Tag: Baseball

Alex Verdugo and Xander Bogaerts both homer, Tanner Houck twirls 5 2/3 scoreless innings as Red Sox blank Twins, 4-0

The Red Sox used the power of the long ball to defeat the Twins at Fenway Park on Saturday evening. Wearing their marathon-inspired City Connect uniforms for the first time in 2022, Boston bested Minnesota by a final score of 4-0 to improve to 4-4 on the year.

Matched up against Twins starter Sonny Gray to begin things in the second of this four-game series, Alex Verdugo kicked off the scoring in the bottom of the second inning.

Moments after J.D. Martinez drew a leadoff walk, Verdugo swung at a 2-2, 92 mph sinker from Gray and deposited it 437 feet over the Sox’ bullpen and into the right field bleachers for his third home run of the season.

Verdugo’s two-run blast, which left his bat at a blistering 108.6 mph, gave Boston an early 2-0 lead. An inning later, with Josh Winder now pitching for Minnesota, Enrique Hernandez reached base via a one-out double down the left field line. After Rafael Devers grounded out to advance Hernandez to third base, Xander Bogaerts came through with a two-run shot of his own.

Coming into play Saturday in the midst of a 2-for-18 rut at the plate, Bogaerts broke out of his slump by unloading on an 0-1, 94 mph fastball from Winder and sent it exactly 400 feet over the Green Monster for his first big fly of 2022.

Bogaerts’ two-run homer put the Sox up, 4-0. While the Boston lineup was busy establishing that lead, Tanner Houck was putting together a solid outing on the mound.

Houck, making his second start of the season, kept Minnesota off the board while scattering just two hits and three walks to go along with four strikeouts over 5 2/3 impressive innings of work.

The right-hander struggled with his command early on, but — with the help of some double plays — was able to settle into a groove and retire nine of the final 11 batters he faced. With two outs in the top half of the sixth, Houck issued a four-pitch walk to Luis Arraez, which is how his day came to a close.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 89 (50 strikes), Houck relied on his four-seam fastball 34% of the time he was on the mound Saturday and averaged 94.5 mph with the pitch. The 25-year-old also earned his first winning decision of the season.

Matt Strahm got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora and stranded the lone runner he inherited by getting Jorge Polanco to fly out to Jackie Bradley Jr. in right field. The lefty also recorded the first two outs of the seventh before yielding a hard-hit double to Trevor Larnach.

At that point, Cora opted to turn things over to Garrett Whitlock, as he did in Detroit this past Tuesday. This time around, Whitlock was once again efficient. The righty reliever ended the seventh by fanning Gio Urshela on three pitches, struck out the side while stranding two runners in the eighth, and worked his way around a two-out hit in the ninth to close out a 4-0 shutout victory.

Some notes from this win:

Red Sox second baseman Trevor Story went 1-for-3 on Saturday. His lone hit, a fourth-inning single, came off Josh Winder and had an exit velocity of over 103 mph.

The Red Sox recorded three double plays on Saturday: Tanner Houck struck out Carlos Correa for the second out of the first inning, then Christian Vazquez gunned down Jorge Polanco at second base for the third and final out. In the third inning, Ryan Jeffers grounded into a 5-4-3 double play. And in the fifth, Gio Urshela grounded into a 6-4-3 twin killing.

Garrett Whitlock working on three days rest on Saturday: 2 1/3 innings pitched, 2 hits, 0 runs, one walk, and five strikeouts on 30 pitches (23 strikes). He topped out at 97.3 mph with his four-seam fastball.

Next up: Ober vs. Wacha

The Red Sox will rock their City Connect uniforms once again and go for their second straight win over the Twins on Sunday afternoon. Michael Wacha will get the ball for Boston and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander Bailey Ober for Minnesota.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 1:35 p.m. eastern time on NESN and MLB Network.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox reliever Josh Taylor set to begin rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Sunday

The Red Sox bullpen could soon be receiving a boost. Josh Taylor is expected to begin a rehab assignment with Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, manager Alex Cora said ahead of Saturday’s game against the Twins at Fenway Park. The left-hander began the season on the 10-day injured list due to a low back strain.

“He threw a live BP yesterday and obviously we have to wait for today to see how he feels,” Cora said of Taylor. “But there’s a good chance his rehab assignment starts tomorrow.”

Cora added that Taylor will likely need five or six outings with the WooSox before being activated from the injured list. He is in line to make his 2022 debut in Worcester’s series finale against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs at Polar Park on Sunday afternoon.

