Tag: brayan bello

Brayan Bello’s early struggles continue as Red Sox get swept by Blue Jays, drop fifth straight in 8-4 loss

A bad weekend only got worse for the Red Sox on Sunday afternoon as they were swept by the Blue Jays. Boston fell to Toronto by a final score of 8-4, marking its fifth straight loss to drop back to .500 (48-48) for the first time since June 5.

Brayan Bello, making his third start of the season and first since July 11, allowed five earned runs on nine hits and two walks to go along with two strikeouts over four innings of work.

All five runs scored off the rookie right-hander came right away in the top of the first inning. George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. immediately put the pressure on with a leadoff single and double. Bo Bichette then drew a one-out walk to fill the bases. Bello struck out Teoscar Hernandez for the second out, but was unable to escape the jam as Cavan Biggio plated his side’s first two runs on a two-run single through the left side of the infield.

Another walk of Matt Chapman filled the bases with Raimel Tapia, who again came through in that spot by ripping a bases-clearing, three-run triple into the triangle to give Toronto a commanding 5-0 lead out of the gate.

Boston was at least able to counter by pushing across one run in the latter half of the first. Opposed by Blue Jays starter Ross Stripling, Jarren Duran laced a leadoff double, moved up to third base on an Alex Verdugo single, and scored on an RBI single off the bat of Xander Bogaerts. A Franchy Cordero groundout allowed Verdugo and Bogaerts to advance an additional 90 feet, but Bobby Dalbec was called out on strikes to kill any shot of extending the rally.

Fast forward to the fourth, Cordero led off with a softly-hit single off Stripling, stole second base with two outs, and then scored from second on a 261-foot RBI single from Yolmer Sanchez that cut Toronto’s advantage down to three runs at 5-2.

Bello, meanwhile, provided the Sox with four innings yet again despite dealing with a fair amount of traffic basepaths. By the time he got the final batter he faced in Bichette to ground into an inning-ending double play in the fourth, the 23-year-old’s pitch count had risen to 67 (41 strikes). His ERA on the season now sits at 10.50.

In relief of Bello, Hirokazu Sawamura received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. Sawamura, in turn, issued a leadoff walk to Hernandez and a one-out out double to Chapman. Hernandez scored on an RBI single from Tapia while Chapman scored on a fielder’s choice. Tapia then advanced to third on a Jeter Downs fielding error and scored when Guerrero Jr. reached base on an infield single.

That sequence made it an 8-2 contest in favor of the Blue Jays. The Red Sox, again, got one of those runs back in their half of the fifth when Jarren Duran ripped a one-out triple off reliever Trevor Richards and scored on an RBI single off the bat of Verdugo.

An inning later, Jackie Bradley Jr. took Richards 404 feet deep over the Green Monster for his third home run of the season. From that point forward, however, Bradley Jr. accounted for Boston’s only other hit with a leadoff single off Adam Cimber in the bottom of the ninth that ultimately amounted to nothing.

After Sawamura surrendered three runs in the fifth, Garrett Whitlock, Austin Davis, Kaleb Ort, and Jake Diekman combined for four scoreless frames. But it was not enough in the end as 8-4 would go on to be Sunday’s final score at Fenway Park.

With the loss, the Red Sox are now 1-9 in their last 10 games, 5-15 in the month of July, and 12-29 against divisional opponents on the season. They currently trail the Mariners (51-45) for the third and final American League Wild Card spot.

Next up: Pivetta vs. Plesac

Looking to put this weekend behind them, the Red Sox will welcome the 48-46 Guardians into town for a four-game series that beings on Monday night. Nick Pivetta is slated to start the series opener for Boston while fellow right-hander Zach Plesac is in line to do the same for Cleveland.

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

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Despite another solid start from Kutter Crawford, Red Sox drop another series to American League East opponent in 4-1 loss to Blue Jays

The Red Sox may not have gotten blown out by the Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon, but they still lost. Boston fell to Toronto by a final score of 4-1 on Fenway Park to extend its losing streak to three and drop to 48-47 on the season.

