Sea Dogs Announce 2022 Roster

Portland, Maine – The Portland Sea Dogs, in conjunction with the Boston Red Sox, announce the roster for the 2022 season which includes five of the top 30 prospects in the Red Sox system and 16 returning players from 2021. Opening Day is Friday, April 8th against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Hadlock Field.

Red Sox No. 5 prospect and top pitching prospect RHP Brayan Bello was promoted to Portland in 2021 after going 5-0 with a 2.27 ERA with the Greenville Drive. Bello made 15 starts with the Sea Dogs and finished his time in Portland with a 2-3 record and 4.66 ERA while recording 87 strikeouts in his 63.2 innings.

LHP Brandon Walter will make his Double-A debut with the Sea Dogs after splitting time between the Greenville Drive and Salem Red Sox in 2021. He finished the season 5-4 with a 2.92 ERA starting 14 games and appearing in 25. Walter is the No. 9 prospect in the Red Sox system and was drafted in the 26th round of the 2019 MLB Draft out of the University of Delaware.

LHP Chris Murphy was named Double-A Northeast League Pitcher of the week twice in 2021 with the Sea Dogs. The No. 11 prospect was promoted to Portland on July 31st and made six starts for the Sea Dogs. He held opposing hitters to a .242 batting average and struck out 47 batters in 33.0 innings.

LHP Jay Groome was the 12th overall pick in the 2016 MLB Draft and appeared in three games for the Sea Dogs in 2021. The No. 12 prospect finished his Double-A debut season strong with a 2-0 record and 2.30 ERA. He fanned 26 hitters in 15.2 innings while walking just four batters.

Infielder Christian Koss is ranked as the No. 27 prospect after his 2021 campaign with Greenville. Through 104 games, he hit .271 with 18 doubles, seven triples and 15 home runs while driving in 55 runs. Koss was acquired in a trade with the Colorado Rockies for Yoan Aybar on December 3, 2020.

Newly acquired infielder David Hamilton will make his Red Sox organizational debut with Portland. Hamilton was acquired by the Red Sox from Milwaukee with Jackie Bradley Jr. and Alex Binelas for Hunter Renfroe in 2021. He impressed on the basepaths in 2021, having the fifth-most stolen bases and third-most triples in all levels of Minor League Baseball.

In the outfield, 2021 Sea Dogs Pedro Castellanos and Wil Dalton return while Tyler Dearden and Isranel Wilson will make their debuts. Dearden was named MiLB.com Organizational All-Star in 2021 after leading Greenville in home runs (24). Signed as a free agent in 2022, Wilson spent 2021 with the Rocket City Trash Pandas (AA – Los Angeles Angels) and was also named a MiLB.com Organizational All-Star. He hit .247 with eight doubles and 21 home runs.

16 players return to Portland from past seasons: Pitchers Brayan Bello, Frank German, Jay Groome, Joan Martinez, Chris Murphy, Andrew Politi, Victor Santos, and Jake Thompson, catchers Kole Cottam and Oscar Rangel and infielders Cameron Cannon, Hudson Potts, Tyreque Reed and Nick Sogard. As well as outfielders Pedro Castellanos and Wil Dalton.

Breakdown by how acquired: 13 players drafted by the Red Sox, eight signed as free agents, seven acquired in trades, and one taken in the Rule Five Draft.

The full roster can be found here.

Pitchers: Brayan Bello, Zach Bryant, Frank German, Darin Gilles, Rio Gomez, Jay Groome, Joan Martinez, Oddanier Mosqueda, Chris Murphy, Brandan Nail, Andrew Politi, Victor Santos, Chase Shugart, Dylan Spacke, Jake Thompson, Jake Wallace, Brandon Walter

Catchers: Kole Cottam, Elih Marrero, Oscar Rangel

Infielders: Cameron Cannon, David Hamilton, Brandon Howlett, Christian Koss, Hudson Potts, Tyreque Reed, Nick Sogard

Outfielders: Pedro Castellanos, Wil Dalton, Tyler Dearden, Devlin Granberg, Isranel Wilson

Manager Chad Epperson begins his first year as Portland’s Manager after spending the last 12 years as the Catching Coordinator for the Red Sox. Epperson is joined by Pitching Coach Lance Carter (2nd year), Hitting Coach Doug Clark (1st year), Development Coach Katie Krall (1st year), Coach Chris Hess (1st year), Trainer Nick Kuchwara (1st year) and Strength Coach Joe Hudson (1st year).

The Sea Dogs open the 2022 season on Friday, April 8th at 6:00pm against the New Hampshire Fisher Cats at Hadlock Field. Tickets for May Sea Dogs’ games are available and can be purchased online at seadogs.com or by calling the Sea Dogs Ticket Office at 207-879-9500.