Red Sox’ Michael Gettys to begin first full season as pitcher with High-A Greenville

Michael Gettys will begin his first full professional season as a pitcher with High-A Greenville, the team announced on Tuesday. Gettys is one of 19 pitchers on the Drive’s Opening Day roster.

Gettys, 26, originally came up as an outfielder in the Padres organization after being selected by San Diego in the second round of the 2014 amateur draft out of Gainesville (Ga.) High School.

Once a highly-touted prospect in the Padres’ farm system, the Georgia native became a free-agent at the conclusion of the 2020 season and signed a minor-league deal with the Red Sox that November.

After getting some run at major-league camp the following spring, Gettys opened the 2021 season with Triple-A Worcester. The right-handed hitter saw playing time at all three outfield positions and batted .201/.271/.349 with five home runs and 14 RBIs through his first 46 games (166 plate appearances) for the WooSox.

Gettys’ last game with the WooSox came on August 1. He was placed on the development list three days later and was ultimately reassigned to the Sox’ rookie-level Florida Complex League affiliate at the end of the month with the designation of pitcher conversion.

On Aug. 31, Gettys made his professional debut as a pitcher for the FCL Red Sox in their contest against the FCL Orioles Black in Fort Myers. The right-hander came on in relief in the fifth inning, walked one, and struck out another in a scoreless frame of work.

Taking home the winning decision in his pitching debut, Gettys made four more appearances for the FCL Red Sox to close out the season. He finished the year with a 3.60 ERA (7.15 FIP) to go along with five strikeouts and four walks over five innings pitched.

In early November, Gettys became a minor-league free-agent once more, though it did not take him long to land back on his feet considering the fact he officially re-signed with Boston on Nov. 17.

Following his first off-season and spring training as a full-fledged pitcher, Gettys wound up breaking camp with Greenville. The 6-foot-1, 217 pound hurler has always been known for his plus-plus arm strength, so his stuff very well could play out of the Drive bullpen.

Given the fact that he turns 27 in October and will undoubtedly be older for his level to start the season, it should be interesting to see if Gettys can work his way back up the Sox’ organizational ladder as a reliever.

This is not to say Gettys should be considered for a spot in Boston’s big-league bullpen this summer, but could he make his way back to Worcester before the 2022 season is over? That will be something worth paying attention to.

(Picture of Michael Gettys courtesy of the Worcester Red Sox)

Red Sox close out spring training with 10-6 win over Twins to take home 2022 Chairman’s Cup

The Red Sox wrapped up Grapefruit League play on Tuesday by coming from behind to defeat the Twins by a final score of 10-6 at JetBlue Park. Boston finishes the spring with a record of 11-8 and also take home the 2022 Chairman’s Cup.

J.D. Martinez got the Sox on the board first in their half of the first, ripping an RBI single off Twins starter Josh Winder to score Enrique Hernandez from third base.

Michael Wacha, making his fourth and final start of the spring for Boston, retired five of the first seven batters he faced before serving up a two-run shot to Gio Urshela with one out in the top of the second.

The home run came back to bite Wacha an inning later, as the right-hander gave up a leadoff homer to Byron Buxton and a two-run bomb to Carlos Correa moments later.

Wacha failed to record an out in the third and was ultimately pulled for Ryan Brasier, who allowed one of the runners he inherited to score on a sacrifice fly that gave the Twins a commanding 6-1 lead.

After Brasier ended things in the third, though, Wacha took the mound once more in the fourth and actually turned his day around for the better. The 30-year-old struck out the side in the fourth and maneuvered his way around a two-out walk to put up another zero in the fifth.

All told, Wacha surrendered six earned runs on on six hits and three walks to go along with six strikeouts over four total innings of work spanning 93 pitches.

In relief of Wacha, Hansel Robles made his second appearance out of the Boston bullpen in as many days and, after giving up a leadoff double to Alex Kirilloff, stranded Kirilloff at second base in an otherwise clean sixth inning.

The middle of the sixth is where momentum began to shift in the Sox’ favor. With Griffin Jax on the mound for the Twins, Alex Cora emptied the bench and the minor-leaguers who are still in Fort Myers took over.