The lone run the Sox scored came in their half of the second inning. Bobby Dalbec led off the frame by crushing a 391-foot solo shot off Jays starter Alek Manoah for his eighth home run of the season. It gave Boston an early 1-0 lead, and it even had a chance to add on some more as Jackie Bradley Jr. followed with a single and advanced all the way up to third base with just one out. But Jeter Downs struck out and Jarren Duran flew out to extinguish the threat.

Toronto took full advantage of that missed opportunity in its half of the third. With Kutter Crawford on the mound for Boston, Matt Chapman led off with a single and promptly scored all the way from first on a game-tying RBI single off the bat of former Red Sox prospect Santiago Espinal. Espinal then moved up to third on a Cavan Biggio double. Both runners scored on an RBI single from George Springer and a sacrifice fly from Alejandro Kirk.

Despite a rocky third inning, Crawford was able to settle in and put together another solid start. Over six strong innings of work, the right-hander allowed just those three earned runs on five hits and one walk to go along with four strikeouts on the afternoon. He retired eight of the final nine batters he faced from the fourth inning on and finished with a final pitch count of 77 (52 strikes). The 26-year-old’s ERA on the season now sits at 4.50.

In relief of Crawford, Red Sox manager Alex Cora was aggressive in how he used his bullpen. John Schreiber and Tanner Houck each worked their way around a walk in their respective shutout innings. Ryan Brasier, on the other hand, issued a leadoff single to Kirk in the ninth. Bradley Zimmer came on to pinch-run for Kirk, stole second base, moved up to third on a Bo Bichette groundout, and scored his side’s fourth run on a choppy RBI base hit from Teoscar Hernandez.

Trailing 4-1 going into their half of the ninth inning, the Red Sox had been held in check to that point by the Blue Jays pitching staff. After running into some trouble in the second, Manoah — like Crawford — found a groove and wound up scattering seven hits across six one-run frames.

In the bottom of the eighth, Toronto reliever Adam Cimber plunked two of the first three batters he faced to bring the then-go-ahead run to the plate with only one out. But Franchy Cordero punched out and Dalbec flew out against Blue Jays closer Jordan Romano to end the inning.

Down to their final three outs, Bradley Jr., Yolmer Sanchez, and the pinch-hitting Kevin Plawecki went down quietly against Romano to seal the 4-1 defeat.

All told, Boston went 0-for-5 with runners in scoring position and left eight runners on base as a team. Cordero went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts and is now 0-for-21 with 17 punchouts in his last seven games. Downs and Duran, meanwhile, combined to go 0-for-7 with five strikeouts.

Saturday’s loss guarantees that the Red Sox will not win their series against the Blue Jays this weekend, meaning they are now 0-11-1 in series against American League East opponents as well as 12-28 within the division.

Next up: Stripling vs. Bello in finale

The Red Sox will look to salvage their weekend with a win over the Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon. Top pitching prospect Brayan Bello is expected to make his third start for Boston while Toronto will roll with a fellow right-hander in Ross Stripling.

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

(Picture of Kutter Crawford: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox place Chris Sale on 15-day injured list, option Connor Wong to Triple-A Worcester; Brayan Bello, Yolmer Sánchez called up

Before opening a three-game weekend series against the Blue Jays at Fenway Park on Friday night, the Red Sox made a series of roster moves.

First off, left-hander Chris Sale was placed on the 15-day injured list with a left fifth finger fracture, retroactive to July 19. To take Sale’s place on the active roster, right-hander Brayan Bello was recalled from Triple-A Worcester.

Additionally, catcher Connor Wong was optioned to Worcester on Thursday. To take Wong’s place on the active roster, veteran infielder Yolmer Sanchez was selected to the 40-man roster from Worcester.

Sale, in the first inning of his second start of the season against the Yankees on Sunday, was struck in the hand by a 106.7 mph line drive off the bat of Aaron Hicks. The 33-year-old southpaw was immediately removed from the game and was later diagnosed with a broken left pinky. He underwent surgery — or an open reduction and internal fixation of a left fifth finger proximal phalanx fracture — in Wellesley, Mass. on Monday. The Red Sox are optimistic that he will pitch again this season.

