Bryan Mata has long been fighting for a spot on the Boston Red Sox's roster, but injuries have always prevented his rise.
Mata was once heralded as one of the best pitching prospects in Boston's farm system, but his development was stifled every step of the way. The Red Sox even designated him for assignment after the 2024 season to make room on the 40-man roster to protect prospects from the Rule 5 Draft. But Mata quickly re-signed with Boston, and his big league debut may finally come in 2025.
The 25-year-old righty threw a 20-pitch live batting practice early in the week of March 2. According to Peter Abraham and Alex Speier of The Boston Globe, he fanned three batters, including Alex Bregman, and retired Rafael Devers on a fly ball to catch the eye of the Sox executives in attendance.
Mata hasn't appeared in a spring training game because he arrived to camp with a calf strain that has kept him slow-played. Abraham and Speier report that he's likely to begin the season in Triple-A, but his fastball was sitting at 97 miles per hour during the live BP — if he can stay healthy, he could be among Boston's best depth relief pitching options.
Former top pitching prospect Bryan Mata may finally make his Red Sox debut in 2025
Bryan Mata's Red Sox tenure has been marred by injuries since signing as an International Free Agent in 2016. Once a potential starter, he was moved to the bullpen due to an inability to stay healthy.
— SoxProspects.com (@SoxProspects) February 19, 2025
Injuries sidelined Mata for most of the 2024 season. He was designated for… pic.twitter.com/pkY8lI7opd
Mata signed with the Red Sox out of Venezuela in 2016 and posted four successful seasons in the minor leagues with an ERA between 2.80 and 3.74 each year. His long-term injury struggles began in 2021 when he missed the entire season and part of the 2022 slate after he underwent Tommy John surgery. The 2020 minor league season was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic, so the righty went quite some time without throwing in game action.
The former top prospect was limited to just 27 innings in 2023 due to a teres major strain, but he struggled in the few frames he did pitch. He clocked a 6.33 ERA with 30 walks and 28 strikeouts. He previously recorded strikeouts at a much higher rate. He logged a 1.85 ERA with 58 strikeouts in 48.2 innings during his stint in Double-A in 2022.
Despite the years of delays in Mata's development, the Red Sox are still high on him. Manager Alex Cora remained certain of his talent last season, and he still ranks in SoxProspects.com's top 60 prospects list. Staying healthy has been his biggest obstacle, but if he can post a full season, he could finally live up to his former top prospect hype.