The Red Sox have re-signed right-hander Patrick Halligan to a minor league contract covering the 2027 season, as first reported by The Worcester Telegram & Gazette’s Tommy Cassell.
Halligan, who turned 27 earlier this month, remains with the club he joined last winter. The former 13th-round draft pick out of Pensacola State College in 2021 signed with the Red Sox as a minor league free agent in January after spending time in the Royals, Braves, and Astros organizations.
Halligan spent most of this past season with Double-A Portland, where he earned Eastern League Pitcher of the Week honors in May and posted a 4.29 ERA with 78 strikeouts to 24 walks over 29 outings (two starts) spanning 56 2/3 innings. He also made 10 appearances for Triple-A Worcester, pitching to a 5.66 ERA with 24 strikeouts to six walks across 20 2/3 innings of relief.
Altogether, Halligan forged a 4.66 ERA with a career-high 102 strikeouts to 30 walks in 39 outings (two starts) and 77 1/3 innings between Portland and Worcester. Opposing hitters slashed .231/.309/.366 against him over 331 plate appearances. That includes a .237/.307/.347 line from the right side of the plate and a .221/.312/.393 line from the left side.
Halligan was one of 15 Red Sox minor leaguers to log at least 75 innings this season. Among those 15 pitchers, he ranked third in batting average against, fourth in FIP (3.93), strikeouts per nine innings (11.87), and strikeout rate (30.8%), fifth in WHIP (1.27), sixth in swinging-strike rate (13%) and xFIP (3.95), and seventh in walks per nine innings (3.49), according to FanGraphs.
Listed at an imposing 6-foot-6 and 230 pounds, Halligan featured a four-pitch mix in his time with Worcester this season. The Virginia-born hurler topped out at 94.9 mph with his fastball that averaged 93.3 mph. His splitter, considered his best secondary offering, sat between 76-82 mph. He also incorporated a mid-80s slider and an upper-70s curveball to round things out.
Halligan, who is currently playing winter ball for the Leones del Escogido in the Dominican Republic, is not ranked among Boston’s top 60 prospects by SoxProspects.com. Barring a trade or other move this winter, the site projects that he will return to Worcester’s bullpen to begin the 2027 season.
In addition to Halligan and fellow righty Angel Bastardo, the Red Sox have also re-signed left-hander Michael Sansone to a minor league contract. The soon-to-be 27-year-old Connecticut native logged the second-most innings (111 1/3) among southpaws in the organization this past season, trailing only Devin Futrell.
(Picture of Patrick Halligan: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)
