We are excited to announce our roster for the 2022 season! The best and brightest ball players from across the country will make their way to Cape Cod to hone and develop their skills over the course of the summer. Please join us in welcoming your 2022 Yarmouth-Dennis Red Sox!
PITCHERS
Grant Taylor — Grant Taylor comes to Y-D after wrapping up his third season at Washington State. This past spring, he tied for the team lead with 71 strikeouts in 71.1 innings pitched. In his final start of the season, Taylor tossed a complete game shutout against Arizona State, allowing just two hits. In the 2021 season, the 6’4 right-hander pitched to a 3.04 ERA over 26.2 innings. On top of playing baseball for the Cougars, Taylor is also pursuing a construction engineering degree.
Matt Kavanaugh – Matt Kavanaugh is a 6’4 southpaw redshirt sophomore joining the Y-D squad from his home state of Florida, where he plays at Nova Southeastern University. In his first two seasons, Kavanaugh kept hitters off the base paths; he allowed 0 hits in an appearance more often than he allowed 2+ hits. Kavanaugh held a 0.86 WHIP through his first 2 complete seasons, with an 11.86 K/9 during that time. He went 3-0 on the 2022 season with a 3.38 ERA in 24 innings of work. Through those 24 innings, Kavanaugh picked up 27 strikeouts.
Owen Hackman – Owen Hackman comes to Y-D from Loyola Marymount University in California. As a relief pitcher, he has greatly improved in his sophomore season, his ERA dropping from 5.95 in 2021 to 2.68 this season. Hackman also more than halved his WHIP from 2.847 to 1.008. In his 43.2 innings of work this season, striking out 51 and giving up only 4 homeruns. He now holds a 3-2 record on Loyola Marymount’s season coming to the CCBL.
Bryce Robison – The former 12th ranked player from the 2019 High School class in the state of Nevada, Bryce Robinson has lived up to the hype. As a true Freshman, Robison appeared in 7 games, pitching 13.2 innings, allowing only 2 runs on 8 hits while striking out 10. The BYU coaching staff then decided to have Bryce work as both a starter and reliever, a tough ask for any pitcher. With that role, Robison shined, posting a 7-2 record with a 3.78 ERA in 64.1 innings in 6 starts, and 17 relief appearances. Bryce is stepping up once again this season. He is 5-0 with a 2.48 ERA in 3 starts and 9 relief appearances, with a 6.25 K/BB ratio, limiting the opponents’ batting average to an impressive .223.
Luke Jewett – The former 67th ranked right-handed pitcher in the 2021 High School National Class, Luke Jewett has been an immediate difference for 13th ranked team in Division 1, UCLA. Of all bullpen arms, Luke Jewett ranks second in appearances with 16. In those 16 appearances, Jewett has a 3.57 ERA and a 1.24 WHIP, allowing no runs in 12 of the 16 appearances. His pitching arsenal is highlighted by a low-90’s Fastball, a “high action changeup”, and a sharp breaking ball. Jewett will garner attention during the Pac-12 award season but has already been recognized as Two-Time Preseason Underclass All-American in both 2020 and 2021, and Top Prospect Team at Perfect Game National Showcase·Area Code Games participant.
Connor Markl – An elite left-handed pitcher from Grand Canyon University, Connor Markl fills up the zone, boasting a 4.63 K/BB rate in 36.0 innings. In a dominant outing against Stanford, the sophomore put up 10 strikeouts and 1 walk in 6.0 innings pitched, tied for his longest appearance of the 2022 season. Markl’s control is not only a key aspect of his success, but also an integral part of the GCU pitching philosophy, which in part looks like: less than 1 walk per 3 innings, more than 62% strikes and 65% first pitch strikes. Markl’s success rate in these three metrics is 91.7%, a mark good enough for the coaching staff to deem Connor Markl the ace.
Ivran Romero – In his first college appearance, Ivran Romero threw a scoreless 1-2-3 inning. That was just the beginning for the rookie, as he proceeded to string along 19 more consecutive scoreless innings to start his career. It would be the longest stretch to start a career in the 21st century for the University of San Diego. Romero finished the year with a 3-1 record to go along with a 3.14 ERA and 49 strikeouts in 43 innings though 19 relief appearances and one start. In his sophomore campaign, Ivran has kept the hitters at bay. He holds a 1-1 record with a 2.25 ERA in 11 appearances out of the bullpen, two of which were saves. Y-D is excited to have this sophomore join us for the summer.
