Ayden Mason

Boston Red Sox Affiliate Recap (April 28 - 30) Triple-A Worcester Red Sox Season Record: 17-12 Series Opponent: Rochester Red Wings (Washington Nationals) Series Record: 2-1 April 28: Worcester was blown out in the first game of the series, 10-1, against the Rochester Red Wings. The WooSox bats had trouble getting anything going in this game, especially with runners on base, 0-6 RISP. Worcester’s only run of the game came in the first inning when Anthony Seigler hit an RBI groundout with the bases loaded. Everything else went downhill from there as the pitchers struggled to find any swing and misses. Kristian Campbell had a solid day at the plate, collecting two hits. Campbell showed improvement by hitting the ball hard, a 101.6 MPH lineout to the shortstop and a 102.5 MPH double to center. Jake Bennett was slated to start but was scratched in hopes of possibly making his debut with the big league club. Seth Martinez filled in and did not last very long this game as he threw three innings and gave up four runs. Veteran pitcher Tayron Guerrero continued to look excellent this season after throwing 1 ⅔ innings without giving up any runs to lower his ERA to 0.90. April 29: Postponed, makeup on April 30. April 30: With a busy day for Worcester as they played a doubleheader, the WooSox leaned on their pitching staff in the first game with a 4-3 win over the Red Wings in a 7-inning contest, and afterwards piled up 10 hits and 7 walks in a commanding 7-3 victory over the Red Wings in the second game of their doubleheader. The WooSox struck fast in the 1st, Nick Sogard led off with a single, Mickey Gasper walked, and a fielding error by Rochester loaded the bases with nobody out. Kristian Campbell drew an RBI walk to make it 1-0, and Allan Castro followed with a sacrifice fly to center to push it to 2-0. Worcester loaded the bases again with another walk to Vinny Capra, but Braiden Ward grounded out to strand three runners. The Red Wings hit a solo homer to make it a 2-1 game in the bottom half of the 1st. Matt Thaiss added insurance in the 2nd, launching a solo homer to center field, his second of the year, to extend the lead to 3-1. Worcester hit across one more run in the 3rd. Campbell singled, Tsung-Che Cheng singled to put runners on the corners, and Capra delivered with an RBI groundout to make it 4-1. Starter Alec Gamboa was very solid, pitching 5 ⅔ innings, striking out six, giving up just two earned runs and only one walk on 73 pitches to earn the win and improve to 1-1 on the season. Key Performances: Alec Gamboa: 5 ⅔ IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 6 K Matt Thaiss: HR, R, RBI To start off the second game of the doubleheader, Vinny Capra set the tone immediately, drilling a solo homer to left in the 1st inning to put Worcester up 1-0. Capra was sensational all day, going 3-for-5 with a homer and two doubles, scoring twice. The 3rd inning blew the game open. Braiden Ward led off with a solo shot to right-center, his first homer of the season, which made it 2-0. Capra followed with a double, Kristian Campbell walked, then Anthony Seigler crushed a two-run double to center to push it to 4-0. Worcester kept adding on in the 4th, Jason Delay and Nathan Hickey drew back-to-back walks, and Mikey Romero singled to center to plate Delay for a 5-1 lead. In the 5th, Seigler led off with a triple ripped to right field, and Allan Castro singled him home. Delay followed with an RBI single of his own (deflected off the pitcher), which made it 7-1 to put the game completely out of reach. Key Performances: Angel Bastardo: 2 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 K Devin Sweet: 3 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 4 K Vinny Capra: 3-for-5, HR, 2B, 2 R, RBI Double-A Portland Sea Dogs Season Record: 12-12 Series Opponent: Somerset Patriots (New York Yankees) Series Record: 1-3 April 28: The Portland Sea Dogs lost a close game 2-1 to the Somerset Patriots. In an uneventful game for Portland, Franklin Arias stayed hot with a multi-hit day and brought in the Sea Dogs' only run of the game with an RBI single in the top of the 7th, tying the game 1-1. Although he suffered the loss, Gage Ziehl had a nice day on the mound. He threw seven innings, struck out three batters, unfortunately, the two runs he gave up were a couple of mistake pitches taken deep from a batter he could not find an answer for. Cooper Adams came into the game and threw a scoreless 8th inning. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: 2 H, RBI, SB Gage Ziehl: 7 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 3 K April 29: It was a busy day at the office for the Portland Sea Dogs as they played a doubleheader makeup game from 4/5. They got crushed 13-1 in the first game and won the makeup game 6-5. For the first game, it was a nightmare outing for Portland's pitching staff, as the Somerset Patriots pounded out 15 hits and scored in five consecutive innings to run away with a 13-1 blowout in this seven-inning contest. The Sea Dogs managed just 4 hits all game and were never competitive after the third inning. Will Turner provided the lone bright spot, launching a solo homer to right-center in the top of the 3rd, his first of the season, to briefly cut the deficit to 3-1. But that was the only run Portland would muster. Turner also drew a walk in the 7th and finished as the only Sea Dog with an extra-base hit. In the second game (makeup game from 4/5), Portland gutted out a road win against Somerset, tagging a rehabbing Gerrit Cole before holding on late for a 6-5 victory in a seven-inning game. The Sea Dogs were shut down early. Cole