Tag: blue jays

Former Red Sox prospect Cutter Coffey named 2025 Northwest League All-Star

Former Red Sox prospect Cutter Coffey has been named a 2025 Northwest League All-Star, Minor League Baseball announced on Wednesday.

Coffey, one of three prospects traded by the Red Sox to the Blue Jays for veteran catcher Danny Jansen last July, spent the entirety of the 2025 season with Toronto’s High-A Vancouver affiliate. The right-handed hitting 21-year-old batted .273/.359/.427 with 26 doubles, 11 home runs, 62 RBIs, 68 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, 47 walks, and 100 strikeouts over 99 games (440 plate appearances). That includes a .295/.404/.359 slash line against lefties and a .268/.347/.444 slash line against righties.

After taking home Northwest League Player of the Month honors for July, Coffey spent most of August on the injured list. The young infielder returned to action for Vancouver on Aug. 27 and picked up hits in six of his final nine games en route to being recognized as the Canadians’ 2025 Offensive Player of the Year.

Among 32 qualified hitters in the Northwest League this season, Coffey ranked fourth in line-drive rate (24.7 percent), eighth in batting average and wRC+ (118), ninth in slugging percentage, 10th in on-base percentage, OPS (.786), and wOBA (.361), and 14th in walk rate (10.7 percent), per FanGraphs.

Defensively, Coffey saw playing time at every infield position besides first base for the Canadians this year. The 6-foot-1, 190-pounder logged 394 innings at third base, 282 innings at second base, and 41 innings at shortstop, committing nine errors in 233 total chances. He also made 16 starts at DH.

A California native, Coffey was originally selected by the Red Sox with the 41st overall pick in the 2022 draft out of Liberty High School and forwent his commitment to the University of Texas by signing for $1.85 million. He had already reached High-A Greenville before being dealt to the Blue Jays along with infielder Eddinson Paulino and right-hander Gilberto Batista in exchange for Jansen a few days ahead of the 2024 trade deadline last summer.

Coffey is currently ranked as Toronto’s No. 27 prospect by MLB Pipeline, which describes him as having “a future as a utility infielder who provides some thump off the bench” if he can “get the most of his tools.” He does not to be added to the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster for Rule 5 protection purposes until next winter.

Assuming he remains in the Blue Jays organization through this winter and into next spring, Coffey — with exactly 200 regular-season games at the High-A level under his belt — would seemingly be a prime candidate to open the 2026 campaign with Toronto’s Double-A affiliate in New Hampshire.

(Picture of Cutter Coffey: Joe Robbins/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Former Red Sox prospect Gilberto Batista (part of Danny Jansen trade) named Florida State League Pitcher of the Week

Former Red Sox prospect Gilberto Batista has been named the Florida State League Pitcher of the Week for the week of May 5-11, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

One of three prospects traded to the Blue Jays for veteran catcher Danny Jansen last July, Batista was excellent in his latest start for Low-A Dunedin on Saturday. The young right-hander earned the win on the road against Fort Myers, scattering four hits and one walk while striking out a career-high of nine over five scoreless innings.

Retiring 13 of the 18 batters he faced on the night, Batista finished with 62 pitches (42 strikes) and induced a game-high 13 swings and misses. The 20-year-old hurler averaged 93.5 mph and reached 95.3 mph with his four-seam fastball, a pitch he threw 25 times. He also featured an 85-88 mph slider (thrown 24 times), an 84-86 mph slider (thrown seven times), a 92-95 mph sinker (thrown three times), and an 84-86 mph changeup (thrown seven times), according to Baseball Savant.

Following Saturday’s outing, Batista now owns a 1.74 ERA and 4.21 FIP with 28 strikeouts to five walks through seven appearances (four starts) for Dunedin this season. Opposing hitters have batted .235 against him. Among 16 qualified pitchers in the Florida State League, he most notably ranks second in walks per nine innings (1.45) and walk rate (4.1 percent), fourth in ERA, sixth in swinging-strike rate (13.4 percent), and eighth in xFIP (3.53), per FanGraphs.

Batista was originally signed by the Red Sox for just $10,000 as an international free agent coming out of the Dominican Republic in November 2022. The 6-foot, 165-pound righty made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League the following June and was later recognized as the organization’s 2023 Latin Program Pitcher of the Year. He opened the 2024 campaign in the Florida Complex League and was promoted to Low-A Salem in late July, though he was dealt to the Blue Jays alongside infielders Cutter Coffey and Eddinson Paulino for Jansen before he could appear in a game for Boston’s Carolina League affiliate.

