Nick John

I'd like to think Bernardino's issues in 2024 were from over usage. Especially once right-handers got to see him a lot more as before the changeup, his pitches mostly broke towards a right handed batter and couldn't really get him to chase anything off the outer half of the plate unless he tried to backdoor stuff.

With the Red Sox almost a month into the season now, it would be a good idea to check in on the players currently injured and just how much longer they may be out for. The Red Sox opened the season with a handful of injuries affecting their rotation, as three starters opened the year on the Injured List. Since then, there has been some change as right-hander Brayan Bello is set to be activated for the April 22nd game against the Seattle Mariners and make his debut. Dealing with right shoulder inflammation, Bello opened the year on the IL, making four rehab starts as he built up his pitch workload each start. Making four starts between Worcester and Portland, Bello had a 7.07 ERA in 14 innings, though he did manage 21 strikeouts to only four walks in that span. After his third rehab appearance, where he went four innings and allowed three runs, two earned, on four hits, Bello stated that he was 100%. He only threw 64 pitches in that start, and the organization wanted one more start before activating him. In his final rehab appearance, Bello went 4 1/3 innings, allowing four runs on six hits, one being a home run. He also struck out seven and threw 71 pitches. Lucas Giolito has also been working his way back from a left hamstring strain he suffered in his only spring training appearance. The right-hander spent all of 2024 hurt as he recovered from an internal brace procedure. He had spent spring training ramping up before straining his hamstring in the first inning of his spring debut. Since then, Giolito has made four rehab starts split between Worcester and Portland. In that span, he’s thrown 12 2/3 innings to a 4.97 ERA. He’s allowed seven runs on 15 hits and seven walks while striking out 13. His latest rehab appearance on Sunday saw him throw five innings and allow three runs on six hits. He also struck out four. In total, he needed 65 pitches. While not certain, he may require another rehab start to get his pitch count up before any consideration of activating him. The third member of the rotation that opened the year on the IL was Kutter Crawford, who had been dealing with right patellar soreness all spring. As of this writing, Crawford had yet to face hitters, though he has thrown a few bullpens. The current plan for the right-hander is to head down ot Fort Myers on April 22nd to face hitters and hopefully progress to extended spring camp games. If all goes well after that, he’ll begin a rehab assignment, hoping to be back by June, at the earliest. Joining the three starters on the IL is promising rookie Richard Fitts. Fitts had looked decent in three starts before the injury hit the IL after being removed from his start against the Chicago White Sox on April 12th. Placed on the IL with a mild right pectoral strain, Fitts resumed playing catch on Sunday, April 20th, and if he continues to progress accordingly, he should be back at some point in May. Connor Wong is another key piece who was hurt near the beginning of April. He fractured his left pinkie after being hit in the hand on a swing against the Toronto Blue Jays. Wong finished the inning defensively but was removed from the game afterward. At the moment, he is continuing to improve, and if his hand stays on its current healing trajectory, he should be back at some point in early to mid-May. Masataka Yoshida continues to work his way back from offseason shoulder surgery as the outfielder has improved his throwing progression. Despite having a hot spring training at the plate, Yoshida opened the year on the IL due to his inability to throw from the outfield after recovering from surgery. Yoshida has yet to start a rehab assignment, as manager Alex Cora has said that Yoshida won’t begin one until he has more good days than bad days when it comes to throwing. There is no timetable for his return at the moment. Finally, the Red Sox have two players on the 60-Day IL recovering from surgery. Left-hander Patrick Sandoval is recovering from a left UCL injury, where he won’t be able to pitch until midseason at the earliest. As of March 21st, he was throwing out to 105 feet but has not done much else. Chris Murphy is the second pitcher on the 60-Day IL as he recovers from Tommy John surgery on April 10th, 2024. The left-hander isn’t expected to return until after the All-Star break and began throwing off a mound in late March. So far in the first 24 games of the season, the Red Sox are 13-11, and they look to stay competitive until they are fully healthy. View full article