looked sharp through three innings, retiring Portland in order in the 1st, 2nd, and 3rd innings. The bats woke up in the 4th, Ronald Rosario broke through with a single, and Johanfran Garcia followed up and jumped on one, launching a two-run homer to left-center, his first of the year, which now flipped the game 2-1. Max Ferguson added another run for Portland with a solo blast to right field in the 5th to extend the lead to 3-1. Just like that, the Sea Dogs tagged Cole for 3 earned runs. Somerset clawed back later in the 5th inning to tie up the game 3-3. The 7th inning was where Portland seized the game, with two outs and nobody on, Nelly Taylor drew a walk to put a baserunner aboard. The bottom of the order would then explode. Ferguson laced a double to right to score Taylor, Will Turner doubled to right to score Ferguson, and Tyler McDonough doubled to right to score Turner. Three consecutive doubles, all hammered to right field. It was a stunning three-run rally with two outs that blew the game open 6-3. The Portland bullpen held on in the bottom half of the inning for a final score of 6-5. Key performances: Max Ferguson: HR, 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI Johanfran Garcia: HR, 2 RBI April 30: Portland clawed back from a 5-1 deficit to tie the game in the top of the 9th, then watched the Patriots crush a three-run walk-off homer in the bottom half to end it 9-6. The Sea Dogs faced Carlos Rodon for his rehab assignment; the bats were quiet until the 8th inning. Miguel Bleis belted his second homer of the year off of Rodon in the 5th to make it 2-1 Somerset. Portland's bats finally erupted in the top of the 8th, Marvin Alcantara reached on a throwing error, Nate Baez singled, and Brooks Brannon unloaded a three-run homer to right-center to slash the deficit to 5-4 in one swing. Just like that, a game that had felt over was suddenly alive. Somerset added another run in the bottom of the 8th to make it 6-4 entering the 9th. The top of the 9th was pure magic. With one out, Ahbram Liendo drew a walk. Boston Red Sox top prospect Franklin Arias stepped up and launched a two-run homer to center, his 8th of the season, to tie it 6-6. The comeback from 5-1 down was complete. Sadly, it fell apart in the bottom of the 9th when the Patriots walked it off with a three-run homer, 9-6. High-A Greenville Drive Season Record: 13-11 Series Opponent: Hub City Spartanburgers (Texas Rangers) Series Record: 2-1 April 28: The Greenville Drive defeat the Hub City Spartanburgers 12-6 thanks to a seven-run inning. Down two runs entering the bottom of the 3rd inning, Justin Gonzales hit a single while Henry Godbout advanced him to third base with another single. Gonzales would then score due to a wild pitch. With the bases loaded, Jack Winnay tied the game 2-2 with a sacrifice fly. Yoeilin Cespedes stayed hot as he broke open the lead for Greenville with a three-run homer in the 6th to make it a 5-2 game, his fourth home run of the year. The Spartanburgers earned their first lead of the game in the top of the 8th with a four-run inning, 6-5 Hub City. The one-run deficit would not last long as Greenville had a monster seven-run 8th inning, hammering back-to-back-to-back homers. Yophery Rodriguez led off the inning and hit his third home run in the last four games. Gonzales and Godbout each followed up with solo shots to make it three home runs in a row. The Drive loaded the bases after Cespedes hit a single, Gerardo Rodriguez earned his third hit of the game with a single, and Isaiah Jackson. Freili Encarnacion came up to the plate and belted a grand slam to put Greenville on top with a commanding 12-6 lead. Jojo Ingrassia started on the mound and was not too sharp, finding the zone, walking four batters, and throwing 34 of 63 pitches for strikes. Although he had trouble finding the zone, he worked around the traffic on the bases, only giving up two runs in the three innings he pitched. Key Performances: Yophery Rodriguez: HR, 2 R, RBI, 2B, SB Yoeilin Cespedes: HR, 2 R, 3 RBI, BB Justin Gonzales: HR, 2 R, RBI, BB Freili Encarnacion: HR, 4 RBI, BB April 29: The Greenville Drive rallied for a thrilling 8-7 walk-off victory over the Hub City Spartanburgers in 10 innings. After trailing in the 10th, the Drive clawed back to walk it off. Down 2-0 entering the 2nd, Freili Encarnacion hammered a solo homer, his second homer in two straight days. Adonys Guzman followed up with a homer as well to tie the game and make it back-to-back home runs for Greenville. Yoeilin Cespedes continued to look incredible, hitting a solo shot in the 3rd inning to give the Drive a 3-2 lead. The Spartanburgers tied the game again, but Greenville did not let up as they scored another two runs in the 6th, Jack Winnay hit an RBI double, and Isaiah Jackson scored on a throwing error, 5-3 Drive. Hub City fought back in the 9th, tying the game 5-5 to head into extra innings. The Spartanburgers appeared to seize control in the 10th with a two-run blast, but Cespedes answered with a game-tying two-run homer of his own. Encarnacion then drove in the winning run on a force-out grounder to complete the comeback. Six total home runs were hit in the contest. Alex Bouchard came into the game to pitch the 3rd inning and still looked impressive as he threw 5 ⅓ innings, struck out four batters, and only gave up one run. Key Performances: Yoeilin Cespedes: 4-for-5, 2 HR, 2 R, 3 RBI Jack Winnay: HR, 2B, R, RBI Freili Encarnacion: HR, 2 RBI Alex Bouchard: 5 ⅓ IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 3 K April 30th: A frustrating night for Greenville, who were 0-for-12 with RISP in a 6-2 loss to