Who is he and where did he come from?
He’s Tyler Samaniego, and he has only a slightly easier name to pronounce than Jhostynxon “The Password” Garcia, whom he was traded for along with Johan Oviedo. Samaniego has not yet cracked a Major League roster, but his status as a lefty arm with a 98 mile per hour fastball on a roster of guys that are, well, not that, coupled with the fact that the Red Sox traded for him knowing they’d need to carry him on the 40-man roster, as Pittsburgh protected him from the Rule 5 draft, leads to some speculation that he’ll be cracking a Major League roster in 2026.
We’re not sure yet! He has some promising aspects to his game, though. Besides that fastball, his notable extension is surely a factor in his status as a prospect. And if that’s not enough, he also has finished with fewer than one strikeout an inning in the minors just once, in 2022 (and even then he finished with 8.84 K/9). He also has a great ground ball percentage and has allowed just nine home runs since being drafted in 2021 out of South Alabama.
He’s also a lefty — one of only five lefty pitchers with relief experience on the Red Sox’s 40-man roster, and the second-youngest of those four behind Payton Tolle. And he’s the only one — aside from certain 2026 closer Aroldis Chapman — to have been used as a closer at all in 2025. It’s not entirely comforting that he hasn’t pitched higher than Double-A yet, nor that he’s battled control issues for most of his time in the minors. But maybe he’s a late bloomer.
Show me a cool highlight.
Here are some of his more impressive pitches. Samaniego has a shot of reaching 100 with that fastball at some point in his career. You can definitely see, with that three quarter arm movement, why hitters struggle to take it out of the park.
What’s he doing in his picture up there?
I got nothing in the humor department for this one. I just want to point out how cool the throwing motion looks.
What’s his role on the 2026 Red Sox?
Given the lack of lefties currently on the Red Sox, it really wouldn’t shock me to see Samaniego make a good impression in spring training against some less seasoned bats and then eventually make somewhere in the neighborhood of 20-30 appearances if he’s solid in Triple-A. Think 2023 Chris Murphy for reference. How he performs around that time could be important to the condition the team finds themselves in come late September, especially if he can eat a few more innings than anticipated. If he’s used in any higher of a capacity than that, it may signal a failure on the part of analyzing the depth on the roster, including parts that have already departed for other pastures in 2026. But Samaniego has a perfect opportunity to develop things he already does really well, keep the walks down, and emerge as a viable arm down the stretch for a playoff contender.