Since that four-player trade was made, Batista has forged a 2.08 ERA (4.04 FIP) with 77 strikeouts to 21 walks in 11 outings (seven starts) spanning 47 2/3 innings for Dunedin. He is not currently regarded by Baseball America or MLB Pipeline as one of the Blue Jays’ top pitching prospects, but he did receive an honorable mention from FanGraphs’ Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan last month as a “kitchen sink righty and strike-throwing athlete with below-average present stuff” who could profile as a depth starter in the future.

With that, it should be interesting to see if Batista — who does not turn 21 until next January — can leverage his performance with Dunedin into a promotion to Toronto’s High-A affiliate in Vancouver before long.

(Picture of Gilberto Batista courtesy of the Dunedin Blue Jays)

Red Sox lose hard-throwing pitching prospect Angel Bastardo to Blue Jays in Rule 5 Draft

The Red Sox lost pitching prospect Angel Bastardo to the Blue Jays with the sixth overall pick in the major-league phase of Wednesday’s Rule 5 Draft.

Bastardo, 22, was previously ranked by Baseball America as the No. 27 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The native Venezuelan spent the last six-plus years in the Red Sox organization after originally signing with the club for $35,000 as an international free agent in July 2018.

This past season, Bastardo was limited to just 10 starts with Double-A Portland. The right-hander posted a 5.36 ERA (4.28 FIP) with 53 strikeouts to 21 walks over 45 1/3 innings in which he held opposing hitters to a .225 batting average. He damaged the UCL (ulnar collateral ligament) in his pitching elbow in early June and underwent Tommy John surgery shortly thereafter as a result.

To that end, Bastardo was left off the Red Sox’ 40-man roster ahead of last month’s Rule 5 protection deadline, leaving him exposed to other clubs on Wednesday. The Blue Jays, as it turns out, were willing to take a chance on Bastardo and paid Boston $100,000 for the young righty even though he will likely miss most — if not the entirety — of the 2025 campaign.

Before going under the knife earlier this summer, Bastardo flashed an intriguing four-pitch mix on the mound. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the lean 6-foot-1 hurler averaged 93-96 mph and reached 97 mph with his fastball while also mixing in an 84-88 mph changeup, an 82-85 mph slider, and a 78-80 mph curveball.

Bastardo, who does not turn 23 until next June, will need to stick on the Blue Jays’ 40-man roster until he is eligible to be placed on the 60-day injured list in February. He would not occupy a spot on Toronto’s 40-man roster while on the 60-day injured list, during which time he would presumably be rehabbing from Tommy John surgery.

Once he is cleared to return to action, however, Bastardo would need to spend 90 days on Toronto’s major-league roster between 2025 and 2026 (if it rolls over until then) to become a 40-man roster player who can be optioned without any Rule 5 restrictions attached, according to The Athletic’s Kaitlyn McGrath.

If those conditions could not be met, the Blue Jays would be required to place Bastardo on waivers and then offer him back to the Red Sox for $50,000 if he clears. In that scenario, Bastardo would return to Boston’s system without being added to the 40-man roster.

(Picture of Angel Bastardo: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Which three prospects did Red Sox trade to Blue Jays for Danny Jansen?

The Red Sox traded three prospects in order to acquire veteran catcher Danny Jansen from the Blue Jays on Saturday night.

In exchange for Jansen, who is slated to reach free agency at the end of the season, Boston dealt minor-league infielders Cutter Coffey and Eddinson Paulino and minor-league right-hander Gilberto Batista to Toronto, per a club announcement.

To make room for Jansen on the 40-man roster, the Red Sox designated righty Alex Speas for assignment. They will need to make another move before adding the 29-year-old backstop to the major-league roster.

Coffey, 20, was ranked by SoxProspects.com as the No. 28 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The California native was originally selected by the Red Sox with the 41st overall pick in the 2022 amateur draft out of Liberty High School in Bakersfield. He forewent his commitment to the University of Texas by signing for $1.8475 million.

After making his professional debut in the rookie-level Florida Complex League, Coffey split his first full season between Low-A Salem and High-A Greenville. The right-handed hitter returned to Greenville for the start of the 2024 campaign and batted .238/.321/.463 with 12 doubles, 14 home runs, 46 RBIs, 39 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 28 walks, and 65 strikeouts in 61 games (271 plate appearances) with the Drive.