Juan Chacon led off with a groundball single and advanced to third on a hard-hit double off the bat of Johanfrank Salazar. Jonathan Arauz getting plunked by a pitch to load the bases for Bryan Gonzalez, who drove in Chacon on a sacrifice fly to left field.

Ahbram Liendo then plated Salazar on an RBI single, and Jax proceeded to fill the bases again by issuing two straight walks to Darel Belen and Miguel Bleis. Following a pitching change that saw Ricardo Velez take over for Jax, Ronald Rosario greeted the new Twins reliever with a game-tying, two-run single to center field.

With things now knotted up at six runs apiece, the Red Sox re-loaded the bases and scored on a bases-loaded walk drawn by Salazar. The pinch-hitting Luis Ravelo pushed across another run by driving in Rosario to make it an 8-6 game.

After Kutter Crawford tossed a scoreless frame in the top of the seventh, the Sox tacked on two more runs in their half of the seventh on an RBI groundout from Liendo and RBI double from Belen.

From there, Austin Davis worked his way around a leadoff walk in the eighth inning, and Tyler Danish closed things out with a perfect ninth inning to secure a 10-6 victory to cap off the spring.

Next up: The real thing

With another spring training in the books, the Red Sox will now board a flight to New York ahead of Opening Day against the Yankees on Thursday, weather permitting.

Nathan Eovaldi is slated to make his third consecutive Opening Day start for Boston. He will be opposed by fellow right-hander and New York ace Gerrit Cole.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The 2022 season opener will be televised on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Michael Wacha: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Top Red Sox pitching prospects Brayan Bello, Jay Groome returning to Double-A Portland for start of 2022 season

Two of the top pitching prospects in the Red Sox farm system are returning to Double-A Portland for the start of the 2022 season.

As part of a flurry of roster moves made on Monday, the Sox announced that left-hander Jay Groome and right-hander Brayan Bello had been transferred from Triple-A Worcester to Double-A Portland.

Both Bello and Groome are on Boston’s 40-man roster and were invited to big-league camp at the onset of spring training. When they were reassigned to minor-league camp last month, the Sox announced the move by saying they had been optioned to Worcester. So the fact that they were transferred from Worcester to Portland on Monday should not be viewed as a demotion since they were expected to begin the season in Double-A to begin with.

Bello, 22, and Groome, 23, are currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 5 and No. 10 prospects in Boston’s farm system, respectively. The former ranks first among pitchers in the organization while the latter ranks fourth. They both began last season with High-A Greenville and ended the year in Portland.

Bello, a former international free agent signed out the Dominican Republic in 2017, posted a 2.27 ERA and 2.82 FIP to go along with 45 strikeouts and seven walks over six starts (31 2/3 innings pitched) with Greenville before earning a promotion to Portland on June 8.

With the Sea Dogs, the righty produced a 4.66 ERA — but much more respectable 3.12 FIP — with 87 strikeouts to 24 walks over 15 starts spanning 63 2/3 innings of work. He also represented the Red Sox in the All-Star Futures Game and was named the organization’s Minor League Starting Pitcher of the Year.

Groome, a former first-round draft pick out of Barnegat High School (N.J.) in 2016, posted a 5.29 ERA and 4.35 FIP with 108 strikeouts to 32 walks across 18 starts (81 2/3 innings) with the Drive before being promoted to Portland in early September.

Although it came in a smaller sample size, Groome’s stint with the Sea Dogs last year went more swimmingly than Bello’s. In three starts to close out his season, the lefty pitched to the tune of a 2.30 ERA and 1.15 FIP to go along with 26 strikeouts and just four walks over 15 2/3 innings of work.

Bello, who turns 23 in May, has three pitches in his arsenal: a fastball, changeup, and slider. Groome, who turns 24 in August, operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a fastball, curveball, changeup, and slider.

The two hurlers made just one appearance each in Grapefruit League play this spring, but still showed why they are as highly-touted as they are. It would not be unreasonable if one of the two, or maybe even both, made it up to Worcester by the end of the year.

