Sox Rally Past Rays (7/10/25)

Looks like the Boston Red Sox recent run wasn't just taking advantage of bad teams. Tonight the Sox brought their six game win streak and took on the Tampa Bay Rays. The Sox fell behind 3-1 after 6 innings as Taj Bradley held the Sox to just 1 run off a Roman Anthony rbi. Walker Buehler was tagged for a two run home run by Ha-Seong Kim and a Junior Caminero solo shot in 6 solid innings. Then in the bottom of the seventh the Sox sprang to life. Marcelo Mayer doubled home Trevor Story and Ceddanne Rafaela knocked in both Mayer and Romy Gonzalez. The rested Boston bullpen of Chris Murphy (1-0, 0.00 ERA), Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman slammed the door on the Rays in the final three innings. The Sox had just their 3rd win all season when trailing after 6 innings as they beat the Rays 4-3 at Fenway Park.

                                                     Colin Morikawa approves of the win

Buehler got the ball to start the top of the first inning and Yandy Diaz lined out to center to start. Jonathan Aranda got a base hit to right but Junior Caminero grounded into a double play to end the inning. Bradley got the ball in the bottom of the first and Jarren Duran struck out swinging to start. Roman Anthony struck out swinging and Abraham "El" Toro popped up to short to end the inning.

Josh Lowe lined out to center to start the top of the second before Ha-Seong Kim grounded out to short. Chandler Simpson got a base hit to second then took third when Carlos Narvaez threw the ball away for an error. Christopher Morel walked and promptly stole second, but Matt Thaiss was retired on a squibber to end the inning. Narvaez took strike three to start the bottom of the second but Wilyer Abreu walked. Trevor Story popped up to second and Romy Gonzalez flied out to center to end the inning.

Taylor Walls flied out to center to start the top of the third before Diaz flied out to right. Aranda struck out swinging to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the third as Marcelo Mayer grounded out to first to start. Ceddanne Rafaela got a base hit to left and took second on a wild pitch. Duran struck out swinging but Anthony got a base hit to right to score Rafaela. Anthony swiped second base and El Toro walked, but Narvaez struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                                        Another RBI for Anthony

The lead lasted about 10 seconds in the top of the fourth as Caminero was retired on a squibber in front of the plate to start. Lowe walked and Kim hit a home run all the way to South Korea to put the Rays on top. Simpson grounded out to short and Morel lined out to left to end the inning with the Rays up 2-1.

                                                              Rays take the lead

The Sox failed to respond in the bottom of the fourth as Abreu grounded out to second to start. Story popped up to second and Gonzalez grounded out to short to end the inning.

Thaiss grounded out to first to start the top of the fifth before Walls grounded out to first. Diaz got a base hit to right but Aranda flied out to left to end the inning. Mayer grounded out to short to begin the bottom of the fifth before Rafaela lined out to center. Duran walked and Anthony was retired on a squibber to end the inning.

The Rays iced the game in the top of the sixth as Caminero hit a home run all the way into the Nile River to start. Lowe walked but Kim struck out swinging. Simpson grounded back to the mound and Morel lined out to short to end the inning but the Rays were up 3-1. That was it for Buehler who turned in a "quality" start by going 6 innings and allowing 3 runs. Too bad the Sox couldn't score runs.

                                                       Not great but it'll do

The Sox continued their ineptitude in the bottom of the sixth with Jake Mangum now in left. El Toro grounded out to second, Narvaez popped up to second and Abreu flied out to left to end the inning. Taj Bradley came into the game with an ERA near 5 and allowed just 2 hits and a run, pathetic.

Chris Murphy came in to pitch the top of the seventh and Thaiss grounded back to the mound to start. Walls singled to right but Diaz forced him at second. Aranda grounded out to second to end the inning. Bryan Baker came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and suddenly the Sox sprang to life. Story walked to start then promptly stole second. Gonzalez walked and Mayer doubled to left to score Story. Rafaela stepped up with a base hit to center to score both runners to put the Sox back on top. Rafaela stole second but Duran popped up to second. Anthony grounded out to second to move Ceddanne to third but El Toro struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox ahead 4-3.

