Tag: eduardo rivera

Red Sox re-sign LHP prospect Eduardo Rivera to minor league contract

The Red Sox have re-signed left-hander Eduardo Rivera to a minor league contract, according to Alex Speier of The Boston Globe.

Rivera was slated to reach free agency next month, but is now tentatively in line to return to the organization he has spent the better part of the last two seasons with. The 22-year-old is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as Boston’s No. 43 prospect, which ranks 25th among pitchers in the system.

Originally selected by the Athletics in the 11th round of the 2021 draft out of Colegio Cadest in Puerto Rico, Rivera joined the Red Sox as a minor league free agent shortly after being released by the A’s last May. The San Juan native split the remainder of the 2024 season between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem, then returned home to dominate for the Cangrejeros de Santurce and Indios de Mayaguez of the Puerto Rican Winter League.

After pitching for Puerto Rico in the Caribbean Series in February, Rivera understandably did not see much action in his first spring training with the Red Sox before breaking camp with High-A Greenville. Though he did not make his season debut until April 16, Rivera impressed to the tune of a 1.61 ERA (2.21 FIP) with 68 strikeouts to 16 walks in 10 outings (six starts) spanning 44 2/3 innings for the Drive. Opposing hitters in the South Atlantic League batted just .138 against him.

Alongside fellow lefty Payton Tolle, Rivera was promoted to Double-A Portland in late June. While Tolle was in the process of being fast-tracked to the major leagues, Rivera experienced some growing pains with the Sea Dogs. In 10 appearances (nine starts) for Boston’s Eastern League affiliate, he posted a 3.40 ERA (4.28 FIP) with 40 strikeouts to 30 walks over 42 1/3 innings in which opponents batted .214 against him. He ended the season on a high note by fanning seven and walking only one across six scoreless, one-hit frames against Binghamton on September 9.

Overall, Rivera finished the 2025 campaign having forged a 2.48 ERA (3.22 FIP) with 108 strikeouts to 46 walks in 20 appearances (15 starts) totaling 87 innings between Greenville and Portland. Among the 14 Red Sox minor leaguers who threw at least 85 innings this year, regardless of level, Rivera ranked first in groundball rate (54.5 percent), second in batting average against (.177), ERA, and swinging-strike rate (15 percent), third in strikeouts per nine innings (11.17), fourth in FIP and strikeout rate (29.7 percent), fifth in xFIP (3.33), and seventh in WHIP (1.16), per FanGraphs.

Listed at a physically imposing 6-foot-7 and 237 pounds, Rivera throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a very high leg kick into his delivery. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the burly southpaw primarily operates with a five-pitch mix that consists of a 93-97 mph fastball that can reach 98 mph, an 87-89 mph cutter, an 83-86 mph slider, an 85-89 mph changeup, and a 78-80 mph curveball.

Even though Rivera is back with the Red Sox on a minor league contract, his status for next season is still technically up in the air since he is Rule 5-eligible this winter. In other words, Rivera could be taken by another club in December’s Rule 5 Draft if he is not added to Boston’s 40-man roster by the November protection deadline.

Given his past struggles with command and control, however, Rivera could very well be left unprotected by the Red Sox and then go unselected in the Rule 5 Draft. If that does turn out to be the case and he remains in the organization through the offseason, Rivera — who does not turn 23 until next June — is projected by SoxProspects.com to return to Portland in 2026.

(Picture of Eduardo Rivera: Azael Rodriguez/Getty Images)

Red Sox to promote pitching prospects Payton Tolle, Eduardo Rivera to Double-A Portland

The Red Sox are promoting pitching prospects Payton Tolle and Eduardo Rivera from High-A Greenville to Double-A Portland, as was first reported by Josh Ball of Beyond the Monster.

Tolle and Rivera, both 22, are in their first full seasons as members of the Red Sox organization. The pair of large left-handers opened the 2025 campaign with Greenville and excelled there, making the club’s decision to elevate them to Portland at this time hardly surprising.

Tolle was selected by the Red Sox with the 50th overall pick in last summer’s draft out of TCU. The Oklahoma native received an above-slot $2 million signing bonus but did not make his professional debut (in which he made the jump straight to Greenville) until April after logging 81 1/3 innings in his junior season with the Horned Frogs.

In 11 outings (10 starts) for Greenville, Tolle posted a 3.62 ERA (2.89 FIP) with 79 strikeouts to 14 walks over 49 2/3 innings in which opposing hitters batted .234 against him. He capped off his time with the Drive by allowing just one earned run on five hits, one walk, and nine strikeouts across six quality innings against Greensboro on Sunday. Of the 83 pitches he threw, 55 were strikes and 21 generated a swing-and-miss.

Among the 38 pitchers who have thrown at least 45 innings in the South Atlantic League this season, Tolle ranks first in strikeouts per nine innings (14.32), strikeout rate (38.3 percent), and swinging-strike rate (17.3 percent), second in xFIP (2.50), fourth in FIP, 13th in walks per nine innings (2.54), walk rate (6.8 percent), and WHIP (1.17), and 19th in batting average against, per FanGraphs.

Tolle, who turns 23 in November, is currently regarded by Baseball America as the No. 4 prospect (first among pitchers) in Boston’s farm system and the No. 84 prospect in the sport. The 6-foot-6, 250-pound southpaw throws from a three-quarters arm slot and operates with a four-pitch mix that consists of a 93-96 mph fastball (reached 97.7 mph on Sunday), a 90-92 mph cutter, an 84-88 mph sweeping slider, and an 87-90 mph changeup, as noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report.

