Tag: non-roster invite

Red Sox spring training roster includes pair of righties who will be making first trip to major league camp

Earlier this week, the Red Sox added nine non-roster invitees to their spring training roster. Among those nine are two right-handers who are now slated to attend their first major league camp once pitchers and catchers report to Fort Myers on February 12.

Their names? Brian Van Belle and Jacob Webb.

Van Belle, 28, is the longest-tenured of the two, having originally signed with the Red Sox as an undrafted free agent out of the University of Miami following the COVID-shortened 2020 draft. The Florida native’s signing bonus was capped at $20,000 and he had to wait until May 2021 to make his professional debut. He spent all of 2024 at Triple-A Worcester and most recently pitched for the Criollos de Caguas of the Puerto Rican Winter League.

In a career-high 30 appearances (nine starts) for the WooSox last year, Van Belle posted a 4.42 ERA (4.12 FIP) with 87 strikeouts to 30 walks over 93 2/3 innings in which opposing hitters batted .289 against him. While some of those numbers may seem uninspiring, the righty did forge a 2.70 ERA (3.57 FIP) with 61 strikeouts to 17 walks in his final 23 outings (three starts) and 63 1/3 innings of the season after being activated from the development list on May 21.

Among the 49 International League pitchers who threw at least 90 innings in 2024, Van Belle ranked fifth in xFIP (4.15), ninth in FIP, 13th in swinging-strike rate (12 percent), 14th in groundball rate (46.2 percent), 15th in walk rate (7.3 percent), 17th in walks per nine innings (2.88), and 20th in ERA, per FanGraphs. He also yielded a .351 batting average on balls in play, which suggests that he may have gotten unlucky at times.

As noted in his SoxProspects.com scouting report, Van Belle made some mechanical adjustments early in the season and ended up lowering his arm slot. That change led to improved results out of the bullpen, though he was still used as a spot starter on occasion. By the end of the year, the 6-foot-3, 185-pound hurler was sitting between 90-93 mph and topping out at 94 mph with his fastball (four-seamer and sinker) while also mixing in an 85-88 mph cutter, an 83-86 mph changeup, and a 79-82 mph curveball.

In winter ball, Van Belle appeared in seven games (made four starts) for Caguas, allowing 10 earned runs on 23 hits, three walks, and 17 strikeouts over 21 innings. That translates to a 4.29 ERA and 1.24 WHIP. Looking ahead, he is currently projected by SoxProspects.com to return to Worcester’s bullpen for the start of the 2025 campaign.

Webb, meanwhile, was originally selected by the Red Sox in the 14th round of the 2021 draft out of Miami University of Ohio. The Fairborn native signed with Boston for $122,500 and made his professional debut in the Florida Complex League shortly thereafter. He most recently spent the majority of 2024 at Double-A Portland before receiving a late-season promotion to Worcester.

In 37 appearances (seven starts) for the Sea Dogs last season, Webb posted a 4.28 ERA (4.40 FIP) with 77 strikeouts to 27 walks over 80 innings in which opposing hitters batted .259 against him. The 25-year-old then joined the WooSox in September but surrendered eight earned runs across 3 2/3 innings in his first four outings at the Triple-A level.

Among the 47 Eastern League pitchers who threw at least 80 innings in 2024, Webb ranked eighth in swinging-strike rate (13.9 percent), 16th in walk rate (7.7 percent), 19th in walks per nine innings (3.04), and 22nd in strikeouts per nine innings (8.66), per FanGraphs. He yielded a .309 batting average on balls in play.

Listed at an imposing 6-foot-5 and 246 pounds, Webb throws from a deceptive, low three-quarters arm slot. The burly righty featured a 92-94 mph fastball last season that has reached 96 mph in the past and complemented it with an 80-84 mph slider and an 88-90 mph changeup. Back in August, Baseball America’s Geoff Pontes described Webb’s fastball as elite, noting how the “combination of velocity, slot, and vertical break allows the pitch to generate whiffs and a heavy rate of chases.”

Webb, who turns 26 in March, is projected to return to Portland’s bullpen for the start of the 2025 season. With that being said, it would not be all that surprising if he made his way back up to Worcester before long.