Coffey enjoyed a strong month of June, batting .300/.391/.638 in 22 games after returning from a concussion. During that stretch, he became the first player in Drive history to homer in six consecutive games (June 9-15). Since the calendar flipped to July, though, he has struggled to a .191/.286/.338 slash line with four doubles, two home runs, eight RBIs, eight runs scored, two stolen bases, nine walks, and 20 strikeouts over his last 17 games.

Defensively, Coffey has seen the majority of his playing time this season come on the left side of the infield. With Greenville, the 6-foot-1, 190-pounder made 31 starts at third base and 21 starts at shortstop, committing 19 errors in 150 total chances between the two positions. He also started two games at second base and seven games at DH.

Paulino, who turned 22 earlier this month, was ranked by SoxProspects.com as the No. 15 prospect in Boston’s farm system. The Dominican Republic native originally signed with the Red Sox for $205,000 as an international free agent coming out of Santiago on his 16th birthday in July 2018. He can become eligible for the Rule 5 Draft this winter if he is not added to Toronto’s 40-man roster.

After spending the entirety of the 2023 campaign at Greenville, Paulino broke camp with Double-A Portland this spring. The left-handed hitter has not played since being placed on the Sea Dogs’ injured list on July 13. He nevertheless batted .263/.349/.391 with 16 doubles, three triples, three home runs, 35 RBIs, 33 runs scored, 10 stolen bases, 29 walks, and 60 strikeouts in 69 games (278 plate appearances) for Boston’s Eastern League affiliate.

On the other side of the ball, Paulino logged innings at every infield position besides first base in his time with Portland. The 5-foot-10, 155-pounder made 34 starts at third base, 20 at second base, and 11 at shortstop, committing 11 errors in 192 total defensive chances. He also made one start at DH and has past experience in the outfield.

Batista, 19, was not ranked among Boston’s top 60 prospects by SoxProspects.com. The Dominican-born right-hander originally signed with the Red Sox for $10,000 as an international free agent in November 2022. He made his professional debut in the Dominican Summer League last June and was recognized as the organization’s 2023 Minor League Latin Program Pitcher of the Year.

Listed at 6-foot and 165 pounds, Batista posted a 3.92 ERA and 3.51 FIP with 23 strikeouts to 13 walks in eight appearances (five starts) spanning 20 2/3 innings for the FCL Red Sox this season. Opposing hitters batted .220 against Batista, who reportedly sits between 93-95 mph with his fastball and features a slider. He was promoted to Salem earlier this week but had not yet appeared in a game for the Carolina League affiliate leading up to Saturday’s trade.

(Picture of Cutter Coffey: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox tally season-high 16 hits, complete four-game sweep of Blue Jays with 11-5 win

The Red Sox won three games against the Blue Jays all of last season. They surpassed that total by completing a four-game sweep of their division rivals on a chilly Thursday night at Fenway Park.

Aided by a five-run second inning and a solid start from Brayan Bello, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 11-5. With the victory, the Red Sox extended their winning streak to six and improved to 19-14 to get to five games over .500 for the first time this season.

After dominating the Red Sox to the tune of a 2.65 ERA in six starts (34 innings) last year, Blue Jays starter Kevin Gausman did not have the same kind of fortune this time around. The Boston bats instead throttled the veteran right-hander for eight runs in just 3 2/3 innings.

Masataka Yoshida, who signed with the Red Sox as a free agent over the winter, introduced himself to Gausman by opening the scoring in the first inning with a 400-foot solo shot into the home bullpen. By hitting his sixth home run of the season, Yoshida extended his hitting streak to 14 consecutive games, which is the longest in the majors.

An inning later, Triston Casas and Enmanuel Valdez both reached base to put runners on the corners with one out. Reese McGuire drove in Casas by blooping a softly-hit RBI single to center field and Raimel Tapia brought in Valdez by beating out a would-be double play. Tapia then stole second base and advanced to third on a wild pitch before scoring his side’s fourth run on a Yoshida RBI single that snuck under the glove of second baseman Cavan Biggio.

Justin Turner followed with a base hit of his own to put runners at first and third for Rafael Devers, who laced a 110.9 mph two-run double down the right field line. Both Yoshida and Turner scored on Boston’s seventh hit of the inning, which made it a 6-0 contest going into the third.