the Hub City Spartanburgers. Gerardo Rodriguez brought in a run with a sacrifice fly to tie the game up 1-1 in the 1st. But the 2nd inning flipped the game. Red Sox 2025 1st round pick Kyson Witherspoon couldn't find the zone, walking two batters. The Spartanburgers then lined a three-run homer to center to give Hub City a 4-1 lead. Witherspoon was wild all night, 5 walks in just 2 ⅔ innings. He took the loss to fall to 0-2 on the season. Jack Winnay drew an RBI walk in the 3rd inning to cut the deficit to 4-2 with the bases loaded and two outs. Mason White lined out, and the inning died. Justin Gonzales was one of the only bright spots, reaching base all five times and scoring both of Greenville's runs. Single-A Salem RidgeYaks Season Record: 12-12 Series Opponent: Wilson Warbirds (Milwaukee Brewers) Series Record: 2-1 April 28: The RidgeYaks shut out the Wilson Warbirds 6-0 in the first game of the series. Salem scored six runs on only six hits, but they showed off the long ball this game. Starlyn Nunez led off the game with a walk, Luke Heyman followed up with a two-run homer to put the RidgeYaks on the scoreboard early 2-0. Andrews Opata gave Salem more breathing room with a sacrifice fly in the 3rd inning to make it a 3-0 game. Enddy Azocar collected two hits, including a solo home run in the 5th inning, to keep his seven-game hitting streak alive. In the 8th, Opata earned his second and third RBIs of the game by hitting a two-run homer. The RidgeYaks pitched excellently, led by Myles Patton and Jacob Mayers. Patton earned the win by throwing five innings, allowing two hits and striking out six batters. Mayers earned a four-inning save, struck out four batters, and allowed only one hit. Key Performances: Enddy Azocar: HR, 2 R, RBI Luke Heyman: HR, 2 RBI, BB Andrews Opata: HR, 3 RBI Myles Patton: 5 IP, 2 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K Jacob Mayers: 4 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 1 BB, 4 K April 29: A pitcher's duel through seven innings turned into heartbreak for Salem in the eighth, as the Wilson Warbirds exploded for four runs to pull away with a 5-1 win. The first seven innings were frustrating for the RidgeYaks; they managed just two hits, an Enddy Azocar double in the 1st inning and a D’Angelo Ortiz single in the 3rd. Salem kept shooting themselves in the foot; a strikeout-caught stealing double play killed a rally in the 3rd after Ortiz singled, and Ty Hodge grounded into a double play in the 5th with a runner on base. The RidgeYaks were 0-for-9 with RISP and had 5 LOB, which tells the story of the game for Salem. The real bright spot was starting pitcher Dylan Brown, who was brilliant, throwing 5 ⅔ innings, three hits, one unearned run, and seven strikeouts on 82 pitches. He kept Salem in the game and gave the offense every chance. April 30: The RidgeYaks erupt for 10 unanswered runs to stun the Warbirds 10-5. The first five innings were brutal; Salem's bats were asleep against the Warbirds pitchers. The RidgeYaks managed two singles from Starlyn Nunez and Enddy Azocar in the 1st inning but couldn't score, then went quietly in the 2nd through 5th. Starlyn Nunez tried to ignite the comeback, his solo homer to right in the 6th got Salem on the scoreboard 4-1, but Wilson answered back immediately with a homer to make it 5-1. Ty Hodge kept the pressure on with a solo shot in the 7th to cut it to 5-2. The 8th inning was electric for Salem. Anderson Fermin was hit by a pitch with one out. Nunez would then crush his second homer of the game, a two-run blast, and suddenly it was 5-4, a one-run game. Azocar singled, Heyman singled to put two on, and after a force out, moved runners to the corners with Kleyver Salazar at first. A passed ball tied the game up 5-5, and Salazar walked to load the bases. Hodge came through with a clutch two-run single to give Salem its first lead of the game at 7-5. Salem poured it on in the 9th for good measure. Nunez singled to make it his fourth hit of the game. Azocar singled, and Heyman demolished a three-run homer to left-center to blow it open 10-5. Ethan Walker deserves enormous credit for what he did on the mound. He entered in the 4th with the game at 3-0 and threw 5 ⅓ innings of two-run ball, striking out 9 on 74 pitches. He kept Salem in the game long enough for the bats to wake up and earned the win to improve to 2-1. Key Performances: Ethan Walker: 5 ⅓ IP, 4 H, 2 ER, 9 K Starlyn Nunez: 4-for-5, 2 HR, 3 R, 3 RBI Enddy Azocar: 3-for-5, 2 R Luke Heyman: HR, 3 RBI Ty Hodge: HR, 3 RBI View full article

Boston Red Sox Affiliate Recap (April 21 - April 23) Triple-A Worcester Red Sox Season Record: 13-10 Series Opponent: Syracuse Mets (New York Mets) Series Record: 2-1 April 21: Worcester suffered a blowout loss, 12-3, to Syracuse. The WooSox bats continued to struggle with RISP as they were 3-for-11 and had 10 LOB. Nick Sogard had a 3-for-4 day at the plate, including a walk and two runs. Mickey Gasper had a multi-hit day as well, hitting two of the three WooSox runs in this game. Other than the troublesome 4th inning, Isaac Coffey pitched well, throwing 3.2 innings and striking out six. Angel Bastardo made his season debut and had some trouble finding the zone, especially with his breaking pitches. He showed off his fastball, topping out at 97.6 MPH, and showed he can miss barrels. April 22: The WooSox walked it off to defeat the Mets 7-6. Mickey Gasper gave Worcester an early lead as he brought in two runs with a double. Anthony Seigler scored one more run with an RBI groundout. The Sox lost the lead in the 6th, but Vinny Capra made it a one-run game in the 7th with an RBI