Latest news with #DavidSandlin
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
'They deserve to be here': Red Sox pitching prospects Connelly Early, David Sandlin promoted to Triple-A Worcester
WORCESTER — A fresh crop of arms has arrived in Worcester. On Tuesday, pitchers Connelly Early and David Sandlin were promoted to Triple-A Worcester from Double-A Portland. Early and Sandlin found out about their joint call up on the road in Richmond, Virginia, Sunday following a rain out with the Richmond Flying Squirrels. Portland manager Chad Epperson called the two pitchers into his office and told them they'd been traded in a package deal. 'He had me for a second. Not gonna lie,' said Early prior to the WooSox' 7-5 win Tuesday at Polar Park. 'And me and (Sandlin) kind of both looked at each other and were like, 'What is he talking about?'' 'He was basically just messing with us,' Sandlin told the T&G. The quippy Epperson then dropped the final line of: 'To Worcester.' 'Once he said Worcester, we both just started giggling and everything,' Early said. 'Yeah, it was a good time.' And so far this season, both Early and Sandlin have had a good time on the hill. A left-handed pitcher taken by Boston in the fifth round of the 2023 MLB Draft, Early has risen quickly up the ranks with the Red Sox. After starting in 16 games for Class-A Salem (2023-24) and being called up to Double-A Portland at the end of last season for eight starts, Early added strength and weight to his 6-foot-3, 195-pound frame in the offseason. The 23-year-old also added velocity to his fastball — that hit 97 mph in spring training but sits in the mid-to-low 90s — to pair with a quality changeup and evolving sweeper. In 15 games (12 starts) with the Sea Dogs this year, Early went 7-2 with a 2.51 ERA and 96 strikeouts across 71 2/3 innings. He is currently listed as the Red Sox' No. 6 prospect, according to 'I go out there every single time just trying to be as electric as possible,' Early said. A right-handed pitcher acquired by Boston in a trade with the Kansas City Royals last year, Sandlin turned a corner the last two months with Portland. The 24-year-old righty, with a penchant for watching anything 'Star Wars' related before he pitches and can hit 99 miles per hour on the radar gun, possessed a 5-4 record in 17 games (13 starts) with a 3.61 ERA and 86 strikeouts across 82⅓ innings for the Sea Dogs. Sandlin is currently listed as the Red Sox' No. 12 prospect, according to 'This guy brings electric stuff to the mound every single time, and you know he's going to continue to get better,' Epperson told the T&G in May. 'He knows what he's got to work on, and I know the competitor and the work that he has put in, and he's going to get right, and when he gets right, he's going to go on one hell of a role.' With the WooSox set to embark on a stretch of 12 home games in 13 days, manager Chad Tracy was excited to welcome two new arms to his stable of pitchers. 'I got to meet them today and go through some stuff with them,' Tracy said. 'Like they deserve to be here, you know, like they've both done an outstanding job down there. The numbers speak for themselves.' Add Blaze Jordan as another person who's excited to see Early and Sandlin get called up to Worcester. The WooSox starting third baseman Tuesday night started the year by playing with both pitchers in Portland. 'I love watching them pitch,' Jordan said. 'They both got electric stuff and it's a pleasure playing the field behind them and everything. So, I'm excited to have them here and everything ... and I think they're going to help the ballclub a lot.' A little less than a year after Connelly Early and David Sandlin were called up to Double-A Portland from High-A Salem together, the pair of pitchers were once again promoted as a package deal. They hope this trend continues in the future, with the Boston Red Sox. 'That would be really, really cool and awesome to share that moment with him,' Sandlin said. 'It's crazy to think about for sure, at this point, being in Portland you get two steps away and you get the call and you're like 'Holy cow, it's one step away,'' Early said. 'So, I'm just trying to prepare myself for that and doing that here, and in Portland, and hopefully we see that happen pretty soon.' —Contact Tommy Cassell at tcassell@ Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Connelly Early, David Sandlin promoted to Triple-A Worcester Red Sox
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
'Best is yet to come': Newest WooSox pitcher David Sandlin picks up his first Triple-A win