Dylan Ray – 6’4, 230-pound right-handed pitcher Dylan Ray uses his strong frame to his advantage. Through 14.1 innings for the University of Alabama, Ray has 27 Strikeouts, good enough for a 16.96 K/9, which is in the top 1% of all qualified pitchers at the D1 level. The size, strikeout numbers, and grit has led Alabama Head Coach Brad Bohannon to say this about Dylan, “He’s a guy that we’re really counting on…He can run his fastball up to 95 and he’s got a really good breaking ball and a good changeup, and he throws a ton of strikes.” Ray missed his True Freshman season due to a UCL tear and is now back and ready for a strong summer with the Y-D squad.
Shaun Gamelin – If you are looking for a dominant pitching season at the NCAA level, look no further than Y-D’s Shaun Gamelin in 2022. In 8.1 innings of work, Gamelin has struck out 20 batters, an 80% strikeout rate. In Shaun’s 9 appearances so far this season, he has gone 1-2-3 with 3 strikeouts 4 times. More incredibly, from March 15 through April 12, Gamelin allowed a grand total of 0 baserunners – no walk or hits–while striking out 83% of the hitters he faced during that span. To add to the madness, Gamelin has not pitched in a game that Rhode Island College has lost this season. Of course, Gamelin has added trophies to his windowsill over the course of his career, including First Team All-Little East in both 2020 and 2021, and Team All-New England in 2021.
Zach Veen – A 6’0 lefty from Point Loma Nazarene University, Zach Veen comes to Y-D after a sensational sophomore season. Veen carried a sparkling 1.38 ERA and 0.48 WHIP into the NCAA Division II National Championships, where the Sea Lions are hunting for a national title. He struck out 54 batters in 39 innings during the regular season, and has continued to put up strong performances on the mound through the Sea Lions’ postseason run. A second-team Division II All-American, Veen entered the National Championships with a perfect 5-0 record and six saves.
Kris Bow – A 6’4 right-handed hurler, Kris Bow excelled this past season for the College of Southern Nevada. Bow was named the NJCAA Region 18 Relief Pitcher of the Year for 2022, ending the year with a 2.16 ERA while working both as a starter and out of the bullpen for the Coyotes. He struck out 64 opposing batters in 41.2 innings on the mound. Bow excelled at limiting damage — he allowed just one home run and seven total extra-base hits all season. The big righty appeared in key spots all year for the Coyotes, earning five saves while also starting Southern Nevada’s first playoff game against Southern Idaho.
Eric Yost – Yost returns to the Red Sox after making eight appearances for Y-D last summer. He struck out 14 batters in 14 innings for the Sox. At the college level, Yost has played the last two seasons at Northeastern. After operating mostly out of the bullpen in his freshman season, Yost worked his way into the starting rotation this past spring. He finished the year with the third-best ERA in the CAA (2.48), working 61.2 innings for the Huskies and striking out 58. The 6’1 righty earned All-CAA Honorable Mention and All-New England Second Team honors, and was an All-CAA Second Team selection in 2021.
Bryce Collins – After missing the previous two seasons due to injury, Bryce Collins finally got the chance to pitch again for LSU this spring. He excelled for the Tigers, pitching to a 3.62 ERA over 32.1 innings. Collins struck out 37 batters this season as well. He spent his freshman season in 2019 at Arizona. Collins was drafted in the 39th round by the Minnesota Twins in 2018, but chose to go to college instead.
Jared Lyons – Another Y-D returner, Lyons comes back after pitching in three games for the Red Sox last summer. He pitched 15 innings with a 2.40 ERA, and struck out 16. Lyons wrapped up his fourth college season with the George Mason Patriots this past spring, pitching 80.2 innings and striking out 65. In the 2021 season, opponents hit just .191 against the 6’1 right-hander. Watch out for him at the plate, too. In his lone at-bat of the 2022 season, Lyons hit a walk-off home run against Saint Louis.
