Red Sox’ David Sandlin named Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for second time this season

Red Sox pitching prospect David Sandlin has been named the Eastern League Pitcher of the Week for the week of June 16-22, Minor League Baseball announced on Monday.

Sandlin takes home the honor for the second time this season (he first did so for the week of May 26-June 1) after starting Double-A Portland’s combined no-hitter against Akron at Hadlock Field on Sunday afternoon. The 24-year-old right-hander struck out nine and walked three over six scoreless, no-hit innings. Relievers Christopher Troye and Jonathan Brand followed his lead for the final three frames as the Sea Dogs blanked the RubberDucks, 10-0.

Finishing with 94 pitches (59 strikes), Sandlin induced a game-high 14 swings-and-misses en route to improving to 4-3 on the year. He now sports a 3.90 ERA (3.14 FIP) with 62 strikeouts to 19 walks through 12 outings (11 starts) spanning a staff-leading 60 innings for Portland this season. Opposing hitters have batted .230 against him.

Among 21 qualified pitchers in the Eastern League, Sandlin ranks second in FIP, fifth in strikeout rate (25.1 percent), sixth in xFIP (3.65) and swinging-strike rate (12.7 percent), seventh in strikeouts per nine innings (9.30), WHIP (1.18), and line-drive rate (21.3 percent), eighth in walks per nine innings (2.85) and walk rate (7.7 percent), and ninth in batting average against, per FanGraphs.

Originally acquired from the Royals for reliever John Schreiber in February 2024, Sandlin is currently regarded by Baseball America as the Red Sox’ No. 11 prospect, which places seventh among pitchers in the organization. Elsewhere, MLB Pipeline has the former 2022 11th-round draft selection out of Oklahoma ranked as the No. 9 prospect in Boston’s farm system, while SoxProspects.com has him at No. 13.

Standing at a sturdy 6-foot-4 and 215 pounds, Sandlin has primarily operated with a four- to five-pitch mix this season. The athletic righty regularly averages 94-97 mph with his fastball (reached 98.5 mph on Sunday) that has touched triple digits in the past. He has also incorporated a 90-93 mph gyro slider, an 85-88 mph sweeper, an 88-91 mph splitter, and a 77-81 mph curveball into his diverse arsenal.

Sandlin, who does not turn 25 until next February, can become Rule 5-eligible for the first time in his professional career this winter if he is not added to Boston’s 40-man roster by the November protection deadline. Taking that into account, it would not be surprising if he were to receive a promotion to Triple-A Worcester sooner rather than later as the Red Sox continue to evaluate his future role in the organization.