(Picture of Jacob Webb: Kelly O’Connor/sittingstill.smugmug.com)

Red Sox sign former Olympian Jamie Westbrook to minor-league deal

The Red Sox have signed free agent utilityman Jamie Westbrook to a minor-league contract, the club announced earlier Monday evening. The deal comes with an invitation to major-league spring training.

Westbrook, 28, spent the 2023 season with the Yankees organization after inking a similar minors pact with the club last December. In 117 games for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre, the versatile right-handed hitter batted .294/.400/.496 with 20 doubles, 21 home runs, 65 RBIs, 70 runs scored, six stolen bases, a team-leading 67 walks, and 81 strikeouts over 496 plate appearances.

A native of Arizona, Westbrook was originally selected by his hometown Diamondbacks in the fifth round of the 2013 amateur draft out of Basha High School in Chandler. He forwent his commitment to Pepperdine by signing with Arizona for $450,000 and made it as far as Triple-A Reno before reaching minor-league free agency at the conclusion of the 2019 campaign.

Shortly thereafter, Westbrook latched on with the Giants but was released before the COVID-shortened 2020 season even began. With the pandemic putting a halt to Minor League Baseball, Westbrook instead spent the rest of his 2020 playing for the Sugar Land Lightning Sloths of the independent Constellation Energy League in Texas. He leveraged his performance there into a minors pact with the Brewers.

As part of an eventful 2021 season, Westbrook helped the United States win a silver medal in the Tokyo Olympics, where he was teammates with — among others — Triston Casas. Stateside, Westbrook spent most of the year with Milwaukee’s top affiliate in Nashville. He remained with the Brewers through the winter before being traded to the Tigers for cash considerations last April. With the Toledo Mud Hens (Detroit’s Triple-A affiliate) in 2022, he posted a .726 OPS in 120 games.

All told, Westbrook is a lifetime .279/.345/.434 hitter with 216 doubles, 28 triples, 120 home runs, 564 RBIs, 608 runs scored, 51 stolen bases, 352 walks, and 682 strikeouts in 1,110 career minor-league games (4,559 plate appearances). That includes a career .283/.376/.460 slash line with 50 homers and 184 runs driven in over 347 total games (1,431 plate appearances) at the Triple-A level.

On the other side of the ball, Westbrook is listed as an outfielder but has past experience in the outfield as well. With Scranton/Wilkes-Barre this past season, the 5-foot-7, 193-pounder logged 602 innings at second base, 308 2/3 innings at third base, and 18 innings in left field. For his minor-league career, he has made at least one start at every position besides center field, pitcher, and catcher.

To that end, Westbrook — who does not turn 29 until June — figures to provide the Red Sox with experienced depth all over the field at Triple-A Worcester next year. He has yet to make his major-league debut, but will be looking to do so with Boston in 2024.

In addition to Westbrook, the Red Sox invited six other non-roster players to spring training on Monday in left-handers Helcris Olivarez, Jorge Benitez, and Cam Booser, right-hander Frank German, outfielder Mark Contreras, and infielder/outfielder Eddy Alvarez.

Benitez and Olivarez both signed minor-league contracts with Boston last month after spending the 2023 season with the Mariners and Rockies organizations, respectively. Booser, who made 48 relief appearances for the WooSox this year, re-signed with the Red Sox on a minors pact in late October while German, who debuted for Boston last September, returned to the organization over the summer after brief stints with the White Sox and Reds.

Contreras, as was previously reported, signed a minor-league deal with the Sox in November after spending the first sevens of his professional career in the Twins organization. Alvarez, another member of Team USA’s 2021 Olympic team, initially signed a minors pact with Boston in July after being let go by the Brewers. Just five innings into his first game with the WooSox on July 26, though, Alvarez suffered a fractured foot while running the bases and missed the rest of the season as a result.

Of the seven players the Red Sox invited to spring training on Monday, three (Alvarez, Contreras, and German) have prior big-league experience. Of course, the club will likely add more non-roster invitees to their spring training roster before camp opens in February.

(Picture of Jamie Westbrook: Erica Denhoff/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox add 10 non-roster invitees to spring training roster

The Red Sox added 10 non-roster invitees to their 2023 spring training roster on Wednesday, the club announced.

Boston extended invites to right-handers Dan Altavilla, Taylor Broadway, Durbin Feltman, Victor Santos, and Chase Shugart, infielders Christian Koss and Matthew Lugo, utility men Ryan Fitzgerald and Nick Sogard, and catcher Stephen Scott.