Bayden Root – Root transferred to Oklahoma State for the 2022 season, and he struck out 30 in 26 innings for the Cowboys. The 6’2 right-hander spent the prior three seasons with the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Big Ten, amassing 67.2 innings pitched over his Ohio State career. In the summer of 2019, Root pitched to a 4.32 ERA for Kokomo in the Northwoods League. His father, Derek, was an Astros draft pick and played seven years in the MLB.
Conner Thurman – A Cape League returner who made four appearances with the Orleans Firebirds last summer, Thurman joins fellow San Diego Toreros Chase Meidroth, Jack Costello, and Ivran Romero with Y-D. Thurman was named a Freshman All-American in 2020 after finishing first in the WCC in wins as the teams closer. Thurman enjoys working with kids with special needs and has spent time with the Miracle League and the Best Buddies Program.
INFIELD/OUTFIELD
Michael Boeve – Michael Boeve, the former #1 ranked third baseman in the state of Nebraska has been an everyday starter from his first day at The University of Nebraska Omaha. In his freshman season, he led the team among all qualified starters, batting .317, driving in 29 runs in a team-high 47 games. In his sophomore season, Boeve leads his team in almost every major offensive category- slugging percentage, OPS, doubles, total bases, BB/K%, OBP, homeruns, batting average, stolen bases – while paving the way for the Summit League. The lefty batter and right-handed thrower will make his Cape League debut with Y-D this summer.
Homer Bush Jr. – Homer Bush Jr. brings elite speed, standout defensive glove, and proven results in the box to the Y-D squad. A sophomore everyday starter for Grand Canyon University, Bush Jr. is hitting .287 while leading the team in walks and coming in second in stolen bases. Perfect Game ranked Homer as the 4th ranked outfielder in the State of Texas for the class of 2020. That same year, Baseball Factory scouts praised the young up-and-comer: “His actions are very natural at the plate, in the field and on the bases”. Being a highly touted prospect as well as a “natural” is par for the course for Homer Bush Jr. His father, Homer Bush, was a career .286 hitter across a 7 season MLB career.
Jonathon Long – There are few players on the Cape this Summer with a baseball journey like Jonathon Long. After his senior season of High School, Jonathon was relatively unrecruited, and ended up at Long Beach State where he walked-on as a freshman. That Freshman year, Jonathon went from a walk-on that wasn’t guaranteed to make the Varsity team, to the everyday starter at third base. That season, Jonathon slashed .341/.410/1.001 with only 25 strikeouts compared with 11 walks. After his breakout freshman season, Coach Valenzuela decided to give “Jonny” a scholarship for his final 3 seasons.
Jack Costello – As a Freshman at the University of San Diego, Jack Costello played well above his experience. Costello finished the season with the longest consecutive game hit streak (12) in the West Coast Conference and had an impressive 17 multi-hit games to go along with it. In total, Costello finished his freshman campaign slashing .338/.402/.892 to go along with an impressive strikeout rate of just 9%. These numbers were good enough for Costello to be recognized as All-WCC Freshman Team, All-WCC Honorable mention and Collegiate Baseball Freshman All-American. Now in his sophomore season, Costello has kept pace excelling as an everyday starter for the Toreros, slashing .328/.393/.857. The sophomore outfielder has gained the attention of professional teams and is slated to be a high-value draft pick for the 2023 MLB draft.
Jordan Thompson – Jordan Thompson started 61 games for LSU as a Freshman, where he slashed .250/.324/.716 with 8 homeruns. No homerun in his career was more theatrical than his Walk-off homerun against Oklahoma this season; Bottom of the 11th, 2-1 count, in the Houston Astro’s Minute Maid Park, live on ESPN, Thompson got a hold of one and ended the game, bat-flip and all. Thompson is having a great start to the 2022 season, with all his batting statistics taking a jump, he’s currently slashing .301/.422/.884. Thompson has racked up some impressive awards from both his high school days and now in the SEC.
Cole Carrigg – Over the course of a season, Cole Carrigg will gear up to catch, turn double plays up the middle, make a homerun robbing catch in the outfield, and he’ll even get up on the mound where he can throw over 90 MPH. As a Freshman, Carrigg started 33 games from 5 different positions, slashed .270/.406/.847 with a 1.05 K/BB rate, as well as posting a 0.00 ERA in 2 appearances on the mound. As if playing every position wasn’t enough, Carrigg is also a switch hitter. Coming up clutch was part of the formula for success in Cole’s freshman season, recording a 91% success rate with runners at third with less than two outs, delivering 10 RBI in 11 chances.