                                                      Sox surge ahead

Garrett "The Lock" Whitlock came in to pitch the top of the eighth inning and Caminero struck out swinging to start. Lowe grounded out to short and Kim went down hacking to end the inning. Mason Englert came in to pitch the bottom of the eighth and Narvaez grounded out to short to start. Abreu flied out to right and Story did the same to end the inning.

Aroldis Chapman came in to close out the top of the ninth with David Hamilton taking over for Toro to start. Simpson flied out to center to start but Mangum singled to center. Old pal Danny Jansen pinch hit for Thaiss and struck out swinging. Walls struck out swinging to end the game. The Sox had won it 4-3.

                                                             Sox win

Hero of the Night is Ceddanne Rafaela. His 2 run single put the Sox up for good.

                                                               Our Hero

The Good:

Marcelo Mayer was 1 for 3 with an rbi and a run scored.

Walker Buehler tossed 6 innings allowing 3 runs off 5 hits and 3 walks.

Chris Murphy got the win with a scoreless seventh inning.

Garrett Whitlock pitched a scoreless eighth inning.

Aroldis Chapman got his 16th save with a scoreless ninth inning.

The Bad:

Carlos Narvaez was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts and an error.

The Ugly:

Jarren Duran was 0 for 3 with 2 strikeouts but walked.

Roman Anthony was just 1 for 4 with a strikeout but drove in a run and stole a base.

Abraham Toro was 0 for 3 wit a strikeout but walked.

Wilyer Abreu was 0 for 3 but walked.

Trevor Story was 0 for 3 but walked, stole a base and scored a run.

Romy Gonzalez was 0 for 2 but walked and scored a run.

Honorable Mention:

David Hamilton played second base in the ninth inning.

Final Thoughts:

The 7 game win streak and the monumental collapse by the Seattle Mariners tonight leaves the Sox all alone in the third wild card slot, a half game behind the Rays for the second and 3 games behind the New York Yankees for the first. The Sox have a chance to jump ahead of the Rays if they win two of the next three games. It'll be a tall order but not impossible with Garrett Crochet and Brayan Bello due to pitch the first half finale. Buehler pitched better tonight and the Sox had only two wins all season when trailing after six. Mayer and Rafaela got the Sox ahead the rested bullpen locked it down. Big shoutout to Isaiah Campbell and Jorge Alcala for making that possible with last night's effort. The Sox are rolling right now and hopefully it carries over to the final three games before the all-star break. The good news is Alex Bregman returns tomorrow night but who comes out? David Hamilton or Marcelo Mayer is headed down to Worcester and it looks like Hunter Dobbins will be activated to start tomorrow night's game. Either Chris Murphy or Isaiah Campbell is gone. All in all tonight was a good win and Sox fans have hope for the first time since the three game sweep of the Yankees. The win improved the Sox to 50-35, 5 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to make it eight wins in a row tomorrow night when Hunter Dobbins (4-1, 4.10 ERA) takes on Tampa's best, Drew Rasmussen at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Sox Rout, Sweep Rockies (7/9/25)

Before the game the Boston Red Sox made a roster move. Masataka Yoshida was finally removed from the Injured List to make his season debut. Nate Eaton was sent down to Worcester to clear room for Yoshida. Eaton had a couple of good hits during this recent stretch so thanks for the contributions.

                                                                   OUT

                                                                       IN

As for the game, the Sox did what they had to do. They had 10 games against the Cincinnati Reds, Washington Nationals and Colorado Rockies staring them in the face...and won 9 of them. Tonight the Sox swept the hapless Rockies on the back of another late inning offense surge and shutdown pitching by Lucas Giolito (6-1, 3.36 ERA). Giolito held the Rockies to just 4 hits in six shutout innings. Meanwhile the Sox beat up Antonio Senzatela and the Rockies bullpen for 15 hits and 10 runs. Carlos Narvaez set the tone with a second inning home run and Masataka Yoshida made his reutrn with an rbi in the fourth. The floodgates opened as Wilyer Abreu hit a two run shot, Romt Gonzalez hit a two run home run and Jarren Duran hit another 3 run bomb. The only blip was Isaiah Campbell giving up a two run jack to Kyle Farmer. It all added up to winning 9 out of 10, 6 in a row and tonight's game 10-2 at Fenway Park.