The Red Sox maintained that six-run lead through three innings. With one out in the top of the fourth, starter Brayan Bello served up a towering solo blast to fellow countryman Vladimir Guerrero Jr. It did not take long for Boston to respond, though, as Tapia doubled to lead off the bottom half of the inning and came into score on another RBI single from Yoshida.

Yoshida effectively knocked Gausman out of the game with his third hit of the night. Jarren Duran then plated Yoshida with a run-scoring single off new Blue Jays reliever Tim Mayza to put the Sox up, 8-1.

Bello, however, ran into some trouble in the fifth that may have stemmed from a blister on his right index finger that also bothered him in his last time out. After allowing just one run through the first four innings on Thursday, the young righty issued a one-out walk to Kevin Kiermaier. George Springer followed by reaching base on a Devers fielding error. Bo Bichette pushed across Kiermaier with an RBI single before Guerrero Jr. doubled in Springer. Daulton Varsho then brought in Bichette on a sacrifice fly to cut the deficit to four runs at 8-4.

The fifth inning proved to be Bello’s last. The 23-year-old hurler wound up yielding four runs (two earned) on six hits, one walk, and five strikeouts. He finished with 87 pitches (54 strikes) and was later credited with his first winning decision of the year.

In relief of Bello, Brennan Bernardino received the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The lefty retired the side in order in the sixth and recorded the first out of the seventh before making way for John Schreiber, who needed all of 16 pitches (14 strikes) to get out of the inning and put up a zero in the eighth as well.

Turner provided some insurance in the bottom of the eighth with a hard-hit RBI single that scored Tapia. Devers then broke things open by cranking a 408-foot two-run shot to deep right field off reliever Zach Pop for his American League-leading 11th home run of the season and the 150th of his career.

Ryan Brasier surrendered one run on two hits and one walk in the ninth, but ultimately closed it out to put the finishing touches on an 11-5 win and a four-game series sweep.

Boston’s Nos. 2-5 hitters (Yoshida, Turner, Devers, and Duran) each had three hits. McGuire had two while Tapia and Casas each had one as the Red Sox surpassed their season-high in hits with 16 as a team.

Next up: Sale vs. Wheeler in Philly

Coming off a 6-1 homestand, the Red Sox will now hit the road for a two-city, five-game road trip. They will first travel to Philadelphia and open a three-game weekend series against the reigning National League champion Phillies on Friday night.

Left-hander Chris Sale is expected to get the start for Boston in Friday’s series opener opposite Philadelphia right-hander Zach Wheeler.

First pitch from Citizens Bank Park is scheduled for 7:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Rafael Devers and Justin Turner: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Alex Verdugo regrets criticizing Alek Manoah in podcast interview

Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo made headlines last month for taking an unprompted shot at Blue Jays right-hander Alek Manoah. For the first time since that incident, the two are slated to face off against one another at Fenway Park on Wednesday night.

Verdugo, though, told MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo on Tuesday that he is not more excited about facing Manoah as opposed to any other pitcher. He added that he regrets taking his feelings towards Manoah public.

“I think for me, it’s just another game,” Verdugo said. “I regret saying what I did, at least to the media, because it’s something I think I should have just, man-to-man, said it to him. I feel like at some point now, I would like to have a conversation with him. I’d like to talk to him. Just me and him. Kind of clear out some air, just be professional about it.

“Obviously, he’s one of those guys who’s a good pitcher and he carries a chip on his shoulder,” continued Verdugo. “We’re just going to see what happens. For me, it’s not going to be to go up there and try to get emotional with it.”

Back on April 4, Verdugo appeared on Audacy’s “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast. In a one-on-one conversation with WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford, Verdugo — seemingly out of the blue — went on somewhat of a tirade about the way Manoah carries himself on the mound.

More specifically, Verdugo referenced a Manoah start at Fenway Park last July in which the righty stared down and exchanged words with Franchy Cordero and Bobby Dalbec after striking each of them out.

“I’ll say it right now, I think Alek Manoah goes about it the wrong way, 100 percent I think he does,” Verdugo told Bradford. “You can find videos of him, footage of him in Triple-A going like this to hitters. Last year, telling Franchy and Bobby like ‘go sit’ and [expletive] like that while looking right at them.”

“So it’s like, [expletive] like that just pisses me off,” he added. “It’s not the way it should be played. It should be played like you’re celebrating it with your team, you’re not [expletive] disrespecting another player who is – at the end of the day we’re just trying to compete, man, that’s it.”

