Red Sox rookie-level affiliate wins Dominican Summer League championship

One of the Red Sox’ rookie-level Dominican Summer League affiliates celebrated winning a championship on Saturday afternoon.

DSL Red Sox Red defeated the DSL Angels, 6-0, in the third and final game of the Dominican Summer League Finals at the Sox’ Dominican Academy in El Toro de Guerra.

Four Red Sox Red pitchers combined for a two-hit shutout in Saturday’s finale. Jeison Payano got the start and was responsible for the first three innings. The 18-year-old right-hander issued three walks and struck out four without giving up a hit. Greider Colina followed with 1 2/3 additional scoreless frames before making way for Juan Henriquez.

Henriquez, another 18-year-old righty, surrendered both of the Angels’ hits while walking two and fanning a pair across 2 2/3 scoreless innings en route to notching his second winning decision of the DSL postseason. Gilbel Galvan put the finishing touches on an impressive day for the pitching staff by putting up one last zero in the top of the ninth.

On the other side of things, mid-season DSL All-Stars Anderson Fermin and Justin Gonzales were the driving forces for the Red Sox Red lineup. Fermin, leading off and starting in center field, went 3-for-5 with one run scored and one stolen base. Gonzales, serving as his side’s designated hitter, went 4-for-5 with an RBI double and two runs scored out of the three-hole.

Fermin and Gonzales, both 17, signed with the Red Sox as international free agents coming out of the Dominican Republic back in January. They received signing bonuses of $400,000 and $250,000, respectively.

Fermin, a switch-hitter, batted .293/.408/.337 with six doubles, one triple, 23 RBIs, 33 runs scored, 12 stolen bases, 35 walks, and 22 strikeouts in 49 regular season games (224 plate appearances). He made 39 starts in center field, one in left field, and eight at DH.

Gonzales, a right-handed hitter, slashed .320/.391/.517 with 11 doubles, four triples, five home runs, 29 RBIs, 29 runs scored, eight stolen bases, 19 walks, and 20 strikeouts in 47 regular season games (192 plate appearances). He made 31 starts at first base, 13 in right field, two in center field, and one at DH.

With a regular season record of 42-14, Red Sox Red won the DSL West by 4 1/2 games and went 6-1 in the postseason. DSL Red Sox Blue, Boston’s other Dominican Summer League affiliate, finished with a regular season record of 27-26 and did not qualify for the postseason.

Red Sox Red, meanwhile, swept DSL CLE Goryl (Guardians affiliate) in the quarterfinals and DSL Rangers Red in the semifinals on its way to the championship. It split the first two games of the best-of-three finals against the Angels before coming out on top on Saturday.

For the Red Sox as an organization, this is their first DSL title since 2016 and only their second since the Dominican Summer League was formed in 1985.