Taylor, 29, is coming off a strong 2021 season in which he posted a 3.40 ERA and 2.83 FIP to go along with 60 strikeouts to 23 walks over 61 relief appearances spanning 47 2/3 innings of work.

The Arizona-born southpaw first experienced back discomfort last September and spent time on the injured list because of it. He returned in time for the postseason, but wound up receiving an epidural injection during the off-season.

Those back issues lingered into spring training, but Taylor is now at a point where he is ready to pitch in a game, as he explained to MLB.com’s Ian Browne on Saturday.

“I’m good. The body feels great,” Taylor said. “I had another live [batting practice] yesterday and bounced back well today. I don’t think I’ve had any setbacks. The body feels good. I have a rehab outing tomorrow in Worcester so that will be my first one and I’m looking forward to that. I definitely think I’m ready for that right now.”

(Picture of Josh Taylor: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Should the Red Sox consider trading Austin Davis?

Seven games into the 2022 season, the two Red Sox relievers who are tied for the team lead in appearances with four apiece are Ryan Brasier and Austin Davis.

Both Brasier and Davis were used by manager Alex Cora out of the bullpen in Friday’s 8-4 loss to the Twins at Fenway Park. The former struck out the side in a scoreless seventh inning. The latter allowed two runners to reach base but also fanned three in a scoreless eighth inning.

In Davis’ case, the left-hander has now yielded three earned runs on five hits and two walks to go along with five strikeouts over his first three innings pitched this year.

Put another way, Davis has posted a 9.00 ERA, a 2.33 WHIP, an OPS against of .945, a strikeout rate of 29.4%, and a walk rate of 11.7% so far this season. Two of his four outings have been scoreless, though Friday’s performance was undoubtedly his best work to this point.

Of the 21 pitches Davis threw in Friday’s loss to Minnesota, 13 went for strikes. The 29-year-old southpaw induced a total of seven swings-and-misses; three on his slider and changeup and one on his four-seam fastball.

In regards to his four-seamer, Davis averaged 93.6 mph with the pitch across 26 1/3 innings between the Pirates and Red Sox in 2021. On Friday, he averaged 95.6 mph with his heater and topped out at 97 mph with it, per Baseball Savant. For his big-league career, which dates back to June 2018, Davis had only thrown a pitch 97 mph or faster on two separate occasions prior to Friday’s outing.

Since the Red Sox acquired Davis from the Pirates for infielder Michael Chavis last July, the lefty has been one of Cora’s more frequently-used relievers. From the time he debuted for Boston on July 31 of last season, Davis has now made 24 relief appearances for the Sox. The only other hurlers who have seen more action over that stretch are Adam Ottavino (24 appearances), who is no longer with the team, and Hansel Robles (30 appearances).

Despite a career ERA of 5.49 in a Red Sox uniform, it would appear as though the club likes what they have in Davis. With that being said, though, it is worth wondering if Davis’ spot in Boston’s bullpen could be on the line sometime in the near future.

As a result of a shortened spring training, major-league teams were permitted to carry 28 players on their active roster. This, for instance, allowed the Red Sox to carry 10 relievers on their Opening Day squad.

On May 2, however, teams will be required to trim their rosters back down to the traditional size of 26 active players. When that time comes, the Sox will have no other choice but to carry no more than 13 pitchers on their active roster.

The way things stand now, Davis is one of three lefties in Boston’s bullpen alongside the likes of Jake Diekman and Matt Strahm. Josh Taylor, who began the season on the injured list due to a low back strain, could be nearing a minor-league rehab assignment.

With Diekman and Strahm being new free-agent additions and Taylor already earning the trust of Cora last season, would the Red Sox still entertain the idea of carrying four left-handed relievers on their 26-man roster beginning next month?

If Davis is deemed the odd man out once rosters shrink and Taylor returns from the injured list, the Red Sox could not simply option him to Triple-A Worcester, for the Arizona native is out of minor-league options. Because of this, Boston would need to expose Davis to waivers if they wanted to retain his services as a non-40-man roster player in the minors.

Taking that into account and assuming that Taylor will be back before long, what would be stopping the Red Sox from trading Davis away for a prospect who is not on a 40-man roster at some point between now and May 2? Why risk losing Davis for nothing when you could get something back in return?