WORCESTER — David Sandlin brought his fork to the Canal District. When the Boston Red Sox prospect was at Eastern Oklahoma State College from 2020-21, his former junior college coach shared an anecdotal story about a terminally ill woman telling her priest to bury her with a fork. The gist of the tale is to say the best is yet to come, like dessert for example, and to keep your fork. #KYF. 'That's kind of what my motto became,' Sandlin told the T&G in May. 'Just always, no matter what happens, good, bad, the best is yet to come. And it kind of ties into what we believe here in the Red Sox organization.' And on Friday, Sandlin dug in during his Triple-A debut in Worcester. The 24-year-old right-hander pitched five innings, giving up four hits, one run and one walk while striking out four to pick up his first Triple-A win in Worcester's 5-1 victory over Lehigh Valley at Polar Park. 'It was awesome. I mean, the fans got into it right off the bat, especially after the first strikeout, so that kind of helped me build a little bit,' said Sandlin, who threw 57 pitches, 40 for strikes. 'And then (my) parents were right there (in the) front row, so I could hear my dad screaming. And it helped me also calm down a little bit, too. That was nice. Asked what Sandlin's dad, Bill, had to say: 'Just anytime something good (happened) he let out like a big, like, Ric Flair type of 'Woo.' So, it was good to hear that.' Sandlin was on the road in Richmond, Virginia, with Double-A Portland on Sunday when Sea Dogs manager Chad Epperson called him and teammate Connelly Early into his office. Epperson then told the pair of Portland pitchers they'd been traded in a package deal. Wink wink. 'Me and (Sandlin) kind of both looked at each other and were like, 'What is he talking about?'' Early said. 'He was basically just messing with us,' Sandlin confirmed. Instead, the two hurlers were promoted to Triple-A Worcester. Fast forward to Thursday's MLB trade deadline, however, and Sandlin was a bit worried he may actually get traded this time around. 'I would say the most scared I was when the fake tweet for (Minnesota Twins pitcher) Joe Ryan came out,' Sandlin said. 'I was at dinner with my parents. I said I might be getting a call here in a second, but thankfully I'm still here. And like I said, just grateful ... for the opportunity to still be in this organization and grateful for the opportunity to be up here and pitch.' Acquired by the Red Sox in a trade with the Kansas City Royals last year, Sandlin possessed a 5-4 record in 17 games (13 starts) with a 3.61 ERA and 86 strikeouts across 82⅓ innings for the Sea Dogs in his first year with the Red Sox organization. Listed as the Red Sox' No. 12 prospect by the power-pitching Sandlin topped out at 98.1 miles per hour on the radar gun Friday in Game 2 of a doubleheader at Polar Park. With a grand slam from fellow prospect Jhostynxon Garcia helping Sandlin pick up his first Triple-A win, the newest WooSox pitcher was happy to bring his fork to Worcester. So where does he keep it? 'Right in the back pocket, I would say,' Sandlin said. ' Obviously, good outing today, but (the) best is yet to come. So, just head back down tomorrow and go back to work.' #KYF. —Contact Tommy Cassell at tcassell@ Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Red Sox pitching prospect David Sandlin picks up the win in his Triple-A start
Yahoo
4 days ago
- Sport
- Yahoo
'We'll see how it goes': Red Sox move David Sandlin to bullpen with eyes on potential promotion to Boston for playoff push
WORCESTER — Enter Sandlin. After making his Triple-A debut as a starting pitcher on Aug. 1, Red Sox pitching prospect David Sandlin is shifting to the bullpen. The Red Sox, happy with Sandlin's performance as a starter in his second year with the organization, decided to start preparing the hard-throwing right-hander for a relief role with Worcester. If all goes well for Sandlin, there's potential for a promotion to Boston to help the Red Sox with their playoff push. 'We want to explore that and see,' WooSox manager Chad Tracy said, 'and at least get him ready to do that if that was to be an option.' 'Anything I can do to help the big-league team,' Sandlin told the T&G prior to the WooSox' game Tuesday. 'So, we'll see how it goes moving forward.' And fans didn't have to wait long to see Sandlin pitch in relief. On Tuesday, the 24-year-old righty entered the WooSox' game in the fifth inning. Sandlin allowed three hits, two runs and struck out three across 1⅓ innings of work and picked up his second win in as many appearances in Worcester's 10-6 victory over the Buffalo Bisons. Acquired by the Boston Red Sox on Feb. 17, 2024, in a trade with the Kansas City Royals for pitcher John Schreiber (who ironically pitched in relief for the Royals against the Red Sox Tuesday night), Sandlin threw 33 pitches (22 for strikes) and topped out at 98.4 mph on his four-seam fastball. 'For the first one, it was not bad,' Tracy said. 'All of these initial ones are going to be a lot of learning for him. Not just on the mound but warming up, and whose coming up and which pitch (does he) need to dial in here. All that stuff is going to be good for him as he goes through this.' Following his promotion from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on July 29, Sandlin started for the WooSox on Friday at Polar Park. He pitched five innings, giving up four hits, one run and one walk while striking out four to pick up his first Triple-A win in Worcester's 5-1 victory over Lehigh Valley at Polar Park. Asked Tuesday before his first relief appearance in AAA, Sandlin was satisfied with his first outing with the WooSox. 