single. In the 8th, Syracuse scored another run, and Seigler cut it down to a one-run deficit once again. Down one run in the 9th, Nate Eaton hit a double that tied the game, but Nick Sogard was gunned down at home as he tried to end the game. With two outs, Kristian Campbell roped a single to bring in Eaton to walk it off for the WooSox 7-6. Jake Bennett continued to look great this season, this time against his former franchise. He threw 4.2 innings, giving up one run on four hits, and struck out three to put his ERA at 0.86. Key Performances: Jake Bennett: 4.2 IP, 4 H, ER, 3 K Nick Sogard: 2-for-3, 2 R, 2 BB Kristian Campbell: 2-for-4, RBI, BB April 23: Worcester won the third game of the series against Syracuse with a 10-4 victory. The WooSox were down three runs in the 3rd inning, but walked in a run on back-to-back at-bats to make it a 3-2 game. With the score at 4-2 entering the 5th, the WooSox got a hold of the lead thanks to Matt Thaiss hitting an RBI single while Vinny Capra and Nathan Hickey hit a pair of doubles to get a 6-4 lead. Worcester never looked back as they scored two more runs from Sogard and Gasper, and Tsung-Che Cheng scored on a wild pitch in the 9th. Key Performances: Tayron Guerrero: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 K Nate Eaton: 2-for-3, 3B, R, RBI, BB Vinny Capra: 2B, 2 R, 2 RBI, 2 BB Double-A Portland Sea Dogs Season Record: 9-8 Series Opponent: Hartford Yard Goats (Colorado Rockies) Series Record: 1-2 April 21: The Portland Sea Dogs lost the first game of the series to the Hartford Yard Goats 9-7. Franklin Arias continued his outstanding streak by hitting his 4th home run in 11 games. The added weight in the offseason seems to be clearly working, hitting 8 homers in 116 games in 2025. Max Ferguson stayed hot, going 2-for-4, hitting a double, a two-run homer, and a stolen base. Tyler McDonough’s first homer of the year was a game-tying solo shot in the 6th. Erik Rivera looked impressive again as he struck out four batters in 2.1 innings to lower his ERA to 1.00. Key Performances: Erik Rivera: 2.1 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 4 K Franklin Arias: HR, 2 RBI Max Ferguson: 2-for-4, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI, BB April 22: The Sea Dogs lost a high-scoring game against the Yard Goats 13-8. In back-to-back games, Franklin Arias homered and knocked on the door to Worcester. Portland got off to an early 3-1 lead in the 1st, back-to-back home runs coming from Arias and Tyler McDonough; meanwhile, Brooks Brannon doubled to bring in another run. The Sea Dogs' pitching got knocked around this game, but the bats showed out. Down 8-3 entering the 6th, Ronald Rosario hit an RBI single, Nelly Taylor roped an RBI double, Ahbram Liendo brought in another run with a ground out, and Arias made his 2nd hit of the day count with an RBI double to make it a one-run game. The short deficit went out of the Sea Dogs' reach as the Yard Goats scored five more runs. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: HR, 2B, 2 RBI, R Ronald Rosario: 2-for-4: 2 R, RBI April 23: Portland walked it off in extra innings 5-4, against Hartford. Franklin Arias has been on an incredible stretch, hitting his 3rd homer in three games and his 6th of the year. Ahbram Liendo tied up the game in the 4th with a sacrifice fly. Down 2-1, the Sea Dogs tied it up again due to an RBI groundout from Johanfran Garcia in the 5th inning. In the bottom of the 9th with the Yard Goats up 4-2 and a runner on 1st base, Franklin Arias hammered a two-run homer to tie it up 4-4. With the bases loaded and two outs in the 10th, Max Ferguson roped a single to center field to walk it off for the Sea Dogs. Dalton Rodgers and Cooper Adams pitched very well this game, throwing a combined nine innings and one earned run. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: HR, 2B, 2 RBI Max Ferguson: 2-for-2, R, RBI Dalton Rodgers: 5.0, 4 H, 1 ER, 6 K Cooper Adams: 4.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 4 K High-A Greenville Drive Season Record: 8-10 Series Opponent: Asheville Tourists (Houston Astros) Series Record: 2-1 April 21: The Greenville Drive won their fourth game in a row and the first game of the series in an 8-4 victory against the Asheville Tourists The first run of the game was not scored until the 6th inning when Freili Encarnacion hit an RBI single to make it 1-0 Greenville. After the Drive gave up a three-run 7th inning, Yophery Rodriguez’s third hit of the game was a three-run homer to put them on top 4-3. Greenville had a big 9th inning. Henry Godbout notched his third hit of the game with a leadoff double. After Gerardo Rodriguez got on base from a throwing error, Jack Winnay followed up with an RBI single. Afterwards, Isaiah Jackson belted a three-run homer that gave Greenville an even bigger cushion in this four-run 9th inning. Key Performances: Henry Godbout: 3-for-4, 2 2B Yophery Rodriguez: 3-for-3, HR, 2B, 3 RBI Isaiah Jackson: 2-for-5, HR, 2B, 3 RBI April 22: Greenville won in extra innings with a hard-fought 11-10 victory against Asheville. Red Sox top prospects Justin Gonzales and Yoeilin Cespedes had themselves a three-hit day at the plate in this victory. While they were down 5-1, the Greenville bats started to wake up in the 6th inning when Gerardo Rodriguez earned his 2nd RBI of the day with an RBI groundout, and Isaiah Jackson brought in a run with a single to make it 5-3. Asheville scored two more runs in the 7th. Afterwards, Freili Encarnacion smacked his 3rd home run of the year to cut the deficit to three runs. The game seemed out of reach for the Drive since they were down 9-4 