In the meantime, though, Bello and Groome figure to lead a talented Portland pitching staff that will feature the likes of Chris Murphy, Brandon Walter, Victor Santos, Franklin German, Chase Shugart, and Jacob Wallace, among others.

The Sea Dogs open their season against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats (Blue Jays affiliate) at Hadlock Field this coming Friday, April 8. One would have to figure Bello or Groome will get the starting nod on Opening Day.

(Picture of Brayan Bello and Jay Groome: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Red Sox add Tyler Danish to major-league roster, place Chris Sale on 60-day injured list in series of moves

Following Monday’s 2-0 loss to the Twins at Hammond Stadium, the Red Sox announced that they had made a series of roster moves.

First off, right-hander Tyler Danish was selected to the major-league roster. In order to make room for Danish on the 40-man roster, left-hander Chris Sale was placed on the 60-day injured list with a right rib stress fracture.

Danish, 27, originally signed a minor-league deal with Boston that included an invite to major-league spring training back in February. The righty has posted a 1.50 ERA to go along with five strikeouts and two walks over five appearances (6 innings pitched) so far this spring.

A former second-round pick of the White Sox out of Durant High School in 2013, Danish debuted for Chicago in 2016 and spent three seasons with the club. The Florida native produced a 4.85 ERA (6.70 FIP) across 11 outings (one start) during that stretch, but has not pitched at the big-league level since 2018.

After being released by the Mariners in 2019, Danish spent the next two seasons pitching in independent ball before latching on with the Angels organization last year. He produced a 3.84 ERA across 32 appearances (three starts) between Double-A Rocket City and Triple-A Salt lake.

Listed at 6-feet and 200 pounds, Danish operates with a five-pitch mix that consists of a curveball, a sinker, a changeup, a four-seam fastball, and a slider, per Baseball Savant.

With Danish making the Opening Day roster, the Red Sox created an open spot for the non-roster invitee by placing Sale on the 60-day injured list.

Sale, who turned 33 last week, has been sidelined since late February, when he suffered a stress fracture in his right rib cage while throwing a live batting practice session at his alma mater, Florida Gulf Coast University, during the MLB lockout.

As noted by The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier, Sale has yet to start a throwing program since sustaining the injury, meaning he will not be ready for game action for quite some time. The Red Sox, in turn, have ruled their ace out until June 6 at the earliest since the 60-day injured list clock starts on Opening Day.

While Danish may have made Boston’s Opening Day roster, three other non-roster invitees in right-hander John Schreiber and outfielders Franchy Cordero and Rob Refsnyder were all reassigned to the minor-leagues.

Cordero and Schreiber have been with the Red Sox organization since last February, when the former was acquired from the Royals in the trade that sent Andrew Benintendi to Kansas City and the latter was claimed off waivers from the Tigers.

Refsnyder, on the other hand, inked a minors pact with Boston back in November and appeared to have a real chance to break camp with the big-league camp this spring as a right-handed hitting bench bat who can handle left-handed pitching.

Alas, neither Cordero, Refsnyder, or Schreiber made the team, though they are all expected to accept their assignments to Triple-A Worcester, according to MassLive.com’s Christopher Smith.

Elsewhere, the Red Sox transferred two of their top pitching prospects in Brayan Bello and Jay Groome from Triple-A Worcester to Double-A Portland. Both Bello and Groome are on Boston’s 40-man roster and were initially optioned to Worcester earlier this spring.

Rather than begin the 2022 season with the WooSox, though, the pair of young hurlers will return to the Sea Dogs’ starting rotation to kick off the minor-league campaign.

With Monday’s transactions made, the Red Sox now have 30 players at major-league spring training with only three days to go until Opening Day. Of those 30 players, only two non-roster invitees remain in veteran reliever Hansel Robles and corner infielder Travis Shaw.

Regardless of who and does not make the team from here, Boston still needs to trim down the size of their big-league roster to 28 players before taking on the Yankees in the Bronx on Thursday.

(Picture of Tyler Danish: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Tanner Houck fans 7 in final start of spring as Red Sox are shut out by Twins in 2-0 defeat

The Red Sox fell to 10-8 in Grapefruit League play on Monday afternoon following a 2-0 shutout loss at the hands of the Twins at Hammond Stadium in Fort Myers.