It did not take long for Manoah to respond to Verdugo’s comments. He told Rob Langley of The Toronto Sun that same night: “Coming from him? I don’t give a (expletive). My job is to pitch and get guys out.”

Earlier this week, Manoah told The Boston Globe’s Julian McWilliams that he had never spoken with Verdugo and has never had a problem with him. Verdugo, for his part, said on Tuesday that while he wouldn’t take back his comments, he does wish he went about it in a different way.

“It’s not necessarily that I take back what I said because he’s good, man. When you’re good like that, you don’t need to do some of the other antics stuff that he does sometimes,” said Verdugo. “We’ve had some bad blood here and there. There are some times when I felt like it was a little bit too much and crossing the line.

“I talked to a lot of Blue Jays, a lot of guys in general who all say he’s a good teammate, a good guy,” Verdugo added. “Just when he’s on the field, he’s a different person with a different mindset out there. Part of me, I can respect that and I understand that’s what he might need to get amped up. At the same time, this game is hard, man. This game will humble you. There are a lot of things and I feel like if you go about it more the right way, you’re going to get more respect, not only from fans but from opposing players.”

Verdugo has had success against Manoah — who finished third in American League Cy Young voting last season — in the past. The 26-year-old has gone 7-for-16 (.438) with two doubles, one home run, and three RBIs in 17 career plate appearances against the Blue Jays ace. He has never been hit by a Manoah pitch and expects things to remain that way on Wednesday.

“I really don’t care about getting hit,” Verdugo said. “(Getting) hit is just extra on-base percentage. I don’t think it’s going to get to that. I don’t think we’re at that kind of beef. I still expect everybody to be professional and to go about it the right way, for him to try to make his pitches and get me out.”

Regardless of how Wednesday’s contest plays out, Verdugo is hopeful that he will be able to talk to Manoah at some point before the Blue Jays leave town for Pittsburgh on Thursday night.

“I’m not going in there being like, ‘Oh, man, we’ve got this beef going’ because at the end of the day, I want to have a one-on-one and I want to talk to him and just kind of clear the air on my side,” Verdugo said. “If he wants to accept it, then we accept it. If not, then we can continue doing what we are. I ain’t got nothing against him as a person. It’s just more some of the antics that I’ve seen against us that have rubbed me the wrong way.”

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Alex Verdugo continues to come through in the clutch, delivers with walk-off home run as Red Sox top Blue Jays, 6-5

The Red Sox squandered another late lead in Monday’s series opener against the Blue Jays, but it was not enough to hold them down. Thanks to some more late-game heroics from Alex Verdugo, Boston defeated Toronto by a final score of 6-5 at Fenway Park to improve to 16-14 on the season.

With Jose Berrios starting for the Jays, the Sox drew first blood in their half of the first inning. Verdugo led off with a hard-hit double and immediately scored from second on another two-base hit from Masataka Yoshida. Justin Turner followed by plating Yoshida on an opposite-field RBI single to give his side a 2-0 lead right out of the gate.

It did not take long for Toronto to respond, though. As Corey Kluber made his sixth start of the season for Boston, Danny Jansen and Kevin Kiermaier drew a pair of walks to put runners at first and second with two outs in the top of the second. Bo Bichette then got his productive night at the plate started by crushing a 312-foot three-run home run over the Green Monster to put the Blue Jays up, 3-2.

While it appeared as though Kluber was about to have another rough go of it, he was able to settle in a bit after getting through the first. The veteran right-hander allowed just the three earned runs on five hits and four walks to go along with seven strikeouts over 5 2/3 innings of work.

After putting up zeroes from the top of the third through the middle of the fifth, Kluber came back out for the sixth and recorded the first out of the inning before issuing a five-pitch walk to Jansen. Having already thrown a season-high 104 pitches (59 strikes) to that point in the contest, the 37-year-old was given the hook in favor of Brennan Bernardino.

Bernardino ended things in the top of the sixth by retiring the only two batters he faced. Moments later, Jarren Duran led off the bottom of the sixth by taking Berrios 434 feet to dead center for his second home run of the year. The ball left Duran’s bat at a blistering 109.1 mph and pulled Boston back even with Toronto at three runs apiece.

The stalemate did not last long, however. After Triston Casas drew a one-out walk off Berrios, Enmanuel Valdez followed by launching a go-ahead, two-run shot 427 feet into the center field bleachers for the first home run of his big-league career. Valdez’s 106 mph blast gave the Red Sox a 5-3 lead going into the seventh.