entering the ninth, but they had other plans. Down to their last out, Cespedes hit an RBI single to bring in Gonzales, Rodriguez singled, and Jack Winnay walked. Isaiah Jackson belted a grand slam to tie the game and keep Greenville alive. In the 10th, Gonzales’ third hit of the game was a big one, a double that brought in two runs to give the Drive a two-run lead. With a chance to walk it off or tie the game once again, Asheville brought one run across the plate but it was not enough as the Greenville Drive stunned them at home. Key Performances: Justin Gonzales: 3-for-5, 2B, R, 2 RBI, BB Yoeilin Cespedes: 3-for-5, 2 2B, 3 R, RBI Isaiah Jackson: HR, 5 RBI April 23: Greenville’s five-game winning streak came to an end as they got walked off on in extra innings, 7-6 against Asheville. The bats were not as sharp this game, but still managed to put up six runs and force the game to extras. Greenville was in a hole after giving up a grand slam in the 2nd to put them down 5-0. In the 5th, a couple of ground outs and a fielding error brought three runs across home plate to put them down only two runs. The Tourists scored another run in the 5th to put them up 6-3. Entering the 8th down three runs, Greenville showed off their magic once again. Natanael Yuten doubled to bring in a run, and Cespedes hit a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit down to one. With two outs, Gerardo Rodriguez hammered his first homer of the year to tie the game 6-6. Sadly, the bats fell asleep in extras to lose the game. Calvin Bickerstaff looked impressive as he threw four no-hit innings and struck out six to lower his ERA to 0.60. Key Performances: Calvin Bickerstaff: 4.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 6 K Gerardo Rodriguez: HR, 2 R, RBI, 2 BB Single-A Salem RidgeYaks Season Record: 10-8 Series Opponent: Fredericksburg Nationals (Washington Nationals) Series Record: 2-1 April 21: The Salem RidgeYaks beat the Fredericksburg Nationals with a monster 12-2 victory. Seven of nine RidgeYaks hitters had multiple hits in this slugfest. In the 3rd inning, Skylar King brought in two runs with a single, while Andrews Opata and Kleyver Salazar hit in a couple more runs to make it a 4-0 game. Enddy Azocar roped a double to bring in a run, and Luke Heyman followed up with an RBI single in the 4th. In the 5th, D’Angelo Ortiz hit his first double of the year, scoring two runs in the process. Salem had another four-run inning in the 6th, Azocar hammered his third homer of the year, Stanley Tucker and Ortiz each walked in a run, Starlyn Nunez hit in another run that put them on top with a huge commanding 12-1 lead. 2025 6th round pick Leighton Finley had a nice day on the mound as he struck out five in five innings and only gave up one run on four hits to earn his first win and lowered his ERA to 1.98. Key Performances: Leighton Finley: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 1 ER, 5 K D’Angelo Ortiz: 2-for-3, 3 RBI, BB Enddy Azocar: 2-for-5, HR, 2 RBI, 2 R April 22: Salem lost a nail-biter to Fredericksburg in extra innings, 7-6. The RidgeYaks were down six runs entering the 3rd; however, Luke Heyman got them on the board with an RBI single to make it 6-1. A couple of bad throws from the Nationals' catcher and pitcher resulted in two more runs to cut the deficit down to three. As momentum started to shift, Kleyver Salazar belted a two-run homer to make it a one-run game in the 8th. Frederik Jimenez’s first homer of the year was a good one, tying the game up in the bottom of the ninth on the first pitch he saw. Sadly, the RidgeYaks came up just short in the 10th as they gave up a run, and the bats could not get anything going with a runner on second base and no outs. Jacob Myers pitched a solid four innings with no earned runs while Salem was building their comeback. Key Performances: Jacob Myers: 4.1 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 3 K Luke Heyman: 2-for-3, R, RBI, 2 BB Frederik Jimenez: HR, BB, 2 R Kleyver Salazar: HR, 2 RBI, BB April 23: The RidgeYaks bats stayed hot as they won the third game of the series against the Nationals 10-4. Stanley Tucker put Salem on top early with a two-run homer in the 2nd inning. The RidgeYaks took advantage of the Nationals' bad defense, scoring one run each off a throwing error and bringing in two more runs in the 4th, 6-0 Salem. With the lead cut down to only two runs in the 7th, Skylar King gave Salem some breathing room after he belted his third homer of the year. Starlyn Nunez hit a sacrifice fly to bring in a run, and Enddy Azocar brought in two more with a double. Key Performances: Avinson Pinto: 2-for-3, 3 R, BB Stanley Tucker: HR, 2 RBI, BB View full article

Boston Red Sox Affiliate Recap (April 14 - 16) Triple A Worcester Red Sox April 14: Worcester lost the first game of the series to Nashville 9-4 due to rough pitching and sloppy defense. Patrick Sandoval made his second rehab start, and it was a wild one. Sandoval got into trouble early in the 1st inning, giving up a leadoff single, then giving up a walk and hitting a batter to load the bases with no outs. Sandoval walked in a run after facing the next batter and gave up two RBI sacrifice flies to put Nashville up 3-0. There were not many positive takeaways from this game, other than Jason Delay hitting a homer off of former Red Sox prospect Shane Drohan. Patrick Sandoval’s outing: 2.0 IP, 3 H, 5 ER, 4 BB, 1K April 15: The WooSox suffered their second straight loss to the Nashville Sounds 5-3. Worcester's only lead of the game happened in the top of the 1st when Allan Castro hit an RBI single to earn his second multi-hit game in the last