Bello, meanwhile, is up with the Sox for the second time this season. The 23-year-old prospect made two starts against the Rays (one at home, one on the road) earlier this month and allowed a total of nine runs on 13 hits, six walks, and seven strikeouts over eight combined innings of work. He is expected to start Sunday’s series finale against Toronto.

On the position player side of things, Wong was optioned back down to Worcester so that the Red Sox could add another infielder (Sanchez) to their roster in place of the injured Trevor Story.

Wong took the place of Story on the major-league roster when the second baseman was placed on the 10-day injured list on Saturday. He appeared in two games during last weekend’s series in the Bronx and went 1-for-1 with a single.

Sanchez, meanwhile, made a brief cameo for Boston as a COVID-19 substitute back in June. Filling in for the then-unvaccinated Jarren Duran in Toronto on June 28, Sanchez went 0-for-1 with a walk and sacrifice bunt.

With the WooSox this season, the switch-hitting 30-year-old has batted .247/.378/.413 with 12 doubles, one triple, nine home runs, 33 RBIs, 43 runs scored, six stolen bases, 50 walks, and 67 strikeouts over 78 games (303 plate appearances) while seeing playing time at every infield position besides first base.

The Red Sox did not not need to create an opening on their 40-man roster for Sanchez since rookie right-hander Josh Winckowski is currently on the COVID-19 related injured list. Boston’s 40-man roster is now at full capacity.

(Picture of Yolmer Sanchez: Vaughn Ridley/Getty Images)

Red Sox activate Chris Sale from 60-day injured list ahead of left-hander’s season debut, option Brayan Bello to Triple-A Worcester

The Red Sox have reinstated left-hander Chris Sale from the 60-day injured list. In order to make room for Sale on the major-league roster, right-hander Brayan Bello was optioned to Triple-A Worcester, the club announced Tuesday.

Sale will make his highly-anticipated 2022 debut against the Rays at Tropicana Field on Tuesday night. The 33-year-old southpaw missed the first three months of the season due to a right rib cage stress fracture he sustained while throwing live batting practice back in February. His recovery from that was slowed for a period of time in May because of a non-baseball medical issue.

After resuming his throwing program, Sale was sent out on a rehab assignment in late June. He made two starts in the Florida Complex League, one start for Double-A Portland, and one start for Triple-A Worcester.

In that outing for the WooSox against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre at Polar Park last Wednesday, Sale allowed one run on three hits, five walks, and five strikeouts over 3 2/3 innings of work. He threw 72 pitches (42 strikes) during that stretch while mixing in a high-90s fastball, a mid-80s changeup, and a high-70s slider.

As Alex Cora and the Red Sox look to bounce back against the Rays on Tuesday, they are hoping to get about 85 pitches out of Sale, who will be working on an extra day of rest and is also in line to start Boston’s first-half finale in the Bronx on Sunday.

“I believe we can be more aggressive now compared to last year,” Cora told reporters (including MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo) on Monday. “Obviously, tomorrow, probably 85 pitches. But I think we’ll be more aggressive. The fact we’re thinking about pitching him Sunday tells you a lot.”

Sale, of course, missed all of 2020 and the first four months of 2021 while rehabbing from Tommy John surgery. When the lefty returned to the mound last year, he was still building back up his arm strength.

This time around, however, the Red Sox seem optimistic that Sale will be able to fire on all cylinders since he is not working his way back from a major arm surgery. It also helps that the Lakeland, Fla. native will be pitching close to home.

Bello, meanwhile, returns to Worcester after making the first two starts of his big-league career against the same opponent in the Rays. Neither of those outings went particularly well, as the 23-year-old rookie surrendered nine earned runs on 13 hits, six walks, and seven strikeouts across eight combined innings.

Still, Bello showed at times why he is regarded by many as the most exciting pitching prospect the Red Sox have had in years. The Dominican-born righty will take what he learned from his first taste of the majors back to Worcester, where he owns a 2.81 ERA in nine appearances (eight starts) for the WooSox.

“Obviously, there’s a lot of growing, a lot of learning,” Cora said of Bello Monday night. “Tonight was a great learning experience for him. We were very pleased with the last two innings. He gave us a chance to win the game.”

