The Red Sox have signed free agent left-hander Erik Rivera to a minor-league contract, as was first reported by Hunter Noll of Beyond the Monster. Rivera himself appears to have confirmed the signing on his Instagram account.
Rivera is a former 2019 fourth-round draft pick of the Angels out of the Puerto Rico Baseball Academy. The 23-year-old Caguas native was taken 121st overall and forewent his commitment to Florida International by signing with Los Angeles for $597,500.
A two-way player coming out of high school, Rivera signed with the Angels as an outfielder and batted .208/.313/.264 with four doubles, nine RBIs, eight runs scored, nine walks, and 31 strikeouts over 21 games (83 plate appearances) in the 2019 rookie-level Arizona League. His first full professional season was wiped out due to the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 and he emerged as a full-time pitcher beginning in 2021.
Rivera entered the 2021 season ranked by Baseball America as the No. 14 prospect in Los Angeles’ farm system. The lefty made his professional pitching debut at Low-A Inland Empire that May but then suffered a sprained UCL in his left elbow that ultimately required surgery. As a result, he missed the remainder of the 2021 campaign and all of 2022 before making his way back to the mound in August 2023. He closed out the year by forging a 4.09 ERA (5.90 FIP) with 16 strikeouts to 15 walks in seven total outings (11 innings) between the Arizona Complex League and High-A Tri-City.
Rivera returned to Tri-City for the start of the 2024 season and posted a 3.31 ERA (4.94 FIP) with 39 strikeouts to 20 walks over 10 appearances (eight starts) spanning 35 1/3 innings in which opposing hitters batted .213 against him. The southpaw was released by the Angels in late July and spent the remainder of the year in free agency. Most recently, he enjoyed a productive offseason back on his home island by pitching to a 1.04 ERA (0.86 WHIP) with 21 strikeouts to 10 walks in 16 relief appearances (17 1/3 innings) for the Leones de Ponce of the Puerto Rican Winter League.
Listed at 6-foot-2 and 200 pounds, Rivera has been described as having a smooth and athletic delivery. In the past, he has reached 95 mph with his fastball which typically sits in the lower-90s. He has also featured an upper-70s curveball that resembled a slider and a lower-80s changeup with fade, per his July 2021 Baseball America scouting report.
Rivera, who turns 24 in April, should provide the Red Sox with additional pitching depth from the left side in the lower minors to open the 2025 season. It remains to be seen what affiliate he will break camp with later this spring, though Low-A Salem or High-A Greenville would appear to be the most likely destinations.
(Picture: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)
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