Under chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, the Red Sox have made similar moves in the past, with the Yoan Aybar-for-Christian Koss swap probably sticking out the most. Davis, of course, is far more established than Aybar and could fetch an intriguing return since he is still under club control for three more seasons after 2022.

At the end of the day, do the Red Sox need to trade Davis? No. Even with Taylor on his way back, perhaps the club still believes Davis can play an important role out of the bullpen this season. If not, though, then perhaps it would be in Boston’s best interest to explore their options now before running into a roster crunch in a few weeks.

(Picture of Austin Davis: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

3-run eighth inning not enough as Red Sox fall to Twins, 8-4, in home opener at Fenway Park

The Red Sox opened the home slate of their 2022 schedule with an 8-4 loss at the hands of the Twins at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon. Boston’s two-game winning streak has come to an end and they have fallen to 3-4 on the young season.

Nick Pivetta, making his second start of the year for the Sox, lasted just two innings and allowed four runs (all earned) on five hits, two walks, and two strikeouts. The right-hander ran into trouble right out of the gate when Alex Verdugo lost a ball off the bat of Byron Buxton in the sun that would go down as a leadoff double.

Luis Arraez drove in the first run of the day on a line-drive RBI single, and Minnesota was on the board without yet recording an out in the top of the first. An inning later, Pivetta gave up three additional runs by serving up a two-run home run to Twins slugger Miguel Sano and RBI double to Arraez that put Boston in an early 4-0 hole.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 54 (32 strikes), Pivetta threw his four-seam fastball 44% of the time he was on the mound Friday. The 29-year-old hurler averaged 92.5 mph with the pitch, down 2.3 mph from where he was sitting with it last week.

Shortly after Pivetta’s day came to a close, the Red Sox lineup got something going against Twins rookie starter Joe Ryan. With one out and the bases empty in the bottom of the second, Alex Verdugo launched a 410-foot solo shot to the right field bleachers on the very first pitch he saw: a 94 mph heater down the heart of the plate.

Verdugo’s second homer of the season left the outfielder’s bat at 109.6 mph and trimmed the Sox’ deficit down to three runs at 4-1 heading into the third. Phillips Valdez got the first call out of the Boston bullpen in relief of Pivetta and turned in a quality outing by fanning four of the eight batters he faced over two scoreless frames of work.

In the fifth, Hirokazu Sawamura came on for Valdez and immediately issued a leadoff walk to Carlos Correa. Jorge Polanco followed by ripping a ground-rule double to right field to put runners at second and third with no outs. Former Yankees catcher Gary Sanchez plated both runs on a two-run single that got past a sprawling Xander Bogaerts.

Now trailing 6-1, Sawamura managed to get through the rest of the fifth and faced the minimum in the sixth after Christian Vazquez gunned down Arraez (who reached base via a two-out walk) at second base to end the inning.

Ryan Brasier was next up for the seventh, and he needed 18 pitches to punch out the side. Austin Davis stranded one runner in an otherwise clean eighth inning.

Offensively, the Red Sox were limited in what they could do against Ryan on Friday. After Verdugo homered in the second, Boston failed to push across another run.

Their best chance to score off Ryan came in the bottom of the fourth, when Rafael Devers and J.D. Martinez reached base on a pair of singles to put runners at the corners with one out. Verdugo, however, grounded into an inning-ending double play.

In the fifth, Trevor Stroy notched his first hit at home as a member of the Red Sox and Jackie Bradley Jr. followed with a bunt single of his own that put runners at first and second with one out. Once more, though, Vazquez flew out and leadoff man Enrique Hernandez flew out to extinguish the threat.

After Ryan completed his six innings of one-run ball, the Boston got back on track against Minnesota’s bullpen. Jhoan Duran, equipped with a 101-102 mph fastball, made quick work of Verdugo, Story, and Bobby Dalbec in the seventh, but yielded a leadoff double to Bradley Jr. to begin the eighth.

Vazquez was unable to advance Bradley Jr., but Hernandez did by lacing an RBI double down the left field line to plate Bradley Jr. and make it a 6-2 game. Devers made things more interesting by golfing a 1-1, down-and-in fastball that wasn’t even a strike 363 feet to right field.

Devers’ two-run shot — his second big fly of the season — had an exit velocity of over 103 mph and pulled the Red Sox to within two runs of the Twins at 6-4. Duran got through the rest of the eighth by punching out Bogaerts and Martinez.