All 10 of these players were already in the organization. Of them, Altavilla is the only one with prior major-league experience. The 32-year-old righty originally signed a two-year minor-league deal with the Red Sox last March, but he did not pitch at all in 2022 after undergoing Tommy John surgery while a member of the Padres in June 2021.

Broadway, meanwhile, was acquired from the White Sox last August as the player to be named later in the trade that sent Jake Diekman to Chicago and Reese McGuire to Boston. The 25-year-old reliever made five appearances for Double-A Portland down the stretch last season and allowed just one run on two hits over six innings of work while striking out 10 of the 19 batters he faced.

Feltman received his third consecutive invite to big-league camp. The former third-round pick out of Texas Christian University is coming off a 2022 campaign in which he posted a 7.63 ERA (5.97 FIP) with 56 strikeouts to 24 walks in 40 relief appearances (48 1/3 innings) for Triple-A Worcester.

Santos, in similar fashion to Broadway, was originally acquired from the Phillies as the player to be named later in the January 2021 trade that sent C.J. Chatham to Philadelphia. The Dominican-born hurler split the 2022 season between Portland and Worcester, forging a 4.97 ERA (4.59 FIP) in 28 appearances (25 starts) spanning 145 innings pitched.

Shugart, like Santos, suited up for both the Sea Dogs and WooSox last year. The 26-year-old out of Texas pitched to a cumulative 5.31 ERA (4.26 FIP) with 63 strikeouts to 21 walks across 45 outings — one of which was a start — and 62 2/3 innings.

Koss, 25, spent the entirety of the 2022 season with Portland. The versatile right-handed hitter batted .260/.309/.430 with 22 doubles, five triples, 17 home runs, 84 RBIs, 69 runs scored, 16 stolen bases, 25 walks, and 137 strikeouts over 125 games (532 plate appearances) en route to being named the Sea Dogs’ Most Valuable Player.

Lugo is the most notable prospect listed here. The 21-year-old infielder slashed .288/.344/.500 with 18 home runs and 78 RBIs in 114 games (512 plate appearances) for High-A Greenville last year before earning a promotion to and appearing in three games with Portland in late September. He was recently named co-Rookie of the Year in the Puerto Rican Winter League.

Fitzgerald, 28, was with the WooSox all of last season. The left-handed hitter batted .219/.304/.400 with 26 doubles, four triples, 16 home runs, 72 RBIs, 55 runs scored, six stolen bases, 49 walks, and 135 strikeouts in 127 games (520 plate appearances). He played every defensive position besides pitcher and catcher.

Sogard, 25, is also listed as a utility player. The switch-hitter slashed .254/.359/.349 with 22 doubles, two triples, four homers, 43 runs driven in, 59 runs scored, 18 stolen bases, 61 walks, and 88 strikeouts over 125 games (472 plate appearances) between Portland and Worcester in 2022.

Scott, on the other hand, is the lone catcher listed here. The 25-year-old backstop hit .219/.346/.377 with 19 doubles, two triples, 10 home runs, 45 RBIs, 57 runs scored, nine stolen bases, 66 walks, and 78 strikeouts in 96 games (410 plate appearances) with Greenville and Portland. From behind the plate, he threw out 24 of 85 possible base stealers.

In addition to Scott, Sogard, Lugo, Shugart, Santos, and Broadway will also be attending their first major-league spring training camp down in Fort Myers. Following Wednesday’s moves, the Red Sox now have 21 non-roster invitees on their spring training roster.

BOSTON RED SOX NON-ROSTER INVITEES (21)

Pitchers (9): Dan Altavilla, Taylor Broadway, Matt Dermody, Durbin Feltman, Norwith Gudino, Oddanier Mosqueda, Victor Santos, Ryan Sherriff, Chase Shugart

Catchers (4): Jorge Alfaro, Caleb Hamilton, Ronaldo Hernández, Stephen Scott

Infielders (2): Christian Koss, Matthew Lugo

Outfielders (3): Greg Allen, Narciso Crook, Raimel Tapia

Infielder/Outfielders (3): Ryan Fitzgerald, Niko Goodrum, Nick Sogard

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Pitchers and catchers are scheduled to report to the Fenway South complex at JetBlue Park for their first full workout on February 15. The club’s first full squad workout will take place five days later.

