Cup of Coffee: Sandoval rehabs in Worcester amid bevy of debuts

4/9 Cup of Coffee: It was a welcoming day in the Boston organization, as three of the four starters were making their first appearances in the Red Sox system. Patrick Sandval began his rehab assignment for Worcester after the former Angel spent all of 2025 on the shelf following elbow surgery. Newly-acquired righty Gage Ziehl was on the bump for Portland. A trio of debuting arms, all from the SEC, were on assignment in Salem: LSU's Jake Mayers went first, followed by Texas A&M product Myles Patton and Brandon Neely (pictured) via the University of Florida. Salem and Worcester were able to greet their new companions with victories, while Portland dropped its contest. Greenville also fell on Wednesday as the system drew a split.

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Patrick Sandoval made his first professional appearance in 22 months as he begins his post-Tommy John rehab assignment. A pair of first inning errors (one of his own) led to three unearned runs in the first inning, but he settled in and threw two scoreless frames after that. Overall, Sandoval surrendered three hits across those three frams, walking and striking out three apiece. He was at 92 with his fastball and threw 62 pitches, 35 for strikes. Seth Martinez retired all eight batters he faced in relief. Reidis Sena and Devin Sweet battled shaky control, combining for seven free passes. Sweet vultured the winning decision, allowing a pair of inherited runners to score but getting credit after Worcester's three-run eighth. 

A patient approach once again paid off at the plate for Worcester as the lineup worked nine walks in addition to seven singles. Mickey Gasper went 1 for 2 and drew three of those walks, raising his early-season OBP to .548. Kristian Campbell and Mikey Romero drove in two runs apiece, while Vinny Capra had a hit, walk, and hit batsman. 

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It was a tough introduction to the organization for Portland starter Gage Ziehl, acquired over the offseason in the deal that sent David Sandlin to the White Sox. The 22-year-old righty allowed seven runs (five earned) on nine hits in 2 1/3. A combination of hard-hit balls, seeing-eye singles, and a pair of errors doomed Ziehl, who struck out five and did not issue a walk but saw batters reach base on 10 out of 12 balls in play. Michael Sansone did yeoman's work in bulk relief, going 5 1/3 innings and surrendering four runs (three earned). Catcher Drew Ehrhard was pressed into pitching duty for the final 1 1/3, striking out one batter on an Eephus pitch. The offense managed five hits, two of which came from Franklin Arias, who doubled, hit a sac fly, and drove in all three Sea Dogs runs. Ahbram Liendo was 2 for 4 with a triple and two runs scored, and Marvin Alcantara tripled for the other Portland knock.

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Greenville managed just one hit in the loss in Spartanburg, with Jack Winnay breaking up the no-hit bid with a one-out single in the sixth. Luis Cohen surrendered a pair of homers as he allowed four runs in 3 2/3 frames, striking out three and walking one. Alex Bouchard went 4 1/3 scoreless in his first appearance of the season, fanning one, walking one, and inducing five ground ball outs.

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Salem took its second straight in its inaugural matchup with the former Carolina Mudcats. Three of the RidgeYak hurlers were making their pro debuts. Starter Jake Mayers, Boston's ninth-round pick last July out of LSU, got the start. He surrendered two runs on three hits in three frames, striking out four against three walks. Seventh-round pick Myles Patton got credit for the win in his introduction to the pros Patton went three innings as well, allowing a run on two hits, with four strikeouts and four walks. Brandon Neely was the most impressive of the debuting arms, as the 2024 third-round was finally able to take the mound after missing all of 2025 with elbow soreness. Neely dominated, striking out five of the seven batters he faced in two hitless frames, with the only baserunner coming on an error. Harry Blum, the veteran of the group, recorded the save in his second pro outing. 

Avinson Pinto led the way at the plate with a 3-for-4 evening that included two doubles, a stolen base, an RBI, and a run scored. Andrews Opata tripled twice and was twice driven in by Ty Hodge. Hodge was 1 for 2 with a walk and his 6 for 13 (.462) with five RBI in four games.

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Player of the Day: The long-awaited professional debut of Brandon Neely went as well as could have hoped, with the 22-year-old former Florida Gator went two hitless innings, striking out five. Neely dropped into the third round after an uneven Junior campaign in which he posted a 5.13 ERA but struck out 108 batters in 79 innings in a swingman role. He was unable to debut last season because of elbow soreness that he was able to rehab rather than get surgery. He is currently ranked 49th in the system.