After pushing across three runs to make it a two-run game, Matt Barnes struggled with is command of the strike zone in the ninth. The veteran reliever issued two straight one-out walks before surrendering a back-breaking RBI single to Max Kepler.

Barnes then plunked Sanchez in the wrist to load the bases before Trevor Larnach scored Polanco from third on a softly-hit groundout to first base. That increased the Twins’ lead to four runs at 8-4.

Down to their final three outs and now trailing by four in their half of the ninth, the Sox went down quietly against Emilio Pagan. Verdugo flew out and Story and Dalbec both struck out to kill any shot of a rally.

Some notes from this loss on Jackie Robinson Day:

Six different Red Sox pitchers (Pivetta, Valdez, Sawamura, Brasier, Davis, and Barnes) combined to walk eight and plunk two Twins batters on Friday.

The Red Sox went 2-for-6 with runners in scoring position on Friday and left three runners on base as a team.

Next up: Gray vs. Houck

The Red Sox, wearing their Boston Marathon-inspired City Connect uniforms, will look to even this four-game series at 1-1 on Saturday afternoon. Tanner Houck is slated to get the ball for Boston and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander Sonny Gray for Minnesota.

First pitch Saturday is scheduled for 4:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox prospect Tyler McDonough hits first home run of season for High-A Greenville

Versatile Red Sox prospect Tyler McDonough hit his first home run of the season in High-A Greenville’s 9-6 victory over the Asheville Tourists (Astros affiliate) on Thursday night.

Batting leadoff and starting in center field, McDonough went 2-for-5 with a double, a home run, four RBIs, one run scored, and one strikeout at McCormick Field.

After beginning the 2022 season 0 for his first 13 with seven punchouts, McDonough has gone 4 for his last 11 with four extra-base hits, four runs scored, and seven runs driven in across the Drive’s last two games, both of which were wins.

McDonough, who turned 23 earlier this month, is ranked by Baseball America as the No. 16 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The North Carolina State product is in the midst of his first full season as a pro after being selected by the Sox in the third round of last summer’s draft.

During his three seasons with the Wolfpack, McDonough saw playing time at second base, third base, and center field. That sort of usage has continued with the Red Sox organization, as the 5-foot-10, 180 pounder has already logged nine innings at second base, nine innings in center field, and 28 innings at new position in left field early on this year.

Offensively, McDonough was known for his bat-to-ball skills and plate discipline during his time at North Carolina State. So far as a pro, the switch-hitter has proven capable of handling left-handed and right-handed pitchers alike. Between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem last year, the Ohio native batted .277/.371/.446 against righties and .400/.478/.750 against southpaws.

Given his ability to play multiple positions and hit from both sides of the plate, McDonough could prove to be a valuable asset within Boston’s farm system who has the potential to rise through the organizational ranks quickly.

(GIF of Tyler McDonough via the Greenville Drive)

Red Sox’ Chris Sale resumes throwing: ‘We’re in a good spot’

Red Sox ace Chris Sale threw at Fenway Park on Friday morning ahead of Boston’s home opener against the Minnesota Twins. When speaking with reporters afterwards, the left-hander estimated it was the fifth time he has thrown in the last week.

Prior to that, Sale had been shut down for an extended period of time after suffering a stress fracture in his right rib cage in late February. Since he has been able to get back to throwing, the 33-year-old is in better spirits than he was seven weeks ago.

“We’re in a good spot, obviously,” Sale said. “The worst part of it is time. The build back up is going to take a little bit of time just because I’ve got to get some innings and get my arm stretched out. We’re on the right path.”

The Red Sox placed Sale on the 60-day injured list before the regular season started, meaning he would not be eligible to pitch in a major-league game until June 6 at the earliest.

“The initial blow of this sucked but I’ve got to get over it and start getting back to what I do,” said Sale. “And that’s having fun, getting work in, and being a good teammate.”

Sale made the trip from Fort Myers to Boston to be with his teammates for Opening Day at Fenway Park. He is now pain-free, but understands the importance of exhibiting patience during this recovery period.

“For instance, I went out there and threw today and I feel like I could throw in a game,” Sale said. “But that doesn’t really make a lot of sense. That’s just me being a little overconfident or just being myself, honestly. I like playing. But I understand with this comes a certain level of work that has to be done before. You can’t just go run a couple of sprints and then be like, alright, we have to go run a marathon. I’ve got to get some practice in, I’ve got to get stretched out.”