                                                              Happy fans

Giolito got the ball in the top of the first inning and Tyler Freeman grounded out to second to start. Jordan Beck singled to left but Ryan McMahon struck out swinging. The alert Carlos Narvaez gunned down Beck trying to steal to end the inning. The Sox blew a rally in the bottom of the first against Senzatela as Jarren Duran's routine grounder up the middle turned into a double and an error by Yanquiel Fernandez to move Jarren to third. Roman Anthony was hit with a pitch but Trevor Story struck out swinging and Wilyer Abreu grounded into a double play to end the inning.

Michael Toglia struck out swinging to open the top of the second inning and Brenton Doyle flied out to right. Orlando Arcia grounded out to short to end the inning. The Sox struck first in the bottom of the second as Carlos Narvaez belted his 8th home run of the season to put Boston on top. Masataka Yoshida got his first at-bat since September 2024 and got a base hit to center. Romy Gonzalez flied out to center and Marcelo Mayer forced Yoshida at second. David Hamilton lined out to center to end the inning with the Sox up 1-0.

                                                             Home run Narvaez

Fernandez grounded out to first to start the top of the third before Kyle Farmer grounded out to short. Austin Nola struck out swinging to end the inning. Duran walked to start the bottom of the third but Anthony lined out to right. Story banged into a double play to end the inning.

The Sox defense came up big in the top of the fourth as Freeman got a base hit to center to start. Beck flied out to center and McMahon did the same, but Toglia doubled off the Monster. Duran fired the ball back to Story who gunned down Freeman at home to end the inning.

                                                        YERRRR OUT!!!

The Sox struck again in the bottom of the fourth as Abreu lined out to center to start. Narvaez doubled to right and took third on a balk. Yoshida tied Connor Wong for his season total in rbis with a base hit to right to score Carlos. Gonzalez struck out swinging but Mayer got a base hit to center. Hamilton flied out to left to end the inning with the Sox ahead 2-0.

                                                       Happy Sox

Doyle struck out swinging to start the top of the fifth before Arcia took strike three. Fernandez flied out to right to end the inning. The Sox struck in the bottom of the fifth as Duran struck out swinging to start. Anthony got a base hit to left but Story popped up to third. Abreu mashed his 18th home run of the season to double the lead, but Narvaez flied out to right to end the inning with the Sox up 4-0.

                                                Sox bullpen loved the Abreu home run

Farmer grounded out to third to start the top of the sixth before Nola lined out to center. Freeman got a base hit past Giolito but Beck struck out swinging to end the inning. That was it for Giolito who tossed shutout ball through six innings allowing just 4 hits while striking out six.

                                                                 Giolito gets it done

Ryan Rolison came in to pitch the bottom of the sixth and Yoshida grounded out to second to start. Gonzalez walked and moved to second on the grounder to first by Mayer. Hamilton stepped up with a base hit to right to score Romy with another run. Duran grounded back to the mound to end the inning but the Sox were ahead 5-0.

                                                           Big RBI for Hamilton

Jorge Alcala came in to pitch the top of the seventh and McMahon popped up to short to start. Toglia struck out swinging and Doyle grounded back to the mound to end the inning. Tyler Kinley came in to pitch the bottom of the seventh and Anthony lined out to left to start. Story doubled to left but Abreu struck out swinging. Narvaez flied out to center to end the inning.

The Rockies struck back against Isaiah Campbell making his season debut in the top of the eighth. Arcia grounded out to third before Fernandez got a base hit to left. Farmer hit a home run all the way to Brazil to cut the lead. Nola flied out to right and Freeman grounded out to short to end the inning with the Rockies down 5-2.

                                                      Rockies get closer

The Sox blew the game open against Seth Halvorsen in the bottom of the eighth as Yoshida hit a ground rule double into the right field stands to start. Gonzalez then pounded his fifth home run of the season to get the five run lead back. Mayer singled to left, Hamilton walked and Duran clobbered his 8th home run of the season to put the game out of reach. That was it for the incompetent Halvorsen as Jimmy Herget got the ball. Anthony got a base hit to right but Story struck out swinging. Abreu grounded into a double play to end the inning with the Sox ahead 10-2.

