The Red Sox invited 14 minor leaguers to major league spring training on Friday. Of those 14, Jeremy Wu-Yelland was the only left-handed pitcher to make the cut.
Wu-Yelland will be attending his first big league spring training camp in Fort Myers beginning next month. The 26-year-old is currently regarded as SoxProspects.com’s No. 48 prospect, which ranks 24th among pitchers in Boston’s farm system.
A former fourth-round draft selection of the Red Sox out of Hawaii in 2020 (who underwent Tommy John surgery in 2022), Wu-Yelland is coming off an encouraging 2025 season. After pitching for China in World Baseball Classic qualifiers in the spring, the lefty broke camp with High-A Greenville. He posted a 3.09 ERA with 20 strikeouts to five walks in seven relief appearances (11 2/3 innings) for the Drive and was rewarded with a promotion to Double-A Portland in early May.
Although lower back stiffness cost him roughly one month of action across two separate trips to the injured list, Wu-Yelland was extremely productive when on the mound for the Sea Dogs. He pitched to a 3.18 ERA with 51 strikeouts to 11 walks in 18 relief appearances (34 innings) and held opposing Eastern League hitters to a .193 batting average.
Overall, Wu-Yelland forged a 3.15 ERA with 71 strikeouts to 16 walks in 25 total relief outings (45 2/3 innings) between Greenville and Portland last season. Left-handed hitters batted just .172 against him, while right-handed hitters fared slightly better at a .220 clip.
Among 53 Red Sox minor leaguers who, regardless of level, threw at least 45 innings in 2025, Wu-Yelland ranked first in strikeouts per nine innings (13.99), strikeout rate (37.6 percent), and xFIP (2.52), fifth in WHIP (1.07) and FIP (2.86), 10th in batting average against (.201), 12th in walks per nine innings (3.15), 14th in walk rate (8.5 percent), 17th in swinging-strike rate (13.5 percent), and 18th in ERA, per FanGraphs.
In addition to earning 2025 SoxProspects.com All-Star honors, Wu-Yelland drew considerable Rule 5 buzz this offseason after being left unprotected by the Red Sox in November. Though there was “smoke” that Wu-Yelland might be taken high in the hours leading up to last month’s Rule 5 Draft, he went unselected and remains in Boston’s system without occupying a 40-man roster spot.
That status could, of course, change if Wu-Yelland impresses this spring and leverages his performance into a big league call-up at some point this season. The 6-foot-2, 210-pound southpaw throws from a lower three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a medium leg kick into his deceptive delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, he features a 90-92 mph cut-slider, a 94-96 mph fastball that tops out at 97-98 mph, and a 79-82 mph sweeper with a “very high” spin rate.
If Wu-Yelland, who turns 27 in June, does not make Boston’s Opening Day roster out of spring training, he is projected by SoxProspects.com to open the 2026 season in Triple-A Worcester’s bullpen. He could join fellow lefties Tyler Samaniego and Alec Gamboa in that regard.
(Picture of Jeremy Wu-Yelland: Kyle Mace/Minor League Baseball via Getty Images)
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