Sale said he does not yet know when he will begin throwing bullpen sessions. And while the lanky lefty is still a ways away from returning to the mound with the Red Sox, he is undoubtedly excited to be back in Boston for now.

“I love this. I love playing baseball. I love being a member of a team,” said Sale. “It’s something that we’re fighting together for. These guys give me life, man. I’ve got more pep in my step today than I would have if I was down at JetBlue doing that. no offense to the guys down there. Love you guys. It’s just different. We have something going on here. It’s fun, talking trash, catching up with everybody, having some fun, and we’re at Fenway Park. Beautiful day out there. I love being around these guys. They help me.”

Information from The Boston Herald, MassLive, and MLB.com was used in this story.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Bryan Mata nearing return from Tommy John surgery

Red Sox pitching prospect is nearing his return to the mound and will soon start throwing live batting practice, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

Mata, who turns 23 next month, underwent Tommy John surgery last April after slightly tearing the ulnar collateral ligament in his right elbow during spring training. The procedure was performed by Dr. Neal ElAttrache.

Originally signed out of Venezuela for just $25,000 as an international free agent in 2016, Mata comes into the 2022 season regarded by Baseball America as the No. 8 prospect in the Red Sox’ farm system, ranking second among pitchers in the organization behind only Brayan Bello.

While continuing to rehab from Tommy John surgery this spring, Mata was seen throwing off flat ground and going through drills on the back fields of the Fenway South complex in Fort Myers.

As noted by Speier, Mata is expected to join Triple-A Worcester’s starting rotation at some point this season. The right-hander is already a member of Boston’s 40-man roster, so him contributing at the big-league level later in the year is not out of the picture, either.

Listed at 6-foot-3 and 229 pounds, Mata operates with a five-pitch mix that consists of a 94-96 mph four-seam fastball, a 91-93 mph two-seam fastball, an 86-90 mph slider, a 78-80 mph curveball, and an 84-86 changeup, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

That, of course, was before Mata underwent elbow reconstruction one year ago. If he can retain that arsenal to some degree, the righty — as Speier writes — could “could emerge as a mid- to late-year bullpen option” for the Red Sox.

(Picture of Bryan Mata: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Nick Pivetta is ready to start Red Sox’ home opener at Fenway Park

Nick Pivetta will be starting his second career home opener when he takes the mound for the Red Sox at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon.

The right-hander last started a home opener as a member of the Phillies in 2018 as they went up against the Marlins at Citizens Bank Park. He allowed just four hits and no walks with nine strikeouts over 5 2/3 scoreless innings in that contest.

Fast forward more than four years later, and Pivetta will be going up against the Twins in his second start of the 2022 season on Friday. In his last time out against the Yankees in New York this past Saturday, the 29-year-old surrendered four runs (all earned) on four hits (two home runs), three walks, and four strikeouts across 5 2/3 innings of work.

Pivetta is now in the midst of his second full season with the Red Sox after coming over from the Phillies (with pitching prospect Connor Seabold) in an August 2020 trade that sent veteran relievers Brandon Workman and Heath Hembree to Philadelphia.

At the time that trade was made, Pivetta was viewed as a reclamation project. The former fourth-round draft pick had struggled to find his footing at the big-league level since debuting with the Phillies in 2017 and had actually been demoted to Philadelphia’s bullpen during the pandemic-shortened 2020 campaign.

After making his way back to the majors with the Sox that September, Pivetta showed promise in the two starts he made at the tail end of a lost season. Following his first off-season with a new organization, the righty picked up where he left off last April.

Through his first 10 starts of the 2021 season, Pivetta was 6-0 with a 3.86 ERA while Boston was 9-1 in the games he started. Although his summer did not go as smoothly as his summer did, the Canadian-born hurler still posted every five days. The only time he missed came on the COVID-19 related injured list and he finished third on the team in innings pitched (155).

On the final day of the regular season in Washington, D.C., Pivetta was available out of Alex Cora’s bullpen on just two days rest. The Red Sox needed a win to secure their spot in the American League Wild Card Game and were in possession of a 7-5 lead over the Nationals heading into the last half of the ninth inning.

So, in came Pivetta, who needed just 14 pitches to retire Lane Thomas, Alcides Escobar, and Juan Soto in order to record his second career save and send the Sox to the postseason for the first time in three years.

Pivetta was not used in Boston’s Wild Card Game victory over the Yankees at Fenway Park, but he did play a key role in the Sox’ triumph over the Rays in the American League Division Series.