                                                    "Right to the bitter end" - Rockies fan

Beck got a base hit to left to start the top of the ninth but McMahon grounded into a double play. Toglia singled to left but Doyle lined out to right to end the game. The Sox had won it 10-2.

                                                               Sox win

Hero of The Night is Lucas Giolito. He tossed 6 shutout innings allowing just 4 hits while striking out six batters.

                                                          "I'm the Hero" - Giolito

The Good:

Jarren Duram was 2 for 4 with a walk and a 3 run home run.

Roman Anthony was 2 for 4 with a hit by pitch and a run scored.

Carlos Narvaez was 2 for 4 with a home run and 2 total runs scored.

Mastaka Yoshida was 3 for 4 with an rbi and a run scored.

Romy Gonzalez was 1 for 3 with a walk, a 2 run home run and 2 total runs scored.

Marcelo Mayer was 2 for 4 with a run scored.

David Hamilton was 1 for 3 with a walk, rbi and a run scored.

Jorge Alcala pitched a scoreless seventh inning.

The Bad:

Isaiah Campbell allowed 2 runs in 2 innings of work.

The Ugly:

Trevor Story was just 1 for 5 with 2 strikeouts.

Wilyer Abreu was just 1 for 5 with a strikeout but the one hit was a 2 run home run.

Final Thoughts:

The Sox had to beat up on the bad teams and they did just that. They've won 9 out of 10 games to get back in the race but now they are staring at the Tampa Bay Rays with third place on the line heading into the all-star break. The Sox took advantage of bad teams but at least they built momentum the last two weeks. The Sox have Walker Buehler, Brayan Bello and Garrett Crochet lined up for Tampa with a wild card on Friday night. It might be Hunter Dobbins, it might be Cooper Criswell, it might even be Jordan Hicks. Still, Giolito continues to be everything they could have asked for out of a fourth starter and hopefully his arm holds up the rest of the season. The offense was great but....its Colorado. Now the hard part starts and we'll see what the Sox are made of. The win improved the Sox to 49-45, 5.5 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. The Sox now have four huge games with the Rays before the All-Star break. Taking 3 of 4 would vault them into the second wild card. Walker Buehler (6-6, 6.25 ERA) has to step up tomorrow night against Taj Bradley of Tampa. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Bello, Sox Crush Rockies (7/8/25)

Before the game the Boston Red Sox made a roster move. "Big" Dick Fitts was sent back down to Worcester after winning his first career game and in his place the Sox called up Isaiah Campbell. Why? The Sox have just 6 games left before the All-Star break and they're going to go with the rotation they have to make it to the break, makes more sense to carry an extra reliever until then.

                                                                           OUT

                                                                      IN

As for the game, it got ugly late but this was a nice pitched game until the sixth inning. Brayan Bello (5-3, 3.27 ERA) continued his resurgence as the Sox number 3 starter with a complete game 5 hitter against the lowly Colorado Rockies. Offensively, Kyle Freeland held the Sox scoreless for five innings. In the sixth inning, Trevor Story, Ceddanne Rafaela and Jarren Duran combined to drive in four runs to put the Sox up big. Then the Sox put up six runs in the seventh inning with a 3 run Story home run, a Duran solo shot, a Romy Gonzalez triple and a Roman Anthony base hit. Bello finished off the Rockies to run the win streak to five games as Boston beat Colorado 10-2 at Fenway Park.

                                                         Ama Rio approves of the win

Bello got the ball in the top of the first inning and Tyler Freeman struck out swinging to start. Hunter Goodman struck out swinging and Mickey Moniak flied out to left to end the inning. Kyle Freeland got the ball in the bottom of the first inning and Nate Eaton lined out to third to start. Ryan Ritter threw a grounder by Romy Gonzalez away for an error but Roman Anthony flied out to left. Rob Refsnyder forced Romy at second to end the inning.

Jordan Beck struck out swinging to start the top of the second inning before Michael Toglia struck out swinging as well. Ryan McMahon went down hacking to end the inning. Trevor Story swung and missed for strike three to begin the bottom of the second and Ceddanne Rafaela took strike three. Jarren Duran grounded out to second to end the inning.