Tanner Houck made his fourth and final start of the spring for the Sox and was solid, allowing only two earned runs on five hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with seven strikeouts over six innings of work.

Both runs Houck surrendered on Monday came by way of the home run ball. The right-hander served up a solo shot to Miguel Sano with one out in the fourth before doing the very same to Max Kepler to lead off the sixth.

After Kepler went deep, Houck was able to retire three of the final four batters he faced. The 25-year-old hurler finished with a final pitch count of 82 (55 strikes), induced nine total swings-and-misses, and hovered around 94.7 mph with his four-seam fastball.

In relief of Houck, Hansel Robles received the first call out of the Boston bullpen to begin things in the seventh inning. Making his 2022 debut after signing a minor-league deal with the Sox last month, Robles maneuvered his way around a leadoff walk and one-out single by recording back-to-back strikeouts to retire the side. He threw 23 pitches (14 strikes) and averaged 95.3 mph with his heater.

From there, Jake Diekman recorded the first two outs of the eighth before Hirokazu Sawamura came on to end the inning.

On the other side of things, a Red Sox lineup that featured the likes of Xander Bogaerts, Rafael Devers, Enrique Hernandez, J.D. Martinez, Trevor Story, Bobby Dalbec, Jackie Bradley Jr., Christian Arroyo, and Kevin Plawecki was held in check by four different Twins pitchers.

It took until the fourth inning for Boston to record their first hit on a leadoff double off the bat of Bogaerts, but he was stranded at third after Minnesota starter Bailey Ober got Martinez to ground into an inning-ending double play.

The only other two hits the Sox had were singles from Bobby Dalbec and Yolmer Sanchez, though nothing came of either as Boston went 0-for-2 with runners in scoring position and left just two runners on base as a team on Monday.

Next up: Chairman’s Cup finale

The Red Sox wrap up their Grapefruit League schedule by taking on the Twins once again back at JetBlue park on Tuesday afternoon. With the head-to-head series now tied at three games apiece, Tuesday’s contest will determine the winner of the 2022 Chairman’s Cup.

Michael Wacha is slated to start for Boston and fellow right-hander Josh Winder is in line to do the same for Minnesota. First pitch Tuesday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised on NESN.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Rich Hill to begin 2022 season in Red Sox’ starting rotation; Garrett Whitlock will remain in bullpen

Rich Hill will open the 2022 season as the Red Sox’ No. 5 starter, manager Alex Cora announced earlier Monday morning. The veteran left-hander will make his first start of the year against the Detroit Tigers at Comerica Park next Tuesday.

Hill, 42, signed a one-year, $5 million deal to return to the Sox last December. The Milton, Mass. native has posted a 9.35 ERA in three appearances (two starts) spanning 8 2/3 innings of work this spring and is expected to throw a six-inning, 90-pitch simulated game at JetBlue Park on Wednesday.

With Hill being named Boston’s fifth starter, Garrett Whitlock will move to the bullpen to start the season. The two hurlers had been competing for a spot in the Sox’ rotation throughout the spring. And while Hill may have prevailed, the Red Sox will keep Whitlock stretched out in the event they need another starter.

“We’re going to stretch him out. He’ll be ready for Thursday,” Cora said of Whitlock. “We’ll try to stretch him out and go from there. We have to do this. We have to keep six guys stretched out because of the nature of the schedule. I think we can be creative in a sense. Both of them are going to be a big part of what we try to accomplish.”

In terms of being creative, Cora alluded to the fact that the club has entertained the idea of having Whitlock piggyback Hill on days the latter starts.

“That’s something we’ve been talking about since we signed Rich,” said Cora. “We can pair them together.”

Having a hard-throwing righty such as Whitlock come in for a finesse lefty such as Hill could make for an intriguing strategy to win ballgames. Opposing teams who stack their lineup with right-handed bats to face Hill would then be put in a tough spot when Whitlock, who held right-handed hitters to a .522 OPS against last year, makes his way out of the Boston bullpen.

