Red Sox pitching prospect Thad Ward leaves game early his second start in Arizona Fall League
On Monday night, Red Sox minor league pitcher Thad Ward made his second start of the Arizona Fall League. Ward lasted three innings before leaving the game with an injury.
The 25-year-old left the game with side discomfort, per WEEI’s Rob Bradford. There was no issues with his right throwing arm.
Ward surrendered four hits, gave up two runs, both of them earned, walked five and struck out two.
On a positive note, Ward saw his fastball velocity “up around 93 mph,” per MLB’s Jonathan Mayo.
The Florida native underwent Tommy John surgery back in 2021. Ward currently ranks as the Red Sox No. 15 prospect according to MLB Pipeline. He is currently ranked as the fourth-highest rated pitcher in the system.
Monday night was Ward’s second Arizona Fall League start. He is coming off and electric debut where he allowed two earned runs on four hits with a walk and seven strike outs in 4 2/3 innings pitching.
Ward looked dynamic last week with seven swing-and-misses, his fastball sat around 91-94 mph. His slider looked nasty, which is his best pitch in his arsenal.
Hopefully Ward’s injury isn’t a major setback for the right-handed hurler.
Coming off Tommy John surgery, Ward pitched in 13 games spread across four teams in the Red Sox system. He finished the year 0-2 with a 2.28 ERA, 66 strikeouts, 1.15 WHIP in 51 1/3 innings pitched.
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