Three days after not factoring into the decision of a Game 1 loss at Tropicana Field on October 7, Pivetta was available out of the bullpen for Game 3 at Fenway Park. He entered in the 10th inning of a 4-4 contest and proceeded to scatter three hits and one walk to go along with seven strikeouts through the middle of the 13th. In the bottom half, Christian Vazquez walked things off to send the Red Sox home with a two-games-to-one series lead.

Nine days later, Pivetta was back on the mound in Boston getting the start against the Astros in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series. He yielded just one run on two hits, two walks, and three strikeouts over five innings. The Red Sox did lose that game though and were ultimately eliminated by the Astros in six games.

Still, by posting a 2.63 ERA in 13 2/3 postseason innings, Pivetta showed that in his first taste of it, he is built for the pressures that come with pitching in October.

“That’s what I live for. I live for those experiences,” Pivetta recently told MLB Players Media. “And I was really grateful for that experience and how things turned out. I enjoy the game of baseball, but I enjoy competing and matching up against guys and seeing what it’s all about.”

Pivetta, who turned 29 in February, pitched to the tune of a 5.40 ERA and .840 OPS against in 15 home starts last year. For his career, he owns a 7.00 ERA in two prior starts against the Twins.

Those numbers aside, the adrenaline will surely be flowing for Pivetta at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon as he pitches opposite Minnesota right-hander Joe Ryan. First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Nick Pivetta: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox pitching prospect Ryan Zeferjahn tosses 3 scoreless innings in first career relief appearance for High-A Greenville

Red Sox pitching prospect Ryan Zeferjahn made the first relief appearance of his professional career for High-A Greenville on Wednesday night. Making his season debut for the Drive, the right-hander allowed just one hit and struck out two over three scoreless — albeit low-leverage — innings of work.

Zeferjahn needed just 35 pitches (24 strikes) to retire nine of the 10 batters he faced while earning the win in Greenville’s 17-3 trouncing of the Asheville Tourists (Astros affiliate) at McCormick Field.

The Red Sox originally selected Zeferjahn, now 24 years old, in the third round (107th overall pick) of the 2019 amateur draft out of the University of Kansas. At that time, Zeferjahn was regarded by Baseball America as the 57th-ranked draft-eligible prospect. The Topeka native signed with the club for $500,000.

Upon signing his first pro contract, Zeferjahn was assigned to short-season Lowell out of the gate and made 12 starts for the Spinners to close out the year. Coming into the 2020 season, the former Jayhawk was ranked by Baseball America as the No. 19 prospect in the Sox’ farm system.

Unfortunately, the 2020 minor-league season was wiped out on account of the COVID-19 pandemic, so the only real in-person guidance Zeferjahn received from the Red Sox that year came later on at fall instructs.

Falling out of Baseball America’s Boston prospect rankings the following spring, Zeferjahn broke camp with Low-A Salem. He posted a dismal 6.91 ERA — but much more encouraging 3.86 FIP — to go along with 41 strikeouts to 15 walks over 12 starts (41 2/3 innings pitched) for Salem before being sent down to the Florida Complex League in mid-July.

According to SoxProspects.com’s director of scouting Ian Cundall, Zeferjahn was sent to Fort Myers in order to work on his mechanics. He made four starts for the FCL Red Sox beginning on August 31 and pitched to the tune of a 3.21 ERA and 4.29 FIP with 18 strikeouts to three walks across 14 innings of work.

Listed at 6-foot-5 and 210 pounds, Zeferjahn operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 93-95 mph fastball with sink, an 84-87 mph slider, an 83-86 mph changeup, and a 76-80 mph changeup, per his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

Before the 2022 season began last week, Zeferjahn had only been used as a starter throughout his pro career as he made 28 starts between three different levels from 2019-2021. The last time the righty was used out of the bullpen came in the summer of 2017, when he made 13 appearances for the Falmouth Commodores of the Cape Cod Baseball League.

When used in shorter stints, though, it appears as if Zeferjahn can further tap into his fastball velocity. While information from Wednesday’s outing is not currently available, Zeferjahn did reach 98 mph with his heater when making starts of one to three innings with Lowell in 2019.

Zeferjahn, who turned 24 in February, comes into the 2022 campaign not ranked by any major publication as one of the top pitching prospects in the Red Sox organization. He can, however, become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft for the first time in his career this winter.