By activating and Sale and optioning Bello, the Red Sox now have a full active and 40-man roster. Boston did not need to create a spot on its 40-man roster for Sale after placing backup catcher Kevin Plawecki on the COVID-19 related injured list on Monday.

Once Plawecki is ready to return, the Sox will need to take someone else off the 40-man roster since players on the COVID-related IL do not count against it.

(Picture of Chris Sale: Douglas P. DeFelice/Getty Images)

Brayan Bello lasts just 4 innings in second start as Red Sox fall to Rays, 10-5

The Red Sox did not arrive in St. Petersburg, Fla. until about 4 a.m. eastern time Monday morning. It showed in their loss to the Rays on Monday night as Boston fell to Tampa Bay by a final score of 10-5 at Tropicana Field to drop to 47-40 on the season.

Brayan Bello, making his second start of the season, did not fare much better than he did in his major-league debut against the Rays at Fenway Park last Wednesday. This time around, the rookie right-hander allowed five earned runs on seven hits, three walks, and one hit batsman to go along with five strikeouts over four innings of work.

All five of those Tampa Bay runs came within the first two innings of Monday’s loss. In the first, Bello put three of the first four batters he faced on to fill the bases for Josh Lowe, who lifted a softly-hit two-run single to center field to give the Rays an early 2-0 lead. The Sox were able to respond in their half of the second, though, as Xander Bogaerts reached second base via a leadoff double, advanced to third on a passed ball, and scored from third on an infield RBI single off the bat of Alex Verdugo.

Despite getting one of those runs back, Bello ran into more trouble in the bottom of the second by issuing a leadoff walk to Luke Raley. He then got the first two outs of the inning, but gave up run-scoring hits to three of the next four batters he faced to make it a 5-1 game in favor of Tampa Bay.

Again, Boston responded in its half of the third. Jarren Duran went from first to third on a Christian Vazquez double. Both runners were then driven in on a two-run double from J.D. Martinez that cut the deficit down to two runs at 5-3. Duran struck again in the fourth by plating Rob Refsnyder on an RBI single, although he was tagged out in between first and second base to end the inning.

Bello, meanwhile, had begun to settle in a bit and ended his night by tossing back-to-back scoreless frames. The 23-year-old finished with a final pitch count of 82 (48 strikes) and was taken off the hook in the top of the fifth.

There, while matched up against Luke Bard, J.D. Martinez ripped a 105.9 mph double and was immediately driven in by Bogaerts. Bogaerts and Verdugo then proceeded to advance to second and third base, but both runners were stranded in scoring position with Trevor Story grounding out and Franchy Cordero striking out to extinguish the threat.

In relief of Bello, Austin Davis received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The left-hander yielded just one single in the bottom of the fifth before making way in the sixth for fellow southpaw Jake Diekman, who took over in a 5-5 game but could not keep the tie intact.

Instead, Diekman plunked the first Ray he faced in Taylor Walls, got the first out of the inning, and then surrendered a go-ahead RBI double to Yandy Diaz. Kaleb Ort came in for Diekman and allowed the runner he inherited to score on an RBI single from the pinch-hitting Harold Ramirez.

Phillips Valdez was next. He retired the side in order in the seventh but did not receive much defensive help in the eighth. Bobby Dalbec failed to catch a pop-up off the bat of Raley that should have gone for the first out of the inning. Walls then grounded into a force out at second before advancing to third on a Brett Phillips single. Diaz drove in Walls on a sacrifice fly before Ramirez scored Phillips on an RBI base hit back up the middle.

A groundball from Randy Arozarena that could not be corralled by Cordero kept the inning alive for Yu Chang, who plated Tampa Bay’s 10th and final run on another RBI single. Valdez was charged with three runs in the eighth. All three were unearned.

Down to their final three outs of the ninth, the Red Sox went down quietly against Jason Adam. They did not record a single hit in the last four innings of another defeat at the hands of a divisional opponent.

