the zone. Devers battled, watching pitch after pitch and not jumping at one of them. After his first miss Devers did not swing again throughout the at-bat, allowing his eyes to do the work for him and tie the game up with a walk. With it he completed the rally to tie the game and shifted momentum completely over to the Red Sox. While everyone would probably prefer a hit to walk off the game, a game-tying walk is just as exciting. Especially when Devers had to fight back after falling behind two strikes. It would have been easy to just swing at one of the various pitches thrown by Helsley, to wave at a slider that looked to be breaking over the plate but remained too far outside. Instead, he stuck to his method, he worked the at-bat until he either got a pitch he liked or earned a walk. And with his still questionable hitting up to that point in time, Devers did everything he could to tie the game and give Alex Bregman a chance to win it all. That single at-bat might have been his best in the entire game. View full article

If you watch him pitch he's definitely back. He just needs to keep working to get back to what he was viewed as when it came towards the majors.