Chris Martin, making his first relief appearance since April 12 after being activated from the injured list on Sunday, took over for Bernardino and worked his way around a bases-loaded jam by getting the pinch-hitting Alejandro Kirk to ground out to himself for the final out of the inning.

Josh Winckowski came on for the eighth and got the first out by getting Jansen to ground out to Enrique Hernandez at short. Hernandez, who made a fantastic diving grab and throw from his knees in the left field grass to nab Jansen, them made two costly throwing errors.

Following a Cavan Biggio double, Hernandez fielded a grounder from Kiermaier but made a poor throw to Casas at first. Biggio scored as a result to cut Toronto’s deficit to one. Kiermaier moved up 90 feet on a Bichette single (his fifth hit of the night) to put runners at first and second for Vladimir Guerrero Jr.

Guerrero Jr. roped another grounder in the direction of Hernandez, who hustled over to second to get the force out but airmailed his throw to first in an attempt to finish off the double play. The ball sailed well over Casas’ head and landed in the Red Sox dugout. As a result, Kiermaier was able to score from second to tie the score at 5-5.

Winckowski, who was only charged with one of those two runs, got through the rest of the eighth unscathed and then retired the side in order in the top of the ninth. Jordan Romano took over for Nate Pearson out of the Blue Jays bullpen in the following half-inning, but he was not on the mound for long.

On the third pitch he saw from Romano to lead things off, Verdugo came through in the clutch yet again by lacing a 385-foot line-drive to right-center field that barely cleared the bullpen fence and lifted the Red Sox to a 6-5 walk-off victory.

Verdugo’s fifth home run was good for his third walk-off hit of the year and his second in Boston’s last three games. He finished the night going 2-for-5 with one RBI and two runs scored. On the flip side, Winckowski was credited with the winning decision.

Next up: Kikuchi vs. Houck

Winners of three straight and now at two games over .500 for the first time this season, the Red Sox will look to take the first two games of this four-game set from the Blue Jays on Tuesday night. Right-hander Tanner Houck will get the start for Boston while left-hander Yusei Kikuchi is expected to do the same for Toronto.

First pitch from Fenway Park is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN and TBS.

(Picture of Alex Verdugo: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Alex Verdugo takes issue with Alek Manoah’s on-field antics: ‘It just pisses me off’

Red Sox outfielder Alex Verdugo is no stranger to wearing his emotions on his sleeve. But even the fiery 26-year-old believes there are lines that should not be crossed on the baseball field.

Verdugo, for instance, is not a fan of the way Blue Jays ace Alek Manoah carries himself on the mound. This feeling of disdain towards the All-Star righty stems from an incident at Fenway Park on July 23 of last season.

In the sixth inning of that contest between Boston and Toronto, Manoah recorded back-to-back strikeouts of Franchy Cordero and Bobby Dalbec. After fanning Cordero on five pitches, Manoah stared down the designated hitter as he made his way back to the dugout and told him to “go sit the [expletive] down.”

Moments later, Manoah punched out Dalbec on a 95 mph heater at the top of the zone to retire the side. As he made his way back to the visitor’s dugout, Manoah pounded his chest with his glove before turning back to Dalbec and telling him to “sit down, [expletive].”

After the game, in which the Blue Jays won 3-1, Manoah attributed his gestures towards Cordero and Dalbec as being part of his competitive nature. Verdugo, however, does not see it that way.

“If it’s a genuine reaction and it’s for the boys, not directed towards somebody, then yeah [it’s fine],” Verdugo told WEEI.com’s Rob Bradford on Audacy’s “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast. “Like I’ll say it right now, I think Alek Manoah goes about it the wrong way, 100 percent I think he does. You can find videos of him, footage of him in Triple-A going like this to hitters. Last year, telling Franchy and Bobby like ‘go sit’ and [expletive] like that while looking right at them.

“So it’s like, [expletive] like that just pisses me off,” he continued. “It’s not the way it should be played. It should be played like you’re celebrating it with your team, you’re not [expletive] disrespecting another player who is – at the end of the day we’re just trying to compete, man, that’s it.”

Manoah, for his part, shrugged off Verdugo’s comments when speaking with Rob Longley of The Toronto Sun on Tuesday.

“Coming from him? I don’t give a [expletive],” Manoah said. “My job is to pitch and get guys out.”