“People are going to mix and match with them,” Cora said. “They’re the total opposite numbers-wise. … It makes sense. Put them together and use them the right way.”

(Picture of Rich Hill: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Kutter Crawford makes Red Sox’ Opening Day roster

Kutter Crawford has made the Red Sox’ Opening Day roster, manager Alex Cora announced earlier Monday morning. The right-hander will be one of 15 pitchers Boston carries on its 28-man roster to begin the 2022 season and will be available out of the bullpen for Thursday’s opener against the Yankees in the Bronx.

Crawford, who turned 26 last week, was originally selected by the Sox in the 16th round of the 2017 amateur draft out of Florida Gulf Coast University. The Florida native came into the year regarded by Baseball America as the No. 15 prospect in Boston’s farm system, ranking eighth among pitchers in the organization.

After undergoing Tommy John surgery in October 2019 and missing all of 2020 as a result, Crawford put himself on the map last season by throwing harder and limiting his walks.

While the Red Sox were navigating their way through a COVID-19 outbreak in September, Crawford was called up from Triple-A Worcester to start in place of Nick Pivetta on Sept. 5. His big-league debut did not go as planned (5 earned runs in 2 innings pitched), but the righty continued to make strides upon being returned to Worcester and was ultimately added to Boston’s 40-man roster in November to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

On the heels of an off-season in which he posted a 0.42 ERA over five starts (21 1/3 innings pitched) for Estrellas Orientales of the Dominican Winter League, Crawford received his first invite to major-league camp and has impressed the Red Sox this spring.

In three Grapefruit League appearances out of the Sox’ bullpen, Crawford has pitched to the tune of a 2.25 ERA to go along with eight strikeouts to just one walk across four innings of work. In his most recent outing against the Pirates on March 29, Crawford struck out five over two scoreless frames while sitting between 95-97 mph with his four-seam fastball.

Cora has previously acknowledged that in terms of stuff, Crawford is one of the best pitchers the Red Sox have. To complement his high-octane fastball, the 6-foot-1, 209 pound hurler also works with a cutter, a curveball, a sinker, and a changeup.

Throughout his minor-league career, Crawford has primarily been used as a starter. The plan now, per Cora, is to use Crawford as a multi-inning reliever out of the bullpen beginning on Thursday.

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox plan to have Darwinzon Hernandez make 2-3 inning starts for Triple-A Worcester to begin season, Alex Cora says

The Red Sox made a surprising decision on Saturday when they elected to option left-hander Darwinzon Hernandez to Triple-A Worcester.

Hernandez, 25, has been a key figure in Boston’s bullpen since debuting for the Sox in 2019. Over the last three seasons, his 83 relief appearances rank sixth on the team behind only Matt Barnes (154), Josh Taylor (120), Ryan Brasier (99), Brandon Workman (99), and Marcus Walden (85).

While Hernandez has primarily been used as a reliever throughout his big-league career, the Red Sox sent the Venezuelan-born southpaw down to Triple-A with a plan in place to start games for the WooSox.

When speaking with reporters at JetBlue Park on Sunday, Sox manager Alex Cora revealed that Hernandez will likely start for the WooSox this coming Tuesday in their Opening Day bout against the Jumbo Shrimp in Jacksonville. Though labeled as a starter, Hernandez is only expected to work two to three innings per start and will use the days in between his starts to work on the side.

“I think the plan for him is actually he’s going to start probably Opening Day in Jacksonville, but he’ll go two or three innings,” explained Cora. “The goal is for him to work in between starts or in between outings. He hasn’t been able to do that in years. It wasn’t a comfortable conversation because we know what he can do. But the goal is for him to work with (Worcester pitching Paul Abbott) in between starts and try to be consistent.”

After making his first career Opening Day roster last year, Hernandez appeared in 48 games for the Red Sox and posted a 3.38 ERA (4.80 FIP) to go along with 54 strikeouts to 31 walks over 40 innings of work.

Among the 54 left-handed relievers who accrued at least 40 innings in 2021, Hernandez ranked seventh in strikeouts per nine innings (12.2) and 11th in strikeout rate (29.7%). But he also ranked 53rd in walks per nine innings (7.0) and 53rd in walk rate (17%), per FanGraphs.