Next up: Sale’s 2022 debut on deck

Chris Sale will make his highly-anticipated season debut for the Red Sox in the second game of this four-game set. Boston will need to activate the left-hander from the 60-day injured list before first pitch on Tuesday night.

Opposing Sale will be veteran right-hander Corey Kluber for the Rays. Kluber and Sale finished first and second in American League Cy Young Award voting back in 2017.

First pitch from Tropicana Field on Tuesday is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. eastern time on NESN.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images)

Red Sox’ Ceddanne Rafaela enters Baseball America’s top 100 prospects rankings

In the midst of a breakout season, Ceddanne Rafaela has entered Baseball America’s top-100 prospect rankings. Previously unranked, Rafaela is now regarded by Baseball America as the No. 84 prospect in all of baseball.

The Red Sox at present have five of the top 100-prospects in the game, as Rafaela joins the likes of shortstop Marcelo Mayer (No. 14), right-hander Brayan Bello (No. 24), first baseman Triston Casas (No. 29), and second baseman Nick Yorke (No. 50). Outfielder Jarren Duran was previously in the top-100 but has since graduated from his prospect status.

Boston’s reigning Minor League Defensive Player of the Year, Rafaela began the 2022 season with High-A Greenville. After posting a .729 OPS with Low-A Salem last season, the 21-year-old batted a stout .330/.368/.594 in 45 games with the Drive (he also hit for the cycle on May 17) before earning a promotion to Double-A Portland on June 7.

Since then, the right-handed hitting Rafaela has slashed a steady .287/.331/.574 to go along with six doubles, three triples, seven home runs, 19 RBIs, 21 runs scored, five stolen bases, five walks, and 23 strikeouts across his first 28 games (125 plate appearances) with the Sea Dogs. Among Eastern League hitters who have made at least 120 plate appearances to this point in the season, Rafaela ranks 13th in batting average, second in slugging percentage, ninth in OPS (.905), third in isolated power (.287), second in speed score (8.8), and 16th in wRC+ (141), per FanGraphs.

On the other side of the ball, Rafaela has continued to impress defensively while playing several positions. So far in Portland, the versatile 5-foot-8, 152 pounder has logged 36 innings at shortstop and 197 innings in center field. He showed off his athleticism by robbing Mets prospect Brandon McIlwain of a game-tying home run in the fifth inning of Portland’s 7-4 win over the Binghamton Rumble Ponies on Friday.

Rafaela, who turns 22 in September, has come a long way from a development standpoint since signing with the Red Sox for just $10,000 as an international free agent coming out of Curacao in July 2017. Taking that into consideration, the Willemstad native is all but a lock to be added to Boston’s 40-man roster this fall in order to receive protection from the Rule 5 Draft.

Both Rafaela and Bello, who also signed with Boston in 2017, will be representing the Red Sox organization in next weekend’s All-Star Futures Game at Dodger Stadium. Bello, of course, may not be able to attend if he is still on the big-league roster.

(Picture of Ceddanne Rafaela: Derek Davis/Portland Press Herald via Getty Images)

Brayan Bello joins Ceddanne Rafaela in representing Red Sox at All-Star Futures Game

Fresh off making his major-league debut, Brayan Bello will represent the Red Sox in the All-Star Futures Game for the second consecutive year, Major League Baseball announced on Thursday.

Bello, 23, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the top pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system and the 44th-ranked prospect in all of baseball. The right-hander made his first career start against the Rays at Fenway Park on Wednesday night and allowed four runs on six hits, three walks, and two strikeouts over four innings in a 7-1 loss.

Of the 79 pitches Bello threw, 45 went for strikes. He averaged 97.1 mph and topped out at 97.7 mph with his four-seam fastball while also mixing in a high-80s changeup, a high-90s sinker, and a mid-80s slider, per Baseball Savant.

Prior to getting called up for the first time on Wednesday, Bello had posted a 2.81 ERA and 2.68 FIP to go along with 72 strikeouts to 21 walks over his last nine appearances (eight starts) and 51 1/3 innings pitched since earning a promotion from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester in May.