(Picture of Ryan Fitzgerald: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Red Sox sign Niko Goodrum to minor-league deal, invite 5 others to spring training

The Red Sox have signed infielder/outfielder Niko Goodrum to a minor-league contract for the 2023 season, the club announced on Wednesday. The deal, which was first reported by FanSided’s Robert Murray, includes an invite to major-league spring training.

Goodrum, 30, spent the better part of the 2022 season with the Astros after signing a one-year, $2.1 million deal with the club back in March. The switch-hitter went 5-for-43 (.116) with two doubles, one RBI, two runs scored, one stolen base, two walks, and 23 strikeouts in 15 games for Houston before being optioned to Triple-A Sugar Land in mid-May.

With the Space Cowboys, Goodrum batted .310/.500/.524 with three doubles, two home runs, four RBIs, 12 runs scored, two stolen bases, 16 walks, and 12 strikeouts over 12 games (58 plate appearances). He was placed on the seven-day injured list with an undisclosed injury on June 7 and only appeared in one more game for Sugar Land on August 17. In early September, the Astros designated Goodrum for assignment and released him after he cleared waivers.

A native of Georgia, Goodrum was originally selected by the Twins in the second round of the 2010 amateur draft out of Fayette County High School. After seven years in the minor-leagues, he made his major-league debut for Minnesota towards the tail end of the 2017 campaign. He was released by the Twins that November but quickly landed on his feet by inking a minors pact with the Tigers.

Goodrum made Detroit’s Opening Day roster out of spring training in 2018 end enjoyed some moderate success in his first two seasons in the Motor City. From 2018-2019, he slashed .247/.319/.427 (98 wRC+) with 56 doubles, eight triples, 28 homers, 98 runs driven in, 116 runs scored, 24 stolen bases, 88 walks, and 270 strikeouts across 243 total games spanning 964 trips to the plate.

While Goodrum’s first two seasons with the Tigers were productive, his final two were not. From 2020-2021, he compiled a .203/.282/.350 slash line (75 wRC+) to go along with 18 doubles, three triples, 14 home runs, 53 RBIs, 54 runs scored, 21 stolen bases, 47 walks, and 176 strikeouts over 133 total games (504 plate appearances). Detroit non-tendered Goodrum last November, which gave him the opportunity join the Astros.

Although he has struggled at the plate in recent years, Goodrum has proven to be quite the versatile defender over the course of his six-year big-league career. The 6-foot-3, 215-pounder has past experience at every position besides pitcher and catcher. As far as the metrics are concerned, shortstop may be his best position.

Goodrum, who turns 31 in February, should provide the Red Sox with both infield and outfield depth as a utility man at Triple-A Worcester next season. For his career at the Triple-A level, Goodrum is a lifetime .261/.325/.409 hitter with 15 home runs and 73 RBIs in 154 games.

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To go along with Goodrum, the Red Sox added five other players to their 2023 spring training roster as non-roster invitees on Wednesday. Right-hander Norwith Gudino and left-gander Oddanier Mosqueda, catchers Caleb Hamilton and Ronaldo Hernandez, and outfielder Narciso Crook were all extended invitations as well.

Gudino, 27, signed a minor-league deal with Boston earlier this month after spending the first eight years of his professional career in the Giants organization.

Mosqueda, 23, was re-signed to a minors pact in November after originally signing with the Red Sox as an international free agent coming out of Venezuela in July 2015.

Hamilton, 27, and Hernandez, 25, were already in the organization but were outrighted off Boston’s 40-man roster after clearing waivers at different points this winter.

Crook, 27, inked a minor-league contract with the Red Sox in late November after making his major-league debut with the Cubs over the summer. He went 2-for-8 (.250) with a double and two RBIs in four games for the North Siders.

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The Red Sox will continue to add more invitees to their spring training roster before pitchers and catchers report to Fort Myers in mid-February.

(Picture of Niko Goodrum: Ken Murray/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)

Red Sox add veteran catcher Jett Bandy to spring training roster

The Red Sox have added catcher Jett Bandy to their 2021 spring training roster as a non-roster invitee, the team announced Monday morning.