three games. The WooSox had a lot of traffic on the bases on offense, including 11 walks as a team, unfortunately they could not capitalize as they were 2-for-14 with RISP. Kristian Campbell had a decent day, getting on base three times with two walks and a sharp grounder to right field. Tayron Guerrero kept his scoreless streak going to start the season after throwing a shutout in the 7th inning. Key Performances: Allan Castro: 2-for-5, R, RBI Tayron Guerrero: 1.0 IP, 0 H, 0 ER, 1 K April 16: *Suspended due to rain* Double A Portland Sea Dogs April 14: The Portland Sea Dogs defeat the winless Altoona Curve 4-2. Red Sox top prospect Franklin Arias blasted his first homer of the year in the top half of the 3rd inning to put the Sea Dogs up 2-0. In the bottom half of the 3rd, Cooper Adams came into the game inheriting two runners with no outs and got out of the jam with no damage after a double play that started as a routine groundout to the pitcher but instead the runner took off for home as the ball was thrown to first base, a good throw from Drew Ehrhard to home plate resulted in the double play. Adams caught the next batter looking on strikes to end the inning. Ahbram moved his hit streak up to 6 games after hitting an RBI single in the 7th to put Portland on top 4-1. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: HR, 2 RBI Cooper Adams: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 4 K Cade Feeney: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 4K April 15: The Sea Dogs won 5 of their last 6 games after defeating the Altoona Curve 8-6. Franklin Arias has been on a tear so far this season. While leading off the game, he belted his second homer in back-to-back games to put Portland up 1-0 in the 1st. In the 3rd, the Sea Dogs got the bats going that started with an Arias single to make it 2-2 on the day, Nate Baez and Ronald Rosario got on base to load them up. Drew Ehrhard brought in a run with a sacrifice fly. Will Turner also had a nice day at the plate as he hit the rest of the runners in with an RBI triple, and Tyler McDonough followed up with an RBI double. A couple of wild pitches ended up bringing in McDonough to put the Sea Dogs on top 6-0. Marvin Alcantara and Baez were responsible for the last two RBIs with a pair of RBI doubles. Gage Ziehl had another nice day on the mound. He threw five innings without allowing any runs and struck out six batters to earn the win. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: 2-for-3, HR, 4 R, 2 BB Will Turner: 2-for-3, 2 RBI, 2 BB Gage Ziehl: 5.0 IP, 4 H, 0 ER, 2 BB, 6 K April 16: The Portland Sea Dogs won their third straight game of the series with a shutout victory over the Altoona Curve, 7-0. In the 2nd inning, the Sea Dogs loaded the bases with three walks, and Raudelis Martinez brought in two runs with a single to put Portland on top 2-0. Max Ferguson blasted a grand slam in the 3rd inning to put Portland up to a huge 6-0 lead early in the game. Marvin Alcantara had himself a nice night at the plate as he hit a solo home run shot in the 4th to increase their lead to 7-0. Eduardo Rivera had a tremendous day on the mound. He threw 5.2 innings, allowed three hits without allowing any runs, and struck out nine batters to earn a win. Joe Vagatsky threw the last 3.1 innings and kept the shutout going to earn a save while only giving up one hit. Key Performances: Eduardo Rivera: 5.2, 3 H, 0 ER, 9 K Joe Vagatsky: 3.1, 1 H, 0 ER, 2 K Marvin Alcantara: 3-for-5, R, RBI Max Ferguson: HR, 4 RBI High A Greenville Drive April 14: The Greenville Drive was shut out by the Bowling Green Hot Rods 3-0. Greenville only had one hit the entire game, which came from Yophery Rodriguez. Not many good performances happened in this game with the bats or the arms, other than P.J. Labriola, who threw two scoreless innings. April 15: Greenville continued their losing skid after a 6-4 defeat against Bowling Green. They are still finding trouble to score with RISP as they were 0-for-7 in this game. Henry Godbout hammered his first of many homers to come in his professional career. Other than the Drive not being able to hit with RISP, they showed they can hit the long ball as they hit four solo home runs coming from Mason White, Adonys Guzman, and Jack Winnay. Key Performances: Mason White: 2-for-4, HR Adonys Guzman: 2-for-4, HR April 16: The Greenville Drive suffered another tough loss to the Hot Rods in a 9-8 defeat. Juan Valera came out of the game after the 1st inning due to elbow inflammation so the bullpen had to step up in his early absence. To start off the 3rd inning, Yophery Rodriguez hit his first home run of the season and Top prospect Yoeilin Cespedes belted a three-run homer to put Greenville in a comfortable 4-0 lead. The pitching struggled as they gave up four runs to tie the game but the Drive fought back as Cespedes hit his second home run of the game with a two-run shot in the 5th. His Greenville teammate Rodriguez hammered his second home run of the game as well with a solo shot that put them on top 7-5. The bullpen could not hold onto the lead but the Drive were still focused on coming back as they were one run shy of tying the game but they did not deliver in the 9th. Key Performances: Yoeilin Cespedes: 2 HR, 5 RBI Yophery Rodriguez: 3-for-4, 2 HR, 2 RBI Single-A Salem RidgeYaks April 14: The Salem RidgeYaks lost the first game of the series to the Hickory Crawdads 7-5 after having a rough 6th inning. As Salem was down 2-0 in the 4th, a pair of doubles hit by Starlyn Nunez and Enddy Azocar got them on the board. After Kleyver Salazar drew a walk, with two runners on, Skylar King belted a three-run