(GIF of Ryan Zeferjahn via the Greenville Drive)

Red Sox close out road trip by holding on to defeat Tigers, 9-7

The Red Sox improved to 3-3 on the young season with a series-clinching 9-7 victory over the Tigers at Comerica Park on Wednesday afternoon.

Battling rainy conditions, Nathan Eovaldi made his second start of the year for Boston. The veteran right-hander allowed two earned runs on four hits and one walk to go along with six strikeouts over five innings of work.

Both runs Eovaldi surrendered on Wednesday came by way of the home run ball, as Jonathan Schoop got the scoring started with a two-out solo shot in the bottom of the first.

Two innings later, the Sox lineup responded. After going down quietly the first time through the order, Enrique Hernandez took old friend Eduardo Rodriguez deep on a solo homer of his own in the top half of the third to tie things back up at 1-1.

Rodriguez, making his first start against his former team after signing a five-year deal with the Tigers over the winter, ran into more trouble in the fourth. Following a leadoff walk from J.D. Martinez and groundball single from Bobby Dalbec, Christian Arroyo advanced both runners into scoring position on a well-executed sacrifice bunt. Alex Verdugo plated Martinez on a sacrifice fly to left field.

With two outs in the frame, Christian Vazquez grounded into what should have been the final out of the inning. Instead, Tigers third baseman Jeimer Candelario committed a throwing error that allowed Vazquez to reach base safely and keep the inning going.

The Boston bats took full advantage of that Detroit miscue, as Jackie Bradley Jr., Hernandez, and Rafael Devers drove in a total of four runs on back-to-back-to-back hard-hit doubles, which ultimately knocked Rodriguez out of the game. Following a Tigers pitching change, Trevor Story came through with his first RBI in a Red Sox uniform as he plated Devers on a single to cap off a six-run inning.

Eovaldi, meanwhile, worked his way around a one-out single in the fourth before yielding another solo blast to Akil Baddoo in the fifth that cut the Sox’ lead down to five runs at 7-2. He then punched out the final two batters he faced.

Finishing with a final pitch count of 101 (72 strikes), the 32-year-old hurler turned to his four-seam fastball 38% of the time he was on the mound Wednesday and averaged 96 mph with the pitch. He also induced five swings-and-misses with his curveball, a pitch he threw 24 times.

In relief of Eovaldi, Matt Barnes got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen beginning in the sixth inning. The righty needed just 14 pitches to retire the side in order and he did so while hovering around 93-95 mph with his heater.

After Vazquez and Bradley Jr. provided what would turn out to be some much-needed insurance on a sacrifice fly and RBI single, the Tigers began to mount a rally in their half of the seventh.

With Austin Davis in the game for Boston, Harold Castro led off with a single that was followed by a two-run homer off the bat of Spencer Torkelson. The first home run of Torkelson’s career cut Detroit’s deficit down to five runs at 9-4.

Davis and Kutter Crawford were able to get through the rest of the seventh unscathed, but Crawford encountered some difficulties in the eighth as he issued an RBI single to Eric Haase before loading the bases with no outs.

Jake Diekman was then called upon to take over for Crawford and recorded the first two outs of the inning. But the lefty gave up a two-out, run-scoring single to Victor Reyes before plunking Austin Meadows with the bases loaded as the Tigers made things even more interesting at 9-7.

Hansel Robles was next to get the call from Red Sox manager Alex Cora, and he proceeded to get Schoop to pop out to Story for the final out before coming back out for the ninth and tossing a 1-2-3 inning to earn the save.

Some notes from this win:

Nathan Eovaldi has given up four home runs through his first two starts of the season. It took until June 26 to reach that point last season.

After dealing with food poisoning the last few days, Trevor Story went 2-for-5 with an RBI on Tuesday.

Enrique Hernandez began his season 0-for-17 at the plate. Over the last two days, he has gone 4-for-9 with three doubles, one homer, three RBIs, four runs scored, and two walks.

Next up: Home opener at Fenway

The Red Sox are off Thursday and head back to Boston having won three of their last four games. They will open up a four-game series against the Twins at Fenway Park to kick off Patriots’ Day weekend festivities on Friday, which is also Jackie Robinson Day.

For Friday’s home opener, it will be right-hander Nick Pivetta getting the ball for Boston and fellow righty Joe Ryan doing the same for Minnesota. First pitch is scheduled for 2:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Hansel Robles: Duane Burleson/Getty Images)