Bandy, 31 in March, spent the entirety of the 2020 season in Boston’s 60-man player pool, though he never saw any major-league action and was instead limited to taxi squad duties.

The Sox originally signed the California native to a minor-league contract in December 2019, likely with the idea that he would serve as upper-minors catching depth with Triple-A Pawtucket alongside Juan Centeno.

That vision never came to fruition, though, as the 2020 minor-league season was eventually cancelled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Bandy did however make the cut for Boston’s 60-man player pool, which resulted in him spending the year at the club’s alternate training site in Pawtucket when he was not part of the aforementioned taxi squad.

Prior to signing with the Red Sox, the veteran backstop had spent parts of four big-league seasons with the Angels and Brewers from 2015-2018.

Over that span in which he appeared in 156 total games and accrued 492 plate appearances, Bandy slashed .218/.282/.365 to go along with 16 home runs and 45 RBI. He also threw out 31 of the 98 base runners (32%) who attempted to steal against him.

With the addition of Bandy, Boston now has nine catchers at big-league camp not named Kevin Plawecki, who is still on the team’s COVID-19 related injured list.

The addition of Bandy also increases the Sox’ spring training roster to 72 players (excluding Plawecki). Teams this spring are not allowed to carry more than 75 players at any given time.

Taking that into consideration, the Red Sox will likely need to do a little bit of roster shuffling once Plawecki is ready to come back and once the Marwin Gonzalez signing is made official. So stay tuned for that.

(Picture of Jett Bandy: Maddie Meyer/Getty Images)

Red Sox Add 47 Players to Initial Training Camp Roster Pool

The Red Sox have added 47 players to their initial player pool for summer training camp, the club announced Sunday.

Teams had until 4 PM eastern time Sunday to submit their initial training camp pools to Major League Baseball and could include up to 60 players.

Seemingly taking the conservative route here, the Red Sox have left 13 open slots in their initial club pool, although they have the ability to add more players later on.

Prior to Sunday, many assumed that Boston would include a bevy of top prospects in their pool, as has been the case thus far with other clubs, but that was not part of the Sox’ course of action, apparently.

Instead, corner infielder Bobby Dalbec was the only premier Red Sox prospect to make the cut. Other touted youngsters in Boston’s minor-league pipleine, such as Jeter Downs, Triston Casas, Jarren Duran, Tanner Houck, or Bryan Mata, did not. At least for the time being, that is.

It’s also worth mentioning that 10 non-roster invitees — Brian Johnson, Yairo Munoz, Domingo Tapia, Cesar Puello, Marco Hernandez Juan Centeno, Jett Bandy, Robinson Leyer, John Andreoli, and catching prospect Connor Wong — made the initial pool.

Veteran backstop Jonathan Lucroy, who signed a minor-league deal with Boston in February, did not make the initial pool, but according to MassLive.com’s Chris Cotillo, the reason for that is a procedural one.

Among the players who make up the Sox’ 40-man roster, left-hander Yoan Aybar and outfielder Marcus Wilson were the only ones not to receive an initial invite to training camp.

As previously mentioned though, there is still plenty of time for other players and prospects to be added at a later date. We’ll have to see what chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom and Co. have in store once players begin reporting to training camp this week.

 

 

Red Sox Sign Outfielder César Puello to Minor-League Deal, Invite Him to Major League Spring Training

As pitchers and catchers report to Fenway South in Fort Myers on Tuesday, the Red Sox have made another roster addition, signing outfielder Cesar Puello to a minor-league deal that includes an invite to big league camp.

Puello, who turns 29 at the beginning of April, had spent the 2019 season between the Angels and Marlins, slashing .248/.356/.384 with four home runs and 18 RBI over 44 total games between the two clubs.

Originally signed out of the Dominican Republic by the Mets in 2007, the Red Sox will be the ninth organization Puello has spent time with.

Despite only playing in 44 games last year, Puello was worth 1.0 fWAR thanks to some exceptional defense in the Angels and Marlins outfield, per FanGraphs. He logged time at all three outfield positions as well.

Puello will earn $625,000 if he makes it to the majors this year, according to The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier.

With this signing, as well as the other non-roster invitees mentioned in the tweet above, the Red Sox now have 65 players attending major-league spring training this year. That number will have to be trimmed down to 26 by the time March 26th comes around.