Tag: danny kirwin

How did Red Sox pitching prospect Danny Kirwin fare in 2024?

Even though he was not signed until late April, pitching prospect Danny Kirwin still put together an impressive first season as a member of the Red Sox organization.

After going undrafted out of Rider University (Lawrence Township, N.J.) in 2023, Kirwin pitched in two summer leagues before signing with the Oakland Ballers that December. The right-hander originally planned on spending the 2024 season with the newly formed Pioneer League club. He instead became the first player in the team’s short history to have his contract purchased by a major-league organization when the Red Sox did so last April.

That came shortly after Ballers manager Micah Franklin posted a 45-second video on social media of Kirwin reaching 98 mph with his fastball during a bullpen session. The Red Sox, as it turned out, caught wind of the post and wasted little time in getting Kirwin to Fort Myers, Fla. for a physical and to sign a contract. He officially put pen to paper on April 24 and reported to Low-A Salem the following day.

Kirwin, who turned 25 in November, spent the remainder of the minor-league season with Boston’s Carolina League affiliate. In 20 appearances (five starts) for the Salem Red Sox, the righty posted a 3.63 ERA (3.65 FIP) with 69 strikeouts to 24 walks over 69 1/3 innings. Opposing hitters batted just .211 against him.

Among the 57 pitchers who threw at least 65 innings in the Carolina League last year, Kirwin ranked seventh in groundball rate (46.8 percent), 13th in batting average against, 18th in WHIP (1.13), 19th in xFIP (3.48), 21st in swinging-strike rate (13.4 percent), 24th in FIP, 25th in walks per nine innings (3.12), and 26th in walk rate (8.4 percent) and line-drive rate (21.5 percent), per FanGraphs.

While Salem’s season ended in early September, Kirwin’s year continued in the Arizona Fall League. One of eight Boston minor-leaguers to make the trek out west, Kirwin was recognized as an AFL All-Star after forging a 2.84 ERA with 16 strikeouts to just one walk in five appearances (one start) spanning 12 2/3 innings for the Mesa Solar Sox.

Between his stints with Salem and in Arizona last season, Kirwin flashed some intriguing stuff on the mound. Throwing from a low three-quarters arm slot, the 6-foot-2, 205-pound hurler typically sat in the upper-90s with his high-octane fastball while also featuring a low-90s cutter and sinker, a mid-80s sweeper that he changed the grip on late into the year, and an upper-80s changeup.

A native of Lansdale, Penn., Kirwin returned to and spent part of his offseason training at Tread Athletics in Pineville, N.C. to further revamp his arsenal and mechanics. He recently debuted as SoxProspects.com’s 59th-ranked Red Sox prospect (29th among pitchers) and is currently projected by the site to open the 2025 campaign in High-A Greenville’s bullpen.

(Picture of Danny Kirwin: Norm Hall/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Trio of Red Sox minor-leaguers named 2024 Arizona Fall League All-Stars

Three Red Sox minor-leaguers were named 2024 Arizona Fall League All-Stars on Friday.

The trio of catcher Brooks Brannon, infielder/outfielder Max Ferguson, and right-hander Danny Kiriwn will represent the Mesa Solar Sox by suiting up for the American League in Saturday night’s Fall Stars Game at Sloan Park. First pitch is scheduled for 8 p.m. eastern time. The game will be broadcast on MLB Network and streamed on MLB.com and the MLB app.

Brannon is the most notable of the Red Sox’ three Fall Stars given his standing as the No. 27 prospect in Boston’s farm system, per MLB Pipeline. The right-handed hitting 20-year-old has not played since last Saturday, but he is batting .333/.375/.500 with four doubles, two home runs, five RBIs, eight runs scored, four walks, and 18 strikeouts in 14 games (64 plate appearances) for Mesa this fall.

https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1850374175640244660

Defensively, Brannon has started eight of Mesa’s 26 games at catcher while splitting time at the position with teammates Moises Ballesteros (Cubs), David Avitia (Cubs), and Daniel Susac (Athletics). In the process of logging 68 innings behind the plate, the 5-foot-11, 210-pound backstop has thrown out five of 20 possible base stealers without committing an error.

Unlike Brannon, who was selected by the Red Sox in the ninth round of the 2022 draft out of Randleman High School (N.C.), Ferguson was acquired from the Padres as part of the August 2022 trade that sent veteran first baseman Eric Hosmer and minor-league outfielder Corey Rosier to Boston and pitching prospect Jay Groome back to San Diego.

Ferguson, 25, missed much of this past season after injuring his ankle in mid-April. So far this fall, the left-handed hitting Tennessee product has slashed .246/.368/.361 with four doubles, one home run, 10 RBIs, 11 runs scored, two stolen bases, 13 walks, and 20 strikeouts in 17 games (76 plate appearances) for Mesa. In that time, he has logged 62 innings at second base, 60 innings at shortstop, and 21 2/3 innings in right field.

https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1843502874397192356

Kirwin, meanwhile, signed with the Red Sox in late April after garnering attention on social media and having his contract purchased from the Oakland Ballers of the independent Pioneer League without pitching in a game for the club. In four appearances (one start) for Mesa this fall, the hard-throwing righty out of Rider University has posted a 3.38 ERA and 1.31 WHIP with 14 strikeouts to just one walk over 10 2/3 innings. Opposing hitters have batted .283 against him.

https://twitter.com/MLBPipeline/status/1844261044908429734

Standing at 6-foot-2 and 205 pounds, Kirwin — who turns 25 next week — throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a three-pitch mix that consists of a 92-96 mph fastball that has reached 98 mph, a mid-80s slider, and a cutter.

(Picture of Brooks Brannon: Norm Hall/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Red Sox purchase contract of righty Danny Kirwin from Oakland Ballers

The Red Sox have purchased the contract of right-hander Danny Kirwin from the Oakland Ballers of the independent Pioneer League, per an announcement from the club.

Kirwin will take a physical in Fort Myers, Fla. on Wednesday and is expected to join Boston’s Low-A affiliate in Salem, Va. once his signing becomes official, according to The Athletic’s Melissa Lockard. He becomes the first member of the newly-launched Ballers to have his contract purchased by a major-league organization.

Kirwin, 24, originally signed with the Ballers in December after spending five years at Rider University. Despite posting a 2.32 ERA with 67 strikeouts to 36 walks over 25 appearances (50 1/3 innings) and earning MAAC Relief Pitcher of the Year honors in 2023, the hard-throwing righty went undrafted.

Instead, Kirwin pitched for the Mahoning Valley Scrappers of the MLB Draft League and the Tri-City Chili Peppers of the Coastal Plain League last summer. He then spent his winter working out at Tread Athletics in North Carolina, where he saw his velocity increase considerably.

Last month, Lucas Still — a performance coach at Tread Athletics — posted a video to X (formerly known as Twitter) of Kirwin sitting between 95-97 mph and topping out at 97.7 mph with his fastball while mixing in a slider, changeup, and cutter. Still also posted a pitch metrics report from a recent bullpen session that had Kirwin at 95.1 mph with his four-seamer, 91.8 mph with his cutter, 85 mph with his sweeper/slider, 93.5 mph with his sinker, and 85.5 mph with his changeup.

This past Saturday, Ballers manager Micah Franklin tweeted out a video of Kirwin throwing up to 98 mph during one of his bullpens. The Red Sox, as noted by Lockard, caught wind of that video and wasted little time in reaching out and securing the 6-foot-2, 205-pound hurler’s services.

(Picture of Danny Kirwin: Rider University Athletics)