homer to put the RidgeYaks up 4-2. In the 5th, Salazar hammered a double to increase their lead 5-2. With the score at 5-3 entering the 6th, things would fall as the Crawdads would regain their lead scoring three runs due to a home run, single and another run scoring from an error after a single, 6-5 Crawdads. Salem went hitless the next three innings as Hickory scored another run to end the game 7-5. Key Performances: Enddy Azocar: 2-for-4, 2 R, RBI Skylar King: HR, 3 RBI, BB April 15: The RidgeYaks dropped their 2nd game of the series in a close 5-4 defeat to the Crawdads. Salem got themselves an early three-run lead in the 2nd inning after IIan Fernandez belted a three-run homer. Jacob Mayers unfortunately lost control of his pitches as he gave up four walks and threw a wild pitch, giving up three runs in the process to tie the game up. Entering the 6th in a tie game, Skylar King walked and stole a base; afterwards, Ty Hodge brought him in by hitting an RBI single to make it a 4-3 game. The RidgeYaks' pitching could not hold onto the lead in the last three innings, while the bats would go hitless to end the game 5-4. Key performances: IIan Fernandez: HR, 3 RBI Myles Patton: 4.2 IP, 2 H, 1 ER, 3 K April 16: The RidgeYaks still had a tough time playing the Crawdads as they lost their third straight game in a 14-5 defeat. The pitching staff had a tough time this game, but the defense did not help with the three errors they had in the game. Andrews Opata had a multi-hit day at the plate, including a solo home run and a two-run single. View full article

Red Sox Affiliate Recap (April 7 - 9) Triple-A Worcester Red Sox April 7: The WooSox lost in heartbreaking fashion against the Columbus Clippers 14-10. With the WooSox down the entire game, the bats broke out with a four-run 7th inning due to a double from Mikey Romero that brought in two runs and a three-run homer from Matt Thaiss to put Worcester on top 10-8. That lead would not last long as Columbus scored three runs in the 8th to retain the lead and did not look back as they scored three more runs in the 9th to make it a 14-10 final. Key Performances: Kristian Campbell: 3-for-5, 2B Matt Thaiss: 2-for-2, HR, 4 RBI, 2 BB April 8: Patrick Sandoval made his first Red Sox rehab start after almost two years recovering from elbow surgery. Sandoval pitched 3.1 innings, throwing 63 pitches and averaging 92.2 MPH on his fastball and topped out at 93.5 MPH. In 2024, Sandoval averaged 93.7 on his fastball. Worcester defeats Columbus with an 8-5 victory to even the series. Entering the 4th inning with the Clippers up 3-1, the WooSox scored four runs by drawing five walks, bringing in a run on a groundout from Vinny Capra and a sacrifice fly by Kristian Campbell to put Worcester up 5-3. Columbus showed life in the 8th, tying the game up 5-5 however the Sox answered back scoring three of their own. Braiden Ward put the defense to work with a swinging bunt that forced a throwing error by the pitcher so Capra scored a run. Campbell put on another run with a bases loaded hit by pitch while Mikey Romero followed up with a sacrifice fly to make it 8-5. Key Performances: Patrick Sandoval: 3.1 IP, 3 R, 0 ER, 3 BB, 3 K Braiden Ward: 2-for-5, 2 R, 1 RBI April 9: The WooSox took a 2-1 series lead after shutting out Columbus 5-0. Anthony Seigler’s walk and stolen base set up a pair of RBI doubles from Vinny Capra and Jason Delay while Braiden Ward followed up with an RBI single to put Worcester up 3-0 in the 2nd inning. In the 5th, Nick Sogard smoked a double to center field and Kristian Campbell brought him in with a bloop single to right field to make it a 4-0 game. Ward stole his 2nd base of the game which set up Mickey Gasper to rope an RBI single to give the WooSox a 5-0 lead. The pitching took care of business, Jack Anderson throwing six scoreless innings and Tyler Uberstine tossing three scoreless to earn his first save of the season. Key Performances: Jack Anderson: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 7 K Tyler Uberstine: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 3 K Double-A Portland Sea Dogs April 7: The Sea Dogs beat themselves up in a 12-7 defeat to the Fisher Cats. Portland got a 2-0 lead in the 1st from a wild pitch and a sacrifice fly from Nelly Taylor. The unthinkable happened in the top of the 2nd inning, New Hampshire scored eight runs before recording their first hit. After striking out the side in the 1st, Hayden Mullins would walk two guys, give up a run via the sacrifice fly, then walk three straight batters and getting pulled from the game after walking in a run. Jorge Juan would come into the game and not record a single out, instead he would give up five runs including the runs Mullins was responsible for. Juan threw two wild pitches that each brought in a run, hitting two batters with the bases loaded and putting on two more runs. Juan’s night would end after walking in two more runs. Cade Feeney then came into the game and immediately threw a wild pitch bringing in the 8th run of the inning. The Fisher Cats scored their 10th run of the inning after a two-RBI single. Portland slowly cut down the deficit during the game but it was not enough. Key Performances: Will Turner: 2-for-4, RBI, BB Patrick Halligan: 3.