Boston Red Sox prospect Jay Groome was the 12th overall pick in the 2016 draft. He made three starts with Portland last season, striking out 26 in 15 2/3 innings and posting a 2-0 record with a 2.30 ERA. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer
Four of the top 12 prospects in the Boston Red Sox minor league system are expected to pitch at Hadlock Field this spring.
Right-hander Brayan Bello (rated Boston’s No. 5 prospect by MLB.com) and lefties Brandon Walter (No. 9), Chris Murphy (No. 11) and Jay Groome (No. 12) are among the 29 players listed on the 2022 Portland Sea Dogs roster, announced by the team on Tuesday.
The Sea Dogs are scheduled to open the season at 6 p.m. Friday at Hadlock against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats.
Bello and Groome are the only Sea Dogs players also on the Red Sox 40-man roster. Both earned promotions to Portland last season. Bello pitched in the All-Star Futures Game and made 15 starts with the Sea Dogs, striking out 87 batters in 63 2/3 innings while compiling a 2-3 record and 4.66 earned runs average.
Groome, the 12th overall pick in the 2016 draft, made three starts with Portland last summer. He struck out 26 in 15 2/3 innings and went 2-0 with a 2.30 ERA.
Walter was an unheralded draft pick (26th round in 2019 out of Delaware) but is coming off an impressive season (2.92 ERA in 25 appearances between Class A Salem and Greenville). He was named the organization’s Minor League Pitcher of the Year.
Murphy appeared in seven games for the 2021 Sea Dogs, starting six. He struck out 47 and walked 13 in 33 innings, compiling a 3-2 record and 5.45 ERA. Boston drafted him in the sixth round in 2019.
The rest of the Portland pitching staff includes returners Frank German, Rio Gomez, Joan Martinez, Andrew Politi, Victor Santos and Jake Thompson. Newcomers include Zach Bryant, Darin Gillies, Oddanier Mosqueda, Brendan Nail, Chase Shugart, Dylan Spacke and Jake Wallace.
Kole Cottam and Elih Marrero will share catching duties, with Oscar Rangel joining Thompson on the development list. The infield includes four returning players – Cameron Cannon, Hudson Potts, Tyreque Reed and Nick Sogard – along with Christian Koss and Brandon Howlett up from Greenville, and David Hamilton, who was part of the Jackie Bradley Jr. trade with Milwaukee.
Pedro Castellanos, Devlin Granberg and Wil Dalton return to the outfield, where they are joined by Tyler Dearden and Izzy Wilson.
Chad Epperson is the new Sea Dogs manager, with Lance Carter returning as pitching coach. Hitting coach Doug Clark is new, as is developmental coach Katie Krall and fourth coach Chris Hess, a Rhode Island native.
The injured list currently includes Gomez and Granberg.
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