One of the best pitchers in the Red Sox's bullpen this season has evolved into a dominant southpaw thanks to the addition of one common pitch. The Boston Red Sox may have helped Brennan Bernardino become a pitcher with a higher ceiling than just a low-leverage reliever. The change in the left-hander has been noticeable through a small sample size to begin the season, but you can’t help but look at his transformation and wonder if this is his new potential. After a rough 2024 season that saw Bernardino open the year in Triple-A, the southpaw worked over the offseason on improving not just his current pitches, but also to reshape one that would help him become more dependable against right-handed batters. In his career, Bernardino has been rather dominant against left-handed batters, but when facing right-handed batters, his numbers become rather pedestrian. Right-handers have a career .276/.375/.404 stat line against him in 106 career games, a problematic stat line compared to his numbers against same-sided hitters. In 2024, right-handed batters hit better than his career numbers, managing a .284 batting average across 50 games. After the season, Bernardino was viewed by fans as a potential 40-man roster casualty. It had been his worst season in Boston, appearing in 57 games with a 4.06 ERA across 51 innings. He had allowed six home runs and walked 22 batters while striking out 56, all getting worse from his 2023 season. Add to it that the Red Sox had other left-handed pitchers they had signed in Aroldis Chapman and Justin Wilson, and he became viewed as expandable. Bernardino, however, used this to motivate himself and harness a pitch he hadn’t used in quite some time: a changeup. The left-hander never threw the changeup once in 2024 and only threw it 12 times in 2023. The changeup has been a wonderful addition to Bernardino’s arsenal, as it now gives him a pitch to use against right-handed batters that will break away from them. With the addition of the changeup, Bernardino has also seen a slight change in his pitch usage compared to 2024. During the 2024 season, Bernardino relied heavily on a two-pitch combination of his sinker and curveball, as he threw them 82% of the time. The remaining 18% were made up from his cutter and slider, though that has changed in 2025. His pitch usage has evened out, with his new changeup being his most thrown pitch at a 29% usage rate. It’s followed by his sinker at 27%, his cutter at 24%, his curveball at 18%, and his slider, which has only been thrown for 2% of his pitches. And while it is early in the season, Bernardino has seen improvements early on. Through his first seven games pitched, he’s managed to throw 8 1/3 innings, striking out seven hitters and having walked only one (intentionally). He’s allowed a home run, but his ERA is currently 2.16, and more importantly his WHIP is incredibly low at 0.600 thanks to the low number of hits he’s allowed early into the season. What's most important is that right-handers have struggled against Bernardino, as they’ve gone 2-for-18 against him, good for a slash line of .111/.105/.167 with five strikeouts. Batters are making good contact less often, as his barrel percentage has dropped to 5.6% on the season, along with his exit velocity dropping to 85.7 mph. The changeup has been thrown 28 times so far (only to righties), and hitters are 0-for-10 on the season against with a whiff rate of 41.2%. Reintegrating his changeup into his pitch arsenal may have allowed Bernardino to remain with the Red Sox and become something more than he's previously shown. If he can keep up this level of pitching, the Red Sox may have a deeper bullpen than many first thought. View full article