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 7 K Max Carlson: 2.0 IP, 1 H, 0 ER, 5 K April 8: Portland had another devastating 11-3 loss to New Hampshire. Pitching could not get anything going, however, Red Sox top prospect Franklin Arias had himself a nice day, going 2-for-3 with three RBI’s. Key Performances: Franklin Arias: 2-for-3, 3 RBI, 2B Ahbram Liendo: 2-for-4, 2 R, 3B April 9: The Portland Sea Dogs walk it off 4-3 after two tough games against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats. Tyler McDonough drew a walk and stole a base which set up Nate Baez to bring him in with an RBI single to get an early 1-0 lead in the 1st inning. In the 4th, Drew Ehrhard hammers a two-run homer on the first pitch to put Portland on top 3-0. The Fisher Cats would claw their way back into the game scoring one run in each of the next three innings to tie it up 3-3 entering the 9th. Nelly Taylor hit a hustle double to leadoff the inning, Will Turner walked and both advanced a base as Ehrhard laid down a sacrifice bunt. New Hampshire intentionally walked star prospect Franklin Arias with a chance to get an inning ending double play but that did not work, Ahbram Liendo hammered a single to right field to walk it off for the Sea Dogs. World Baseball Classic standout for Puerto Rico Eduardo Rivera pitched well, throwing 4.1 innings, gave up one run and struck out seven. Key Performances: Eduardo Rivera: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 1 ER, 7 K Cooper Adams: 2.2 IP, 2 H, 5 K, Win High-A Greenville Drive April 7: The Greenville Drive earned their first win of the year by defeating the Hub City Spartanburgers 7-2. The bats were quiet up until the 6th inning after Isaiah Jackson hit an RBI groundout and Mason White hit an RBI double to tie the game 2-2. Jackson would return the favor once again in the 8th inning by hitting an RBI single, White gave Greenville a comfortable 5-3 lead after smashing a two-run homer. In the 9th, top Red Sox prospects Justin Gonzales and Yoeilin Cespedes each earned themselves an RBI, Gonzales hitting a single, Cespedes hitting a double, putting the Drive on top 7-2. Key Performances: Jack Winnay: 2-for-2, 3 BB Mason White: 2-for-4, HR, 3 RBI Jojo Ingrassia: 3.0 IP, 0 H, 4 K April 8: The Drive lose 4-1 to the Spartanburgers with the series now being tied. Not a lot went well for Greenville Wednesday night as they would only have one hit as a team (Jack Winnay) and the only run they scored was a sacrifice fly hit by Mason White. Although, a positive from this game is Alex Bouchard throwing 4.1 scoreless innings in his season debut. Key Performance: Alex Bouchard: 4.1 IP, 3 H, 0 ER, 1 K April 9: The Greenville Drive took a 2-1 series lead as they defeated the Spartanburgers 2-0, highlighted by Juan Valera’s dominant performance. Valera pitched an impressive five innings, gave up two hits and struck out nine batters while only throwing 56 pitches. Valera topped out at 102 MPH on his fastball and 95 MPH on his changeup. Greenville only had three hits, two of which were a Henry Godbout single and Isaiah Jackson RBI triple in the 7th inning that scored their only two runs of the game. Steven Brooks was impressive as well as he pitched the last two innings and struck out six batters. Key Performances: Juan Valera: 5.0 IP, 2 H, 9 K Steven Brooks: 2.0 IP, 6 K Isaiah Jackson: 1-for-3, 2 RBI Single-A Salem RidgeYaks: April 7: The Salem RidgeYaks demolished the Wilson Warbirds 10-2 in the first game of the series. Salem jumped on top in the 4th inning hitting three RBI singles each coming from Starlyn Nunez, Kleyver Salazar, and Ty Hodge to put the RidgeYaks up 4-0. Salem scored five more runs in the 5th inning thanks to some sloppy defense from the Warbirds. Stanley Tucker scored on a wild pitch, Enddy Azocar hit an RBI double, Salazar followed up with an RBI single and would then score on a throwing error after an Anderson Fermin groundout, Hodge ended the five-run 5th inning with an RBI double to put them up 9-1. Avinson Pinto hit an RBI double in the 6th inning to increase the RidgeYaks lead once again, 10-2. Key Performances: Kleyver Salazar: 4-for-5, 3 R, 2 RBI Ty Hodge: 3-for-4, 2 RBI, BB April 8: The Ridgeyaks earned their fourth win on the year and their 3rd straight win after a 6-3 victory against the Warbirds. With the Warbirds getting an early 2-0 lead in the 2nd inning, Salem answered back scoring two of their own in the 3rd inning due to IIan Fernandez hitting a sacrifice fly and Frederik Jimenez scoring on a throwing error to make it a 2-2 game. Ty Hodge ropes an RBI single in the 4th to once again tie the game 3-3. The Ridgeyaks jumped back up and gave themselves a two-run lead after Avinson Pinto reached on a fielder's choice and Jimenez hit a sacrifice fly, 5-3. Hodge earned his 2nd RBI of the game with a sacrifice fly in the 8th, bringing in Andrews Opata who hit a leadoff triple to help make it a 6-3 ballgame. Key Performances: Andrews Opata: 2-for-3, 2 R, BB Avinson Pinto: 3-for-4, RBI Brandon Neely: 2.0 IP, 5 K April 9: The Salem Ridgyaks with their fourth straight game with a close 2-1 victory versus the Wilson Warbirds. 2025 8th round pick Dylan Brown has yet to give up his first run in his first two starts of the season, throwing 3.2 shutout innings and striking out eight batters. Brown got into trouble in the 2nd inning giving up two walks and a single to load the bases with no outs, he would then strike out the next three batters he faced to get out of the jam. David Ortiz's son D’Angelo Ortiz would have a nice day at the plate going 2-for-4, including an RBI single to tie the game 1-1 in the 4th. A couple of stolen bases from Andrews Opata and Anderson Fermin, followed up with a wild pitch, gave Salem a 2-1 lead in the 8th. Wuilliams Rodriguez came back into the game in the 9th earning a win and striking out two batters. Key performances: Andrews Opata: 2-for-3, 1 R, 1 BB, 2 SB Dylan Brown: 3.2, 1 H, 0 ER, 8 K Nicolas De La Cruz: 1.2 IP, 1 H, 5K View full article