Rivera, meanwhile, is further into his professional career than Tolle. The native Puerto Rican was originally selected by the Athletics in the 11th round (338th overall) of the 2021 draft out of high school and was released last May. He quickly latched on with the Red Sox as a minor-league free agent and split the remainder of the 2024 season between the Florida Complex League and Low-A Salem, forging a 2.67 ERA (2.55 FIP) with 38 strikeouts to nine walks over 30 1/3 total innings.

After putting together a strong showing in the Puerto Rican Winter League, Rivera has undoubtedly been one of the biggest surprises on the pitching side of things for Greenville this season. He compiled a 1.61 ERA (2.35 FIP) with 68 strikeouts to 16 walks across 10 outings (six starts) spanning 44 2/3 innings in which he held opposing hitters to a .138 batting average. Like Tolle, he ended his time with the Drive by yielding just one earned run on five hits, no walks, and eight strikeouts over 6 1/3 innings against Greensboro this past Friday. Of the 87 pitches he threw, 60 landed for strikes and 17 were whiff-inducing.

Among the 49 pitchers who have thrown at least 40 innings in the South Atlantic League this year, Rivera ranks first in strikeout rate (39.5 percent), swinging-strike rate (18.8 percent), groundball rate (59 percent), batting average against, second in ERA, FIP, and xFIP (2.42), third in strikeouts per nine innings (13.70) and WHIP (0.83), and 24th in walks per nine innings (3.22), per FanGraphs.

Rivera, who just turned 23 earlier this month, is not currently ranked by Baseball America but is regarded by SoxProspects.com as Boston’s No. 35 prospect, which places 17th among pitchers in the organization. As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, the 6-foot-7, 235-pound hurler throws from a three-quarters arm slot and features a 93-97 mph fastball (reached 96.2 mph in Friday’s start), an 87-89 mph cutter, an 83-86 mph slider, an 85-89 mph changeup, and a 78-80 mph curveball.

Both Tolle and Rivera are now slated to join a talented Portland pitching staff that already includes the likes of David Sandlin, Connelly Early, and Hayden Mullins, among others. The Sea Dogs open a six-game series on the road against the Binghamton Rumble Ponies on Tuesday.

With the promotions of Tolle and Rivera, fellow lefty Shea Sprague is once again being elevated from Salem to Greenville, according to SoxProspects.com’s Chris Hatfield. Sprague, a Hanover, Mass. native, made one relief appearance for the Drive in late May in which he struck out five and walked only one over 3 1/3 scoreless, one-hit frames before being sent back down on June 3.

(Picture of Payton Tolle: Maddie Malhotra/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Who is Eduardo Rivera? Red Sox prospect led LBPRC in Ks, pitched in Caribbean Series this winter

As he prepares for his first spring training as a member of the Red Sox organization, it feels like an appropriate time to look back at the winter pitching prospect Eduardo Rivera had.

Rivera, a 21-year-old left-hander, spent the winter on his home island of Puerto Rico. The San Juan native opened the 2024-2025 Liga de Béisbol Profesional Roberto Clemente (LBPRC) regular season with the Cangrejeros de Santurce and was excellent.

In 11 regular-season appearances (seven starts), Rivera posted a 1.15 ERA and 0.95 WHIP with a league-leading 56 strikeouts to 12 walks over 39 innings. He made an additional start for the Cangrejeros in the playoffs — in which he struck out eight across six scoreless frames — before they were eliminated by the Senadores de San Juan on January 12.

Three days after Santurce was knocked out of the semi-finals, Rivera joined the Indios de Mayaguez for their best-of-nine LBPRC championship series matchup against San Juan. The lefty got the starting nod in Games 2 and 6 (the clincher) and picked up where he left off by tossing 10 total innings of shutout ball as Mayaguez was ultimately crowned league champion for the 20th time in franchise history.

As a result of being on the championship-clinching team in the LBPRC, Rivera made Puerto Rico’s roster for the 2025 Caribbean Series in Mexicali, Mexico. He unfortunately struggled in his lone start against the Dominican Republic in round-robin action on February 4, surrendering seven runs (three earned) on six hits, one walk, one hit batsman, and five strikeouts over 2 2/3 innings. The Dominican Republic then defeated Mexico in the final on February 7 to take home its fifth Caribbean Series title.

Regardless of how it ended, it was nonetheless a productive winter for Rivera after what must have been a turbulent 2024 season stateside. The southpaw was released by the Athletics (the organization that originally selected him in the 11th round of the 2021 draft out of high school) last May. He then signed a minor-league contract with the Red Sox in June and made four appearances (one start) in the rookie-level Florida Complex League before joining Low-A Salem in late July.

In six outings (four starts) for Salem, Rivera forged a 1.99 ERA (2.56 FIP) with 30 strikeouts to seven walks over 22 2/3 innings in which opposing hitters batted just .175 against him. Among the 21 Red Sox minor-leaguers who threw at least 20 innings in the Carolina League last year, Rivera ranked first in WHIP (0.93), second in ERA and line-drive rate (16 percent), third in strikeout rate (33.3 percent) and xFIP (2.59), fourth in strikeouts per nine innings (11.91), batting average against, FIP, and groundball rate (54 percent), fifth in walks per nine innings (2.78), sixth in swinging-strike rate (14.7 percent), and seventh in walk rate (7.8 percent), per FanGraphs.

Rivera, who does not turn 22 until June, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 58 prospect in Boston’s farm system after previously being unranked. The imposing 6-foot-7, 237-pound hurler throws from a three-quarters arm slot and incorporates a high leg kick into his delivery. He primarily operates with a 92-95 mph fastball that has reached 97 mph and also mixes in a changeup and slider.

Barring a trade or other surprise move, Rivera is projected by SoxProspects.com to make the jump to High-A Greenville for the start of the 2025 season. Whether he does so as a member of the Drive’s starting rotation or bullpen remains to be seen.

(Picture of Eduardo Rivera: Miguel Rodriguez/Getty Images)