The Boston Red Sox played a doubleheader against the St. Louis Cardinals on April 6, thanks to a Saturday rainout. That meant they were allowed to add a 27th man to the roster. They chose right-handed top pitching prospect Hunter Dobbins.
In a surprising twist, Dobbins made the start in Game 2, which was initially supposed to go to Sean Newcomb. Instead, Newcomb started Game 1, and Richard Fitts will start the opening game of Boston's first series against the Blue Jays on April 7. Dobbins' MLB debut came on primetime.
Dobbins induced a groundout of his first batter before allowing back-to-back doubles, leading to a run. He walked the next batter, and things seemed precarious early for the Texas native.
But a pickoff allowed Dobbins to breathe before he fanned Alec Burleson for his first career K to end the inning. The ESPN cameras caught his mom crying tears of joy in the stands when he collected his first strikeout, and Red Sox fans everywhere may have done the same.
Top Red Sox pitching prospect Hunter Dobbins impresses in major league debut
Hunter Dobbins with the W in his big league debut! pic.twitter.com/fO8pU0Ddx5
— Red Sox (@RedSox) April 7, 2025
The Red Sox offense picked Dobbins up and immediately tied the game up in the bottom of the first (Wilyer Abreu doing Wilyer Abreu things). Dobbins then tore through the second inning three up, three down with two strikeouts. He worked around some trouble in the third and allowed another run in the fourth (a fielding mishap didn't help his case).
The good news was that Boston's offense exploded. The Sox scored five runs in the second inning and four more in the third inning. Dobbins was spotted 10 runs, capped off by an Alex Bregman three-run blast, and he took advantage. to pick up his first career win.
Dobbins' fastball was regularly sitting around 95 miles per hour, his sweeper looked great, and the splinker garnered plenty of praise. It feels like a great time to remind everyone that Dobbins didn't start using that splinker until last season. He's still evolving and will continue to get better.
Funnily enough, this start will be rewarded by being sent back down to Triple-A. However, Dobbins proved that he was ready for the challenge of the major leagues. He'll be ready when he gets the call again.