That Hernandez was erratic at times last year is nothing new. He has proven more than capable of getting hitters out at the big-league level, but he has done so on an inconsistent basis.

“Yeah, you’re a big leaguer, we know that,” Cora said of Hernandez. “But to be the big leaguer we envision, we need to find consistency and that’s what he is missing right now. We can’t go with the up and down. He dominates in Texas and he struggles for a few weeks. We don’t want that. When he’s ready, he’ll be ready. We know he’s going to contribute. There’s a few decisions based on that. There’s a few decisions as far as who we are facing this month. Do we need more righties? All of a sudden, we’ve got a lot of lefties on our staff. And they’re really, really good. But we’re still getting there.”

While Hernandez will start the season in Worcester instead of in Boston, Cora emphasized that the results or numbers Hernandez puts up with the WooSox are not as important as the work he will put in between his outings.

“We want him to pitch and then we want him to work,” the manager said. “The last one here, three innings and everyone was ecstatic. He did the job. But it’s not about that. He can even struggle for three innings and all of a sudden you will see him here. It’s about the work he will be putting in between outings, which is the most important thing for us.”

One thing in particular Cora would like to see Hernandez work on in Worcester is his delivery. When discussing Hernandez’s approach on the mound, Cora noted that the lefty can be overpowering when he works up in the zone with his fastball. The same can be said about Brewers closer Josh Hader. When Hernandez misses with his fastball, though, that is when he becomes susceptible to walks and other forms of damage.

“But at the end, we want him to throw fastballs up and breaking balls down and be consistent with it,” Cora said. “When he throws the fastball up, there is no damage. You guys can look at it. Fastballs up and breaking balls down.  I hate to compare guys but like (Josh) Hader. It’s very simple. Fastballs up and breaking balls down. And he can do that.

“The characteristics of his fastballs, he gets swings and misses,” added Cora. “He gets foul balls. There’s no loud contact. But when he gets a fastball down, we see the results, too. So it’s just a matter of him being consistent, repeat his delivery over and over and over again. And we do believe he’s going to contribute at one point this season. He’s going to be a big part of this team.”

(Picture of Darwinzon Hernandez: Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

Rafael Devers homers again as Red Sox ride 5-run second inning to 6-3 win over Braves

Powered by a five-run second inning, the Red Sox improved to 10-7 in Grapefruit League play on Sunday with a 6-3 victory over the Braves at CoolToday Park in North Port.

After falling behind by a run early on, the Sox did the majority of their damage off Braves starter Huascar Ynoa in their half of the second. Bobby Dalbec led off the frame with a line-drive single and Jackie Bradley Jr. immediately followed by crushing a two-run shot over the right field wall for his third home run of the spring.

Boston’s No. 9 hitter, Yolmer Sanchez, reached base via a two-out single and Enrique Hernandez kept the inning alive by reaching on a fielding error. That sequence brought Rafael Devers to the plate, and the left-handed hitting slugger made Atlanta pay for their mistake by teeing off on a pitch from Ynoa that was barely off the ground.

Devers plated three on his team-leading sixth homer of the spring to give his side a commanding 5-1 lead. To that point in the contest, the only run the Braves had gotten off Sox starter Nick Pivetta came by way of a solo home run off the bat of Matt Olson in the bottom of the first.

Pivetta, making one final tune-up before the start of the regular season, wound up allowing just one run on six hits, one walk, and one hit batsman to go along with six strikeouts over five full innings of work on Sunday.

The 29-year-old right-hander ran into trouble in the first even after serving up the homer, but escaped any further damage and settled in nicely by retiring 10 of the final 15 batters he faced.

In relief of Pivetta, Hirokazu Sawamura got the first call out of the Boston bullpen beginning in the sixth inning. Celebrating his 34th birthday on Sunday, the Japanese-born righty made quick work of Marcell Ozuna, Adam Duvall, and Alex Dickerson.

From there, a pinch-hitting Travis Shaw drove in Rob Refsnyder on an RBI single off Braves reliever Kyle Wright in the top of the seventh. John Schreiber, meanwhile, took over for Sawamura in the bottom of the seventh and allowed two runs to score on two walks, a wild pitch, and a single an inning later.