At last year’s Futures Game at Coors Field, Bello yielded one run on one hit in two-thirds of the inning. This time around at Dodger Stadium, the Dominican-born hurler will be joined by other top pitching prospects around the American League such as the Rays’ Taj Bradley, the Mariners’ Emerson Hancock, the Rangers’ Jack Leiter, and the Yankees’ Ken Waldichuk.

In the scenario that Bello remains with the Sox through the All-Star break, he would then be replaced on the American League’s roster by another player.

Along with Bello, versatile prospect Ceddanne Rafaela will also be representing the Red Sox in Los Angeles on July 16. This will be Rafaela’s first trip to the Futures Game. The 21-year-old has burst onto the scene this season and is currently ranked by Baseball America as the No. 22 prospect in Boston’s farm system.

Both Bello and Rafaela signed with the Red Sox as international free-agents coming out of the Dominican Republic and Curacao on July 2, 2017, respectively. They have never played for the same affiliate at the same time before.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Brayan Bello struggles in major-league debut as Red Sox drop series to Rays with 7-1 loss

A day that began with so much promise at Fenway Park ended in disappointment. Top pitching prospect Brayan Bello made his highly-anticipated major-league debut on Wednesday night, but the Red Sox still fell to the Rays by a final score of 7-1.

In his first career big-league start, Bello got tagged for four runs on six hits and three walks to go along with two strikeouts over four innings of work. The rookie right-hander got the first out of the first inning on two pitches, then gave up a scorching double to Yandy Diaz that was immediately followed by a run-scoring single off the bat of Wander Franco.

After navigating his way through the first with the help of an inning-ending double play that he started, Bello recorded his first punchout in a scoreless top of the second before running into more trouble in the third. With two outs and runners on the corners, Bello surrendered a two-run double double to Randy Arozarena, who later scored on an RBI double from Kevin Kiermaier.

That made it a 4-0 game in favor of Tampa Bay heading into the fourth, where Bello ended his night by retiring three of the final four batters he faced. Finishing with a final pitch count of 79 (45 strikes), the 23-year-old hurler was only able to induce six swings-and-misses as he was ultimately charged with the losing decision.

In relief of Bello, Jake Diekman received the first call out of the Boston bullpen from manager Alex Cora. The left-hander walked one and struck out two in a scoreless fifth inning before making way for Hirokazu Sawamura, who walked four of the eight Rays he faced while giving up an RBI double to Vidal Brujan and issuing a bases-loaded walk to Ji-Man Choi to give Tampa Bay a 6-0 advantage.

Austin Davis fanned a pair in the seventh while Tyler Danish worked a scoreless top of the eighth. To that point in the contest, a Rafael Devers-less Red Sox lineup had been completely held in check by the opposing pitching staff.

Rays tarter Corey Kluber allowed just three hits and struck out five over six scoreless frames. The Sox had a golden chance to get to the veteran hurler in their half of the second, when a Franchy Cordero ground-rule double put runners at second and third with two outs. But Christian Arroyo popped out to Francisco Mejia in foul territory to extinguish the threat.

In the third, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Christian Vazquez hit a pair of singles to put runners at first and second with only one out. J.D. Martinez then grounded into a force out while Xander Bogaerts fanned on five pitches to end the inning.

It was not until the seventh inning when the Red Sox recorded their fourth hit of the night on a one-out double from Trevor Story. Rays reliever Calvin Faucher prevented Story from advancing past second base, however, as he sat down Cordero and Arroyo to send things to the eighth.

Martinez accounted for Boston’s lone run in the eighth inning, as he drove in Jarren Duran on an RBI single to left field. Tampa Bay got that run back, though, as Arozarena crushed a solo shot off Danish in the ninth to make it a six-run game again.

Down to their final three outs in the bottom half of the ninth, Alex Verdugo, Story, and Cordero went down in order to drop the Red Sox to 45-37 on the season. They went 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position on Wednesday and left six runners on base as a team.

Boston has now lost three consecutive series and is a measly 9-18 against divisional opponents this year.

Next up: Winckowski vs. Cole

The Red Sox will now welcome the first-place Yankees into town for the first time this season for a four-game weekend series that begins on Thursday night. In the opener, it will be rookie right-hander Josh Winckowski getting the ball for Boston and fellow righty Gerrit Cole doing the same for New York.