Brenton Doyle flied out to right to start the top of the third before Orlando Arcia struck out swinging. Ryan Ritter also wend own hacking to end the inning. Abraham Toro grounded out to short to start the bottom of the third before Connor Wong watched strike three go by. Eaton grounded out to third to end the inning.

Freeman grounded out to third to start the top of the fourth but Goodman got a base hit inside the third base bag. A wild pitch moved Hunter to second and Moniak moved hjm to third with a great running catch made by Rafaela. Beck lined out to right to end the inning. The Sox blew a rally in the bottom of the fourth as Gonzalez got a base hit to right to start. Anthony struck out swinging but Refsnyder got a base hit to center. Story hit a bullet but right to Arcia who doubled off Romy to end the inning.

Toglia flied out to right to start the top of the fifth before McMahon was frozen for strike three. Doyle walked but Arcia flied out to left to end the inning. Rafaela walked to start the bottom of the fifth but Duran lined out to center. Toro flied out to center to move Rafaela to second but Wong grounded out to short to end the inning. 

Ritter flied out to right to start the top of the sixth before Freeman flied out to center. Goodman grounded out to short to end the inning. Eaton took strike three to start the bottom of the sixth but Gonzalez got a base hit to right. Anthony walked but Refsnyder struck out swinging. Story then smacked a base hit to right. Gonzalez came around to score and the others moved up on the throw home. That was it for Freeland as Juan Mejia came in to pitch to Rafaela. Ceddanne stepped up with a bases clearing double to left and Duran drove him home with a base hit to right. El Toro grounded back to the mound to end the inning with the Sox ahead 4-0.

                                                          Rafaela ices it

Marcelo Mayer came in for Eaton to start the top of the seventh and naturally Bello plunked Moniak to start. Bello recovered to get Beck to ground into a double play and Toglia to fly out to center to end the inning. Bello was at 77 pitches so far. The Sox blew the game open in the bottom of the seventh with Jake Bird now on the mound. Wong grounded out to second but Mayer got a base hit in the hole at short. Gonzalez tripled into the centerfield gap to score Marcelo and Anthony ripped a base hit to left to score Romy. Refsnyder drew a walk and Story clobbered his 15th home run of the season to break it open. Zach Agnos came in to relieve Bird and Rafaela grounded out to short. Duran then smashed his 7th home run of the season to wrap up the scoring. El Toro struck out swinging to end the inning with the Sox up 10-2.

                                                            Story gets the wally head

David Hamilton came in to play second to start the top of the eighth and McMahon grounded out to first to start. Doyle got a base hit to left but Arcia lined out to left. Ritter forced Doyle at second to end the inning and Bello was just three outs away from a complete game shutout.

                                                         Bello was outstanding

Wong struck out swinging to start the bottom of the eighth and Mayer grounded out to second. Hamilton grounded out to third to end the inning.

Bello returned to finish the job but Freeman got a base hit to center to start. Suddenly Goodman hit a home run all the way to Quebec to end the shutout bid. Yanquiel Fernandez pinch hit for Moniak and took strike three, but Beck lined a base hit to center. Toglia lined out to right and McMahon struck out swinging to end the game. Bello had gone the distance and beat the Rockies 10-2.

                                                    Complete game win for Bello

Hero of The Night is a no doubter. Brayan Bello tossed a complete game 5 hitter allowing just 2 runs.

                                                            Hero Bello

The Good:

Marcelo Mayer was 1 for 2 with a run scored.

Romy Gonzalez was 3 for 4 with an rbi and 2 runs scored.

Roman Anthony was 1 for 3 with a walk, rbi and 2 runs scored.

Rob Refsnyder was 1 for 3 with a walk and a run scored.

Trevor Story was 2 for 4 with a 3 run home run, 4 total rbis and 2 total runs scored.

Ceddanne Rafaela was 1 for 3 with a walk, 2 rbis and a run scored.

Jarren Duran was 2 for 4 with a home run, 2 total rbis and a run scored.

The Bad:

Nate Eaton was 0 for 3 with a strikeout.

David Hamilton was 0 for 1.

Abraham Toro was 0 for 4 with a strikeout.

Connor Wong was 0 for 4 with 2 strikeouts.