The Red Sox were not the only team who took issue with Manoah’s antics last season. Back in August at Yankee Stadium, the 25-year-old drilled Aaron Judge in the elbow, which prompted Gerrit Cole to emerge from the dugout and shout at Manoah as if it was intentional. Manoah later told reporters that “if Gerrit wants to do something, he can walk past the Audi sign next time.”

Looking ahead to the 2023 campaign, which is already underway, the Red Sox do not see the Blue Jays until the beginning of May for a four-game series in Boston. As things stand now, Manoah would be in line to start one of those games for Toronto, so that potential matchup could be something to look forward to.

(Picture of Alek Manoah: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Chris Murphy, Brandon Walter struggle as Red Sox get shelled by Blue Jays in 16-3 loss

To put it simply, the Red Sox got rocked by the Blue Jays in Dunedin on Monday afternoon. Boston fell to Toronto by a final score of 16-3 at TD Ballpark to drop to 9-4-4 in Grapefruit League play.

Chris Murphy, making his first start and third overall appearance of the spring, did not fare well for the Red Sox. The left-hander surrendered six runs (five earned) on four hits, six walks, and zero strikeouts over just 2 1/3 innings of work. Only 24 of the 57 pitches he threw went for strikes.

The Blue Jays got to Murphy right away in their half of the first. Bo Bichette got the scoring started by crushing a one-out solo home run off the lefty. Murphy then loaded the bases on back-to-back walks and a single before recording the second out. But he was unable to escape the jam, as Addison Barger snuck an RBI single through the right side of the infield that scored Alejandro Kirk from third. Brandon Belt also attempted to score on the play, but he was thrown out at home plate by right fielder Miguel Bleis for the final out of the inning.

Despite falling behind by two runs right out of the gate, the Red Sox lineup wasted no time in mounting a rally of their own in the top of the second. With All-Star right-hander Alek Manoah starting for the Jays, Niko Goodrum led off with a single and Stephen Scott and Nick Sogard each took ball four. That ultimately loaded the bases with two outs for Bleis, who came through by roping a game-tying, two-run single to right field.

Manoah had been laboring to that point in the inning, and so the Blue Jays elected to temporarily take their starter out of the game and bring in Jackson Rees out of the bullpen. Following that pitching change, Enmanuel Valdez greeted the new reliever by plating Sogard from third on another single to right field. That gave the Red Sox a 3-2 lead heading into the middle of the second.

Murphy followed by facing the minimum with the help of a double play, but his struggles to command the strike zone continued in the third. There, he again filled the bases with one out before issuing a bases-loaded walk to Orelvis Martinez, allowing Toronto to tie things up at three runs apiece. Martinez would prove to be the final batter Murphy would face, as he was given the hook in favor of fellow southpaw Cam Booser.

Booser entered with the bases still loaded and two outs to get in the third. He immediately gave up a bases-clearing single to Barger that was misplayed by Bleis in right field. As a result of Bleis’ error, all three runners Booser had inherited scored (Murphy was charged with all six runs) while Barger moved up all the way to third before being thrown out at home moments later.

The Blue Jays continued to haunt Red Sox lefties in the fourth. Brandon Walter, who took over for Booser, served up a leadoff double to Whit Merrifield that was followed by a blistering 453-foot two-run blast off the bat of Bichette (his second homer of the day), which gave Toronto a commanding 8-3 advantage.

Walter surrendered two more hits in the fourth before allowing another run to score on a Kevin Kiermaier groundout. The 26-year-old got tagged for three additional runs in the fifth on four more hits (including an RBI double from Merrifield) and a fielding error committed by second baseman Eddinson Paulino.

In the sixth, Wyatt Mills allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base before serving up a three-run home run to the pinch-hitting Andres Sosa. The same thing happened in the seventh as Mills gave up a single to Cam Eden before plunking Vinny Capra to put runners at first and second. He then made way for Durbin Feltman, who filled the bases with two outs before issuing yet another bases-loaded walk to Davis Schneider.

That sequence of events put Toronto up, 16-3. Feltman wrapped up an otherwise miserable day for Boston pitching by working his way around a leadoff double in a scoreless eighth inning in which he struck out a pair.

Offensively, the only real damage the Red Sox did came in the second inning. Outside of that lone productive frame, Boston batters were completely shut out by Manoah and the rest of Toronto’s pitching staff. When down to their final three outs in the ninth, Max Ferguson drew a leadoff walk before Marcelo Mayer, Matthew Lugo, and Gilberto Jimenez each went down swinging against Yosver Zulueta to put the finishing touches on a 16-3 loss.