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

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox officially call up Brayan Bello ahead of top prospect’s MLB debut, designate Hansel Robles for assignment

The Red Sox have officially called up top pitching prospect Brayan Bello from Triple-A Worcester. In order to make room for Bello on the 26-man roster, veteran reliever Hansel Robles was designated for assignment, the club announced Wednesday.

Bello will make his major-league debut in Wednesday night’s series finale against the Rays at Fenway Park. He will become the second Red Sox pitching prospect to make his first career start this season, joining fellow right-hander Josh Winckowski in doing so.

Regarded by Baseball America as the No. 1 pitching prospect in Boston’s farm system and the No. 44 prospect in all of baseball, Bello has posted a 2.33 ERA and 2.88 FIP to go along with 114 strikeouts to 33 walks over 15 appearances (14 starts) and 85 innings between Double-A Portland and Worcester this season.

The 23-year-old out of the Dominican Republic works with a four- and two-seam fastball, a devastating changeup, and a slider. He will wear the No. 66 and become the first Red Sox player to do so since Brandon Brennan last year.

To put it simply, there is plenty of hype surrounding Bello’s debut. That being said, it seems likely that his first stint in the majors will be a short one, as he could be optioned back down to the WooSox immediately following Wednesday’s contest with the Rays.

As for Robles, his designation was first reported by the Boston Sports Journal’s Sean McAdam on Tuesday night. The 31-year-old righty lost his spot on Boston’s roster after pitching to a 5.84 ERA (5.75 FIP) with 21 strikeouts to 14 walks across 26 appearances (24 2/3 innings) in his first full season with the club.

The Sox now have the next seven days to either trade, release, or waive Robles, who has the right to refuse an outright assignment to the minor-leagues in favor of free agency if he clears waivers. In that scenario, the Red Sox would then be on the hook for the rest of Robles’ 2022 salary.

By designating Robles for assignment, not only did the Red Sox open a spot on their 26-man roster for Bello, but they also cleared a spot on their 40-man roster — which now sits at 39 players — as well.

That open spot will eventually be needed when Chris Sale is activated from the 60-day injured list, though Boston could do something else with it in the meantime.

(Picture of Brayan Bello: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox designate Hansel Robles for assignment

The Red Sox have designated veteran reliever Hansel Robles for assignment, according to Sean McAdam of the Boston Sports Journal.

By designating Robles for assignment, Boston has created an opening on its 26-man roster for top pitching prospect Brayan Bello, who will be called up from Triple-A Worcester and make his major-league debut against the Rays on Wednesday.

The move also creates an opening on the Sox’ 40-man roster, which now sits at 39 players. They could opt to save that spot for Chris Sale, who is currently on the 60-day injured list but is expected to be activated next week, or they could use it on a non-40-man player in the meantime.

As for Robles, the 31-year-old right-hander originally joined the Red Sox after coming over from the Twins at last year’s trade deadline. He quickly earned the trust of manager Alex Cora during Boston’s postseason run and re-joined the club on a minor-league deal back in March.

By making the Red Sox’ Opening Day roster out of spring training, Robles ensured that he would earn $2.25 million in guaranteed money this year. The Dominican-born hurler got his first full season in Boston off to a solid start by posting a 0.93 ERA in April.

Since the calendar flipped to May, however, Robles began to struggle while seeing his fastball velocity dip. He allowed one run in the seventh inning of Tuesday’s loss to Tampa Bay and now owns a 5.84 ERA over 26 appearances (24 2/3 innings) this season.

The Sox will have the next seven days to either trade, waive, or release Robles. If claimed by another club, that team would then be on the hook for the remainder of his 2022 salary. If he goes unclaimed, Robles would then be able to refuse an outright assignment to the minor-leagues and become a free-agent instead.

At that point, another team could sign Robles for the rest of the season for league minimum while the Red Sox would still be responsible for the rest of his salary. Either way you look at it, it appears that Robles’ time with Boston has come to an end.

(Picture of Hansel Robles: Sarah Stier/Getty Images)