The Ugly:

None

Final Thoughts:

The Sox needed to beat up on these bad teams and so far they have. They took 2 out of 3 from the Cincinnati Reds, swept the Nationals and have taken the first two against Colorado. Not only that, Bello's complete game saved the bullpen for tomorrow night if needed. The Sox bats have come alive but keep in mind its against bad teams. You'd rather have them win than lose but keep some perspective. Still, the Sox have won the games they've had to after dropping 8 out of 11 following the Rafael Devers trade. They have one more game against Colorado before a big four game set with the Tampa Bay Rays before the all-star break. The Sox definitely need a win tomorrow night to have some momentum and Brayan Bello going the distance put them in a good position. The Sox looked dead in the water after the Devers trade but they've kept afloat for now. The win improved the Sox to 48-45, 6 games behind the Toronto Blue Jays for first place in the AL East. The Sox look to sweep the Rockies and win six games in a row tomorrow night when they send Lucas Giolito (5-1, 3.66 ERA) to the mound against Antonio Senzatela of Colorado. The game begins at 7:10 PM at Fenway Park.

Off Day News: 2024 Draft Revisited (7/3/25)

Its an off-day and since we're under two weeks away from the MLB Draft, its time to look back at last year's Boston Red Sox draft and how Craig Breslow's first crew is doing today. Chaim Bloom drafted a few major leaguers between 2020 and 2023 but made the mistake of drafting nothing but infielders in the early rounds. Hopefully Craig Breslow doesn't make that mistake going forward.

1st Round - OF Braden Montgomery

The Red Sox had the 12th overall pick in the draft and they used it on stud outfielder Braden Montgomery out of Texas A & M University. He was supposed to go in the top 5 but a gruesome ankle injury in the College World Series dropped him right in Boston's lap. He wouldn't play a game in the organization as he was traded along with Kyle Teel and Chase Meidroth to Chicago in the Garrett Crochet trade. Now Montgomery is with the Winston-Salem Dash where he's hitting .248 but with 7 home runs and 30 rbis. He's definitely got a power stroke, time will tell how far he goes.

Currently - High A

2nd Round - LHP Payton Tolle

Unlike his predecessor Chaim Bloom, current Sox GM Craig Breslow drafted a pitcher in the top 50. Left hander Payton Tolle was 7-4 with a 3.21 ERA in 14 starts for TCU before being drafted 50th overall by the Red Sox in the 2024 draft. He started this season in Greenville going 1-3 with a 3.62 ERA and got promoted to Portland. So far in AA he's allowed 2 runs in 9 innings with a save under his belt. Him and Connelly Early from the 2023 draft might be the future in a year or two.

Currently - AA

3rd Round - RHP Brandon Neely

     

The Sox looked to add more pitching when they chose Florida Gators right handed pitcher Brandon Neely with their first round pick. Unfortunately he was damaged goods as he was 3-4 with a 5.09 ERA battling shoulder injuries that prevented him from playing for the Florida Complex. This year he's been on the Injured List since spring training and still hasn't pitched yet. Far too soon to judge him but he's definitely missing out on development.

Currently - Injured List

4th Round - OF Zach Ehrhard

Name sound familiar? Back in 2021 the Red Sox took Zach Ehrhard in the 13th round as a shortstop but he chose to play college ball instead. The Sox thought so much of him they drafted him again in the fourth round of last year's draft. He had just 12 hits in 77 at-bats to end the season for the Greenville Drive but hit .342 with 22 rbis to start this year for the Drive. Promoted to Portland and reunited with his older brother Drew, Zach is hitting just .235 but does have 6 home runs for the Sea Dogs. Better late than never for Zach and at least he's made AA already.

Currently - AA

5th Round - LHP Brandon Clarke

In the fifth round, the Sox took St College of Florida left handed pitcher Brandon Clarke. What made the Sox chose him after posting a 4.36 ERA for a small college is anyone's guess but he's proved doubters wrong so far. He started this year allowing just 1 run in 9 2/3 innings for the Salem Red Sox before getting promoted to Greenville where he's posted a 2.37 ERA out of the bullpen. Small school pitchers are a big crapshot but so far this has worked out. Time will tell if he can make it to Portland and beyond.