Hunter Haas – A sophomore from the Arizona State University, Hunter Haas rejoins the Y-D Red Sox for his second summer. In 2021, Hunter Haas had one of the better freshman seasons for any player at the Division 1 level. While being an everyday starter, primarily at the hot corner, Haas slashed .304/.371/.773 to go along with 12 stolen bases and only 25 strikeouts in 55 games in the highly regarded Pac-12. Haas had 22 multi-hit games including a streak of 7 consecutive games with multiple base-hits. While his bat was powerful, his glovework garnered its own attention; he was Pac-12 All-Defensive Team, ABCA/Rawlings Gold Glove Finalist (3B) and more. You can’t mention Hunter Haas without mentioning the word clutch. Haas knocked in the go-ahead or walk-off RBI seven times in ASU’s 33 wins, he also hit .406 on the season with runners in scoring position.
Pascanel Ferreras – The former 5th ranked shortstop in the 2020 high school class from the state of Georgia, Pascanel Ferreras returns to the Y-D squad for his second summer on the Cape. After his summer 2021 success for Y-D, Pascanel garnered the attention of the press and piled up many awards for the 2022 season including Southern Conference Preseason Player of the Year, Preseason First-Team All-SoCon, and Preseason Third-Team All-America. To follow up the impressive preseason nominations, Pascanel punished pitchers this season, slashing .362/.443/.672 while starting every game for Western Carolina. For the Southern Conference, Pascanel ranks 6th in hits, 8th in RBIs, and 9th in total bases.
Gunner Gouldsmith – A 5’7 infielder from Sacramento State, Gunner Gouldsmith adds to the list of west coast natives calling Cape Cod their home this summer. The switch hitter from Reno, Nevada made 23 starts in 2021 for WSU, hitting .281 with 16 hits and 5 RBI. He would go on to leave WSU baseball after the conclusion of the season.
Luke Franzoni – The second-team All-American and Big East Player of the Year joins the Red Sox from Xavier, where he slugged 29 home runs and drove in 78 runs. He broke the previous Xavier record by a whopping 13 home runs. The slugger added around 20 pounds of muscle after building a home gym with his brother during the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic, which now shows on the field. He can also hit for average, slashing .354/.485/.821 this past college season.
Chase Meidroth – A member of the WCC All-Conference first team, Meidroth showed tremendous strides of improvement in his sophomore season at San Diego, improving his batting average from .222 to .329. He reached base in 44 of his 49 regular season games, including 26 straight games at one point in the season. He also showed signs of power, hitting 10 home runs, driving in 47 and posting a .544 slugging percentage.
Caden Connor – The 2021 second team Big-West teamer played in every game for Cal State Fullerton in 2022 can play all three outfield positions and first base. He posted a .327 average and a .414 on-base percentage. He posted eight more extra-base hits his junior season, including four home runs after not hitting one his sophomore season.
CATCHERS
Fernando Gonzalez – A Y-D Red-Sox returner, this sophomore hails from Panama City, Panama. Fernando Gonzalez was a defensive catcher when he signed with the University of Georgia. Gonzalez set the school record with a 1.000 fielding percentage in 330 total chances. His offensive prowess also showed up for the Bulldogs, slashing .254/.275/.343 across 40 games in the fiercely competitive SEC. Gonzalez has shown himself to be a very versatile player, having experience at third base, shortstop and on the mound in high school in addition to his home behind the plate.
Luke Shliger – Luke Shliger joins Y-D fresh off one of the most impressive NCAA seasons by a catcher in 2022. As a sophomore, Shliger is leading the Maryland University baseball team to their best record in school history and back-to-back NCAA Regionals appearances for only the third time in school history. He has done so by being the everyday catcher, slashing. 331/.486/1.042, stealing 13 bases (Which is second on the team and top 10 in the country for a catcher), while also throwing out 11 runners from behind the plate. His .486 OBP ranks top 10 Division 1 catchers. Shliger also leads the Big Ten in walks. In addition to his season-long successes, Shliger’s most notable moment came back in late April when he caught the 20th Perfect Game in D1 Baseball History.