As the Boston Red Sox begin to get their offense going, there is still one player who is struggling: Triston Casas. He entered the season with expectations surrounding him to finally put together a full season, but it has been a very slow start for the first baseman. Entering Monday’s game, Triston Casas was hitting .167/.241/.250 across 20 games. The biggest issue for him, however, may be the strikeouts, as he’s struck out 20 times in 72 at-bats (25.3%). When looking at his injury-filled 2024 season, Casas has seen his strikeout percentage drop from 31.7%. In 2023, though, it sat at 25.1% — this year hasn't seen a huge increase, but still one that could lead to issues if it persists. One thing we would have to look at is Casas becoming a bit less patient at the plate, no longer working to get the pitch he wants, a fact that can be seen when looking at other parts of his game. During his rookie season of 2023, Casas was one of the best in the league at laying off pitches, his chase rate sitting at just 22.1% as a 23-year-old. He showed an amazing understanding of the strike zone for such a young player. That has seemingly regressed in 2025, as he’s now chasing 26.4% of pitches. A 4.3% increase may not look too bad on the surface, but it presents a new weakness major league pitchers can exploit. This more aggressive approach has led to a decrease in several areas of his game, as his whiff percentage has increased while his walk percentage has dropped drastically. Naturally, because he's chasing more, he's not squaring up the ball as much when he does make contact, meaning his hard-hit numbers are also on a downward trend. One of the biggest issues is definitely his walk rate, dropping from 13.9% in 2023 to now sitting at 7.1%, while his whiff percentage has increased from 28.1% to 32.4%. Now, it’s easy to say that all of this is just a slow start for Casas. It’s easy to see that he’s been known as a slow starter, and if we actually compare his first 14 games of 2023 to 2025 it doesn’t look as bad as we think. In 2023, Casas had a batting average of .135 while his OPS was .528. He also had two home runs, struck out 20 times and walked six times. Through 14 games in 2025, he was doing a little better, hitting .175 with a .523 OPS. While he only has a single home run, he also had struck out less (18) to go with four walks. Of course, his numbers have declined more as the season has continued, but this isn’t the first time he’s had a rough start to the season. Besides his more aggressive approach at the plate, there may be another issue with his approach. Last season, he was injured after tearing rib cartilage on a swing, which was partly due to his explosive upper-half compared to a laggy lower body. With improved health, the hope was his bat speed would return to its previous form. Currently, the average bat speed for Casas is 74.7 mph, and in his injured 2024 season it sat at 74.6 mph, both numbers being a drop off from his rookie season’s 75.8 mph. Add to it that his fast-swing rate (the percentage of swings that register over 75 mph) is drastically below his 2023 number. Early in the season, Casas currently sits at a 49.6% rate, while in 2023 that number was 61.5%. The injury might have forced Casas to change his stance, and now it’s hindering him at the plate. As mentioned before, he isn’t hurt, but he did return in 2024 while still feeling pain. He admitted that it still stung when he swung, and you could see on some swings he was still feeling it. What if he had to adjust his stance and how he swung because of that? And due to that, his body got used to it and his stance has now changed because of it? When you look at his stance and the changes made to it, especially with how he stands in the box, you'll notice specifically that his batter position has changed when it comes to his distance off the plate and most importantly the distance between his feet. In his 2023 season, Casas was 29.3 inches off the plate. Now, he’s 29.7 inches off the plate. While this would help him with inside pitches, it's certainly made him susceptible to outside pitching, which may explain his newfound desire to chase things off the plate. Currently in 2025, he’s whiffing on 82% of all pitches thrown down and outside of the zone to him, a number that was a more sustainable 54% in 2023. Along with this, his feet are wider apart than ever in his career at 25.3 inches, an increase from 18.4 inches in 2023. With the added distance between his feet, Casas has also seen a shift in the angle of his stance. As a rookie he stood in a closed stance, just one degree, but now he’s standing at four degrees open, which changes how he views pitches and how he can get to them depending on the zone they’re thrown at. His hands are closer in to his body and appear slightly higher to begin as well, making his timing slightly different as well. There could be a lot of behind-the-scenes reasons for Casas struggling. As a reminder, it's still only mid-April, and Casas has a history of being a slow starter. Remember, in 2023 Casas hit .133/.283/.293 at the end of April. He has time to figure it out, especially as the rest of the offense seems to be carrying the load. Though, eventually, Casas will have to show up at the plate, or else the Red Sox will have to look towards someone else to play first base. View full article

In the third and final entry in this series, we discuss Hayden Mullins, who has yet to allow a run this season 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. On Thursday, we discussed Juan Valera. Friday was Brandon Clarke's turn. Today, we discuss Hayden Mullins. Mullins is the oldest of the three players in this series. He’s currently 24 and pitching in Greenville to begin the season. A 12th-round pick in the 2022 draft, Mullins currently projects to be a reliever and could possibly move faster through the minor leagues if the organization transitioned him to that role. Mullins throws from a three-quarters arm slot with a high-effort delivery. He has a plus extension and a low release point. The left-hander mainly uses five pitches: a fastball, slider, curveball, changeup, and cutter. Mullins' fastball is viewed as one of his better pitches, sitting 92-94 mph and reaching 95 mph with life. The pitch will jump on hitters when thrown up in the zone. It has one of the highest whiff of any fastball in the system. Command is still a work in progress, but it's a potentially above-average pitch. Mullins' slider is another potentially above-average pitch, sitting sits 81-85 mph with tight, two-plane shape. He’s managed to showcase an advanced feel for it. He can land it in the zone when he wants or he can bury it down to induce chases. Mullins' curveball could be viable and is currently considered an average offering. The pitch sits 78-80 mph and has a bit more depth than the slider. However, after the curveball his other pitches begin to fall off. Both the changeup and cutter profile as fringe-average offerings. At its best, the changeup features deceptive arm action and late drop. After pitching for Greenville in 2024, Mullins returned there to open the 2025 season and has impressed early on. While he's now old for the level, he's also off to a fast start. In those two appearances (one start), he’s thrown eight scoreless innings,while striking out 13 batters. He’s also been able to generate whiffs, getting a total of 26 whiffs across those eight innings. In his season debut, Mullins went four innings, allowing four hits and a single walk while striking out six batters. He needed 76 and racked up 15 whiffs. His second appearance came on in relief, but also lasted four innings. It may have been even better, as Mullins allowed only two hits and struck out seven. The real test will begin when Mullins is promoted to Double-A. View full article

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