Currently - High A

6th Round - RHP Blake Aita

In the sixth round, the Sox chose right handed pitcher Blake Aita out of Kennesaw State where he went 7-4 with a 3.90 ERA in 16 starts. He was 2-3 with a 4.24 ERA for Salem to start this year before getting promoted to Greenville where he's 2-1 with a 1.88 ERA. So far so good for Blake, hopefully he can keep up the momentum this year in Greenville.

Currently - High A

7th Round - OF Will Turner

The Sox first big oops was when they took Southern Alabama outfielder Will Turner in the seventh round. He hit just .218 with 9 home runs in college and his bat hasn't translated to the pro's at all. He had just 6 hits in 74 at bats to end the season in Greenville. This year he was hitting .132 with one home run in Greenville so he was demoted to the Florida Complex Sox...where he's hitting .130 in 9 games. That's a huge red flag that he's hitting this badly this early. He better turn it around in a hurry because there's this year's draft and Dominican guys knocking at the door to take his spot.

Currently - High A

8th Round - RHP/SS Conrad Cason

The Sox made a crapshot with their 8th round pick, Greater Atlanta Christian High School hybrid Conrad Cason. Cason was a pitcher and a shortstop in high school and has played in three games this year for the Florida Complex. One as a pitcher and two as a hitter. He's going to have to make a choice to stick with one skill, but hopefully he excels at one of them. He's only 18 years old so he has plenty of time to develop.

Currently - Rookie League

9th Round - C Hudson White

The Sox took a position of need in the 9th round last year when they took Arkansas University catcher Hudson White. He had just 9 hits in 54 at-bats to finish the season in Greenville. This year he's hitting just .179 with 4 home runs. The trade of Kyle Teel opened a giant hole in the organization for quality catchers and the thinking is White could develop into one. Hitting .179 isn't going to cut it.

Currently - High A

10th Round - LHP Devin Futrell

The Sox started a string of seven straight pitchers taken in the draft when they took left hander Devin Futrell out of Vanderbilt University. He was 4-1 with a hideous 5.40 ERA for Vanderbilt in 2024 but so far he's 0-2 with a 2.53 ERA in 21 innings so far this year. Keep that ERA down and he'll be going places, but he's going to need to locate since he's a junkballer.

Currently - Low A

11th Round - RHP Steven Brooks

The 11th round produced right handed pitcher Steven Brooks for the Sox out of Cal Poly University. Why they took him after consistently posing an ERA in the 5's for 3 years in college is anyone's guess. He's 2-5 with a 5.72 ERA for the Salem Red Sox this year. He was drafted in the 11th round so he's not exactly a blue chip prospect, but what about his stats made Craig Breslow think he had good stuff? He still has time to turn it around, but it looks like they got what they paid for so far.

Currently - Low A

12th Round - RHP Brady Tygart

The Sox used their 12th round selection to go with Arkansas University right handed pitcher Brady Tygart. He was 4-3 with a 3.94 ERA for the Razorbacks in 2024 and the injury bug bit him big time. He was removed after his first start in April, placed on the Injured List, and hasn't pitched since. Going to have to see him next year to see if he develops.

Currently - Low A

13th Round - LHP Shea Sprague

Lucky 13 for the Sox turned out to be left handed pitcher Shea Sprague out of North Carolina University. He was 3-1 with a 4.00 ERA for the Tar Heels in 2024 and so far this year he was 2-2 with a 4.01 ERA before getting promoted to Greenville. There he's currently 1-2 with a 2.60 ERA for the Drive. Not a bad start and hopefully he can keep the momentum going moving forward.

Currently - High A

14th Round - RHP Alex Bouchard

In the fourteenth round, the Sox went right right handed pitcher Alex Bouchard out of Lehigh University. He pitched in 2 games for Lehigh last year before having Tommy John surgery. The Sox wanted his 98 mph fastball so much they were willing to wait for him. He JUST came off the injured list and is rehabbing with the Complex. He'll be in Salem when that's over, let's see if his arm holds up.

Currently - Rookie League

15th Round - RHP Joey Gartrell

In the 15th round, the Sox used their pick to take right handed pitcher Joey Gartrell out of Portland University. Just like Bouchard, he's coming off Tommy John surgery suffered last year. He recently returned and is 2-2 with a 4.09 ERA in Salem. He supposedly hits 94 on the gun so let's see if he bounces back this summer.