With a three-run lead to protect heading into the ninth, Tyler Danish maneuvered his way around a jam in which the Braves brought the tying run to the plate by punching out the final two batters he faced in consecutive order.

Danish was credited with his first save of the spring, and the Red Sox secured a 6-3 win as a result.

Some notes from this victory:

Four different Red Sox pitchers (Pivetta, Sawamura, Schreiber, and Danish) on Sunday combined to allow three earned runs on eight hits, four walks, one hit batsman, and nine total strikeouts across nine innings of work.

Rafael Devers hit his sixth home run of the spring on Sunday is now batting .435/.481/1.261 through his first 10 games (27 plate appearances) of Grapefruit League play.

Next up: Houck vs. Ober

The Red Sox will make the trek back to Fort Myers and take on the Twins at Hammond Stadium in their penultimate game of the spring on Monday. Boston can clinch the 2022 Chairman’s Cup with a win since they currently lead Minnesota three games-to-two in the best-of-seven series.

Tanner Houck is slated to get the start for the Sox on Monday afternoon. The Twins will roll with fellow right-hander Bailey Ober. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised, but only on Bally Sports North.

(Picture of Enrique Hernandez and Rafael Devers courtesy of the Boston Red Sox)

What to expect from Red Sox relief prospect Ryan Fernandez in 2022

If you visit the Red Sox’ official website and go to their 40-man roster page, you may notice an unfamiliar name included within the list of pitchers in Ryan Fernandez.

Fernandez, 23, has yet to pitch above the High-A level, so him being listed on Boston’s 40-man roster is more than likely the result of a web error or something of the sort.

Still, since Fernandez made his Grapefruit League debut against the Braves this past Wednesday, this felt like an opportune time to write about the right-hander the Red Sox selected in the 23rd round of the 2018 amateur draft out of Hillsborough Community College in Florida.

A native of Tampa, Fla. himself, Fernandez signed with the Sox for $125,000 in June 2018 and made his professional debut in the rookie-level Gulf Coast League. He then spent the entirety of the 2019 campaign with the short-season Lowell Spinners.

After the COVID-19 pandemic wiped out the 2020 minor-league season, Fernandez returned to affiliated ball in 2021 and broke camp with Low-A Salem. In 17 relief appearances for the Salem Sox, the righty posted a 1.50 ERA and 2.39 FIP to go along with 42 strikeouts to just nine walks over 36 innings of work.

On August 14, Fernandez earned a promotion to High-A Greenville and wound wind up ending the season with the Drive. Over seven outings there, Fernandez pitched to the tune of a 4.32 ERA and 5.21 FIP with 18 strikeouts and five walks across 16 2/3 innings pitched.

A 4.32 ERA is not an eye-opening statistic, obviously. In Fernandez’s case, however, it is worth mentioning that he allowed just one run over his final three appearances (6 innings) of the 2021 season in the month of September.

Among the 39 minor-league pitchers in the Red Sox organization who compiled at least 50 innings on the mound last year, Fernandez ranked second in ERA (2.39), 15th in strikeouts per nine innings (10.25), 11th in walks per nine innings (2.39), 12th in strikeout rate (27.8%) walk rate (6.5%), and batting average against (.230), ninth in WHIP (1.14), sixth in FIP (3.28) and xFIP (3.58), and eighth in swinging strike rate (16.7%), per FanGraphs.

Listed at 6-feet and 170 pounds, Fernandez operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 92-94 mph fastball that tops out at 95 mph, an 85-87 mph slider, an 80-84 mph curveball, and an 83-85 mph changeup, according to his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

You will not find Fernandez, who turns 24 in June, on any major publication’s top Red Sox prospects list. Still, the Florida-born reliever is coming off a solid 2021 between both levels of A-ball and has received some attention this spring.

On that note, SoxProspects.com projects that Fernandez will return to Greenville for the start of the 2022 minor-league season. If he impresses there, though, a promotion to Double-A Portland at some point this spring or summer should not be ruled out.

(Picture of Ryan Fernandez: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)