'It was really good,' he told the T&G. '(I) limited hard contact, limited runs, limited baserunners, got in the zone and got ahead. So, I couldn't really be upset with it.' 'It was awesome,' Tracy added. Four days later, Tracy outlined a plan for getting Sandlin used to a role in the bullpen that at first would include a few bulk outings and then be whittled down to one inning each — and then ultimately be unscheduled. 'It's just this slow progression of getting him used to doing that,' Tracy said. Sandlin will have to get used to being a reliever for the time being in Worcester. But for the man whose walk-up song is 'Enter Sandman' by Metallica, a la former New York Yankees reliever Mariano Rivera, the proposition of helping Boston down the stretch — by entering from the bullpen — is an exciting one. 'Especially when the team's winning like they are right now, making the push for the playoffs,' Sandlin said. 'So that'd be really exciting to get up there and help those guys.' —Contact Tommy Cassell at tcassell@ Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44. This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Boston Red Sox move David Sandlin to bullpen with Triple-A Worcester


Newsweek
4 days ago
- Sport
- Newsweek
Red Sox Make Major Position Change Decision Perhaps With Eye on Postseason
Based on facts, either observed and verified firsthand by the reporter, or reported and verified from knowledgeable sources. Newsweek AI is in beta. Translations may contain inaccuracies—please refer to the original content. The Boston Red Sox would be in the postseason if the season ended Wednesday, and they're starting to make decisions that can help them gear up for their final stretch before October. David Sandlin is the Red Sox's No. 11 prospect and the team's No. 5 pitching prospect, acquired in the trade that sent John Schreiber to Kansas City. Sandlin was recently promoted to Triple-A and has traditionally been used as a starter. However, despite starting in his Triple-A debut, he is being moved into a relief role, according to the Worcester Telegram and Gazette's Tommy Cassell. FORT MYERS, FLORIDA - MARCH 14: David Sandlin #20 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during an exhibition game against the Minnesota Twins at JetBlue Park at Fenway South on March 14, 2025 in Fort... FORT MYERS, FLORIDA - MARCH 14: David Sandlin #20 of the Boston Red Sox pitches during an exhibition game against the Minnesota Twins at JetBlue Park at Fenway South on March 14, 2025 in Fort Myers, Florida. More Maddie Malhotra/Boston"Hearing David Sandlin will be used in a relief role with the Worcester Red Sox (he started for the WooSox in his Triple-A debut last week) as a possible way to prepare him for a playoff push with the Boston Red Sox," Cassell wrote on X. Sandlin appeared out of the bullpen on August 5. He gave up two earned runs in 1 1/3 innings of work. Overall, he has a 3.65 ERA on the season. He could be used as a multi-inning guy out of the bullpen down the stretch if the Red Sox like what they see from him in Triple-A. Chris Hatfield confirmed that Sandlin will be in a true relief role, and not piggybacking a starter. His fastball can touch triple digits, and he could be a solid arm for Alex Cora out of the bullpen. The 24-year-old has not made his big league debut yet, and MLB Pipeline lists his ETA as 2026. The Red Sox could give him a chance in September to see if he can provide value in October. More MLB: Yankees' Aaron Boone Offers Odd Explanation for Sticking With Devin Williams in Loss
Yahoo
12-06-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Red Sox prospect (up to 99 mph in 7 shutout innings) wins league's Pitcher of Week
Boston Red Sox prospect David Sandlin was named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week. The 24-year-old's fastball was between 95-99 mph during his seven shutout innings for Double-A Portland against Altoona on Thursday. He allowed three hits and one walk while striking out eight. Advertisement It was registered as a complete game shutout because the game went only 7 innings as part of a doubleheader that day. Sandlin has thrown 12 scoreless innings over his past two outings, giving up eight hits and one walk while striking out 14. The Red Sox acquired the fireballer — who topped out at 100.4 mph last season — from the Royals in February 2024 for right-handed reliever John Schreiber. Baseball America ranked Sandlin the Red Sox' No. 7 prospect entering 2025 and their No. 2 pitching prospect behind righty Luis Perales. MassLive ranked Sandlin No. 7 on its Top 25 Red Sox prospect list entering 2025. More On Red Sox Prospects Read the original article on MassLive.