Currently - Low A

16th Round - RHP Griffin Kilander

The string of seven straight pitchers drafted ended in the 17th round when the Sox took right handed pitcher Griffin Kilander out of Wayne State University. He was 6-3 with a 4,00 ERA when he was drafted and allowed 1 run in 7 innings to finish the 2024 season in Salem. This year he's 2-5 with a 5.40 ERA in Salem. He needs to step it up big time or else he's going to get passed by the incoming draft class and Dominican players.

Currently - Low A

17th Round - OF Yan Cruz

The Sox took another crapshot when they drafted 17 year old Yan Cruz in the 17th round in last year's draft. He was the 17U Perfect Game MVP and that caught the eye of Sox brass. Unfortunately success hasn't translated to the Florida Complex as he's hitting just .172 with 59 strikeouts in 99 at-bats. Still, he doesn't turn 19 until October so you can't judge him too harshly. Still, you'd like to see a better showing than that.

Currently - Rookie League

18th Round - RHP Cole Tolbert

In the 18th round, the Sox took Ole Miss right handed pitcher Cole Tolbert. Tolbert allowed 11 runs in 18 innings battling injuries in two years in college before making his debut with Salem last year. He was 0-1 with a 5.56 ERA and ended up needing Tommy John surgery in March. He won't pitch this year and half of next year, but not much is expected out of 18th round picks anyway.

Currently - Full Season Injured List

19th Round - 3B D'Angelo Ortiz

Nepotism and the Boston Red Sox are hardly strangers. Whether its Marc Sullivan or Nick Lovullo, every now and then the Sox will draft someone as a favor. The mother of all was this year in the 19th round when the Sox took Miami Dade Community College third baseman D'Angelo Ortiz. Care to guess who his father is? Little Papi doesn't have his father's power stroke as he only had 1 home run in 51 games for Miami Dade and he's hitting .269 with no home runs for the Florida Complex. Still, .269 is better than Yan Cruz and it would be totally unfair to expect D'Angelo to be David. Still, you still have to produce, let's see what he can do.

Currently - Rookie League

20th Round - RHP Ben Hansen 

The final player drafted in the 20th round was BYU right handed pitcher Ben Hansen. Hansen was straight garbage at BYU going 5-7 with a 6.63 ERA and so far he's 1-2 with a 6.25 ERA for Salem this year. Can't expect to find blue chip prospects in the 20th round, but at the same time they knew he was bad in college, why did they think they could fix him? He's still got a year or two to develop, but still.

Currently - Low A

URFA - RHP Calvin Bickerstaff

After the draft, the Sox signed a pair of undrafted rookie free agents. One of them was Kent State right handed pitcher Calvin Bickerstaff. He was mediocre for Kent State going 4-4 with a 5.08 ERA before looking good with Salem to end 2024, allowing just 2 runs in 6 innings. This year he's allowed 9 earned runs in 22 innings between the Complex and Salem. For a guy not even drafted, that's better than what other guys who were drafted are doing. Time will tell how far he goes.

Currently - Low A

URFA - RP Jay Allmer

The other undrafted rookie free agent was Seton Hall right handed pitcher Jay Allmer. He was 1-5 but with a 2.73 ERA for Seton Hall and this year he's 3-1 with a 3.18 ERA and a save for Salem. Once again, for a guy who wasn't even drafted, that's better than nothing. Hopefully Breslow found a hidden gem here.

Currently - Low A

Surprisingly all 20 players signed and out of the 22...2 are on the Injured List, 2 are in AA, 6 are in High A, 8 are in Low A and 4 are in the Rookie League. Braden Montgomery was supposedly a steal in the draft but they traded him to get Garrett Crochet. As it is, Payton Tolle looks like the next man up out of this group, Zach Ehrhard is also in AA already but the rest will have time to develop. Getting an Andrew Benintendi that goes from drafted to MLB in one year is tough to do, so judge slowly. Still, Breslow knew the organization has a dearth of pitching so he grabbed as many as he could. Hopefully one or more of them will stick.