Minor League Baseball

Boston Red Sox Prospects Matt Duffy, Cole Tolbert to Undergo Tommy John Surgery

Matt Duffy and Cole Tolbert, a pair of recent Boston Red Sox draft picks who finished 2024 in Single-A, are set to undergo Tommy John surgery and miss the entire 2025 season.

Sam Connon

St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A detail view of Boston Red Sox hats and gloves at Tropicana Field.
St. Petersburg, FL, USA; A detail view of Boston Red Sox hats and gloves at Tropicana Field. / Kim Klement-Imagn Images
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The lower levels of the Boston Red Sox's farm system just took a pretty substantial hit.

According to Beyond the Monster's Andrew Parker, pitching prospect Matt Duffy suffered a full UCL tear in his right elbow and will undergo Tommy John surgery on March 5. That same day, fellow pitching prospect Cole Tolbert will have a Tommy John procedure of his own after also tearing his UCL.

As a result, both right-handers are expected to miss the entire 2025 season.

Duffy, 23, and Tolbert, 22, both finished 2024 with Single-A Salem.

Duffy, who was set to transfer from Canisius College to South Carolina, wound up going to the Red Sox in the fourth round of the 2023 MLB Draft. The Canadian went 4-5 with a 2.83 ERA, 1.095 WHIP and 9.1 strikeouts per nine innings across 21 starts and one relief appearance in 2024 – his first full season as a pro.

Boston selected Tolbert in the 18th round of the 2024 MLB Draft, just before he could complete his transfer from Ole Miss to Troy. He tossed just 11.1 innings as a pro last summer, going 0-1 with a 5.56 ERA, 1.500 WHIP and 11.1 strikeouts per nine innings.

Neither Duffy nor Tolbert are ranked as a top-60 prospect in Boston's farm system by SoxProspects.com. Still, Duffy especially had displayed promise and was expected to ascend to the higher levels of the minors in short order.

Related MiLB Stories

  • HURD TO MISS 2025: New York will be without another top pitching prospect for the season, as 2024 draft pick Thatcher Hurd is set to undergo Tommy John surgery. CLICK HERE
  • SIMPSON SHOWS OFF WHEELS: Before legging out an infield single, Rays prospect Chandler Simpson made an incredible diving catch out in center field. CLICK HERE
  • MOORE VYING FOR 3B JOB: With Anthony Rendon out and Yoán Moncada banged up, the Angels are giving 2024 first round pick Christian Moore a shot at third base. CLICK HERE

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Sam Connon
SAM CONNON

Sam Connon is a staff writer for “Minor League Baseball on SI’’ and other "On SI'' baseball sites. He previously covered UCLA Athletics for “UCLA on SI’’ and won awards from the College Media Association and Society of Professional Journalists. Connon also wrote for “New England Patriots on SI’’ and was on the Patriots and Boston Red Sox beats at Prime Time Sports Talk. Follow Sam on Twitter @SamConnon.

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