The Red Sox selected Sandlin's contract from Triple-A Worcester on Tuesday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com reports.
Sandlin began 2025 at Double-A Portland and posted a 3.61 ERA and 1.18 WHIP across 82.1 innings before receiving a promotion to Worcester. The 24-year-old righty struggled upon arriving at Triple-A (7.61 ERA, 2.07 WHIP), but the Red Sox will give him a 40-man spot to ensure he remains with the organization past December's Rule 5 Draft. He is likely to report to Worcester to begin the 2026 season.
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Red Sox's David Sandlin: Struggling as reliever
Rotowire
Sandlin has a 6.75 ERA, 1.92 WHIP and 18:12 K:BB in 21.1 innings across 13 appearances for Triple-A Worcester.
Sandlin, who moved to the bullpen after getting promoted from Double-A Portland on July 29, has touched triple digits with his fastball in the past and averaged 97.7 mph while touching 99 mph with the pitch in his most recent appearance Thursday. He leans on his 92-mph cutter and two distinct sliders as his secondaries, with the sliders getting better results than the cutter. Sandlin's stock was trending up after he logged a 3.61 ERA, 1.18 WHIP and 17.5 K-BB% in 82.1 innings across 17 appearances at Double-A, but his control has abandoned him, perhaps in part due to the balls and strikes challenge system at Triple-A. Over his last six appearances, Sandlin has struck out six and walked seven over 9.2 innings, so he's unlikely to get a call to the major-league bullpen this year. Sandlin will presumably open 2026 in the Triple-A rotation, but his future may be in relief.
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Red Sox's David Sandlin: Fails to build up workload
Rotowire
Sandlin logged a 5.61 ERA, 1.44 WHIP and 32 strikeouts in 25.2 innings across eight starts for Double-A Portland.
Sandlin struck out 82 batters over 57.1 innings while splitting the season between High-A and Double-A. Eric Longenhagen of FanGraphs reports that Sandlin was limited by a forearm issue this season, and indeed, he didn't pitch between May 4 and June 15. Sandlin can touch 100 mph with his fastball and has a wicked slider, but he only logged five innings in a start once this year and will turn 24 in February.
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Red Sox's David Sandlin: Fully healthy entering spring
Rotowire
Sandlin sustained an oblique strain in July last year that cut short his season, but he's fully recovered heading into spring training, Jen McCaffery of The Athletic reports.
The Red Sox acquired Sandlin from the Royals on Saturday, and the organization feels the right-hander is on the rise, per chief baseball officer Craig Breslow. "We've seen the stuff take a pretty big step forward," Breslow said. "It was a combination of raw stuff, projection and a chance to maybe tweak the usage a little bit and improve performance." Sandlin was sharp when healthy in 2023, posting a 3.38 ERA and 33 percent strikeout rate in Low-A before a promotion to High-A. He made two starts for Quad Cities before the oblique injury. Sandlin, who turns 23 on Wednesday, experienced a jump in velocity, going from the low-90s in college to sitting at 95-97 mph during his first professional season. His repertoire also includes a slider, curve and a changeup that some evaluators feel is his best pitch, according to Julian McWilliams of the Boston Globe.
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Red Sox's David Sandlin: Shipped to Boston
Rotowire
The Royals traded Sandlin to the Red Sox on Saturday in exchange for John Schreiber, Jeff Passan of ESPN.com reports.
Sandlin spent time with the Royals' Single-A and High-A affiliates last season, logging a 3.51 ERA and 1.22 WHIP while striking out 88 batters across 66.2 total innings. The 22-year-old righty will likely return to High-A to begin the 2024 campaign with hopes of reaching Double-A Portland at some point in the summer.