Other worthwhile observations:

Bleis (1-for-2 with two RBIs) was one of three Red Sox hitters to record a hit on Monday. The 19-year-old outfielder is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 5 prospect in Boston’s farm system. Valdez, who had one of the other two hits and the only other RBI, is currently ranked 19th on the publication’s list.

Next up: Pivetta vs. Lorenzen

The Red Sox will travel to Lakeland to take on the Tigers at Joker Marchant Stadium on Tuesday afternoon. Nick Pivetta is slated to get the start for Boston opposite fellow righty Michael Lorenzen for Detroit.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will not be televised.

(Picture of Chris Murphy: Elsa/Getty Images)

Red Sox fall to Blue Jays, 2-0, for first loss of spring

The Red Sox suffered their first loss of the spring and were shut out by the Blue Jays on Friday afternoon. Boston fell to Toronto by a final score of 2-0 at JetBlue Park to drop to 9-1-3 in Grapefruit League play.

Corey Kluber, making his third start of the spring for the Sox, was tagged with the losing decision. The veteran right-hander allowed two earned runs on five hits and two walks to go along with three strikeouts over three-plus innings of work.

In both the first and second innings, Kluber allowed the first two batters he faced to reach base. Each time, however, he was able to escape the jam by striking out the side in the first and inducing three straight fly outs in the second.

The third inning was a different story. There, Kluber allowed the first two batters he faced (Orelvis Martinez and Zach Britton) to reach on a double and single, respectively. Rather than get out of the jam this time around, the righty instead surrendered a run on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Wynton Bernard.

A similar situation arose in the fourth, as the Blue Jays doubled their lead when Cam Eden led off with a single and promptly scored all the way from first on a Rainer Nunez RBI double that split the gap in right-center field. Nunez proved to be the last Toronto hitter Kluber would face.

The 36-year-old hurler had already thrown 69 pitches to that point, and he was given the hook in favor of Cam Booser out of the Red Sox bullpen. Booser, in turn, prevented any further damage thanks to Caleb Hamilton picking off Nunez at third base. The minor-league left-hander then made way for Ryan Brasier, who made quick work of Toronto in the fifth.

In the sixth, Wyatt Mills was able to maneuver his way around a bases-loaded jam when Rob Refsnyder made a nice sliding, inning-ending catch down the left field line. Oddanier Mosqueda followed by hurling two more scoreless frames before Jake Faria stranded a pair of runners with the help of an inning-ending, 6-4-3 double play in the top of the ninth.

To that point in the contest, four different Blue Jays pitchers had combined to hold the Red Sox lineup to just four hits (all singles) through eighth innings. Jimmy Robbins, who had given up a single and a walk in the bottom of the eighth, was also responsible for the latter half of the ninth inning.

Tyler McDonough, who had replaced Refsnyder in left field, reached base on a one-out single off the faux Green Monster. That brought Bobby Dalbec to the plate representing the tying run. Dalbec, however, lined out to second baseman Davis Schneider, who was able to get the ball back to first baseman Cullen Large in time to double up McDonough and thus end the game.

Following Friday’s loss, which took all of two hours and 24 minutes, Boston is now 11-1-3 in all competitions this spring.

Other worthwhile observations:

Raimel Tapia was one of five Red Sox hitters to record a hit on Friday. The 29-year-old went 1-for-2 with a stolen base and is now batting .421 (8-for-19) through seven Grapefruit League contests.

With a fourth-inning single, Adam Duvall broke out of an 0-for-11 slump to begin his Red Sox tenure. Following a 1-for-3 showing on Friday, the center fielder is now batting .071 (1-for-14) this spring.

In three appearances out of the bullpen this spring, Ryan Brasier has allowed one run on one hit, two walks, and three strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings of relief. That is good for an ERA of 2.45 and a WHIP of 0.82. The righty is also holding opposing hitters to an .083 (1-for-12) batting average against.

Next up: Sale Day

The Red Sox will remain in Fort Myers on Saturday and take on the Twins in Game 3 of the 2023 Chairman’s Cup. Left-hander Chris Sale is slated to make his second start of the spring for Boston while right-hander Tyler Mahle is scheduled to start for Minnesota.

With a two-games-to-none lead already in hand, the Red Sox can take home the Chairman’s Cup with another win on Saturday afternoon. First pitch from Hammond Stadium is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Corey Kluber: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)