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Three summers ago, the Boston Red Sox drafted pitcher Cade Feeney out of North Dakota State. He would get close enough to the major leagues to pitch three spring training games in a Red Sox uniform, then split the 2026 season between Boston’s top two minor league affiliates.
Feeney’s baseball journey abruptly ended June 23, when his official transactions page listed him as voluntarily retired. The 24-year-old right-hander made his final appearance for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs just two days earlier.
MORE: Nationals’ World Series champion announces immediate retirement from MLB at 31
Feeney made 17 appearances in all with Portland this season, going 2-2 with a 5.86 ERA across 35.1 innings. He also made two appearances for Triple-A Worcester, including a spot start on May 15.
In two innings that day in Buffalo, Feeney allowed one run. He then returned to Portland, picked up a win and a save in nine appearances, and ostensibly decided to call it a career.
Feeney missed all of the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery with an internal brace.
“They reconstructed it and then put a brace over the top of it,” Feeney said of his right ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) on the To The Show We Go podcast. “So it’s kind of like the new hybrid they’ve been doing for the last couple of years.”
Healthy in 2026, he reported to the Red Sox’s minor league spring training camp, and saw action in three Grapefruit League games. Across 1.2 innings, he allowed four hits and three runs.
MORE: Red Sox veteran issues warning to teammates after Blue Jays sweep
A native of Bismarck, N.D., Feeney signed with Boston for an at-slot $150,000 out of college.
Armed with a mid-90s fastball, sweeper and changeup, Feeney was impressive in a 20-game season with the Greenville Drive in 2024.
That season, he ranked among the best pitchers in the South Atlantic League in WHIP (0.91) and opponents’ batting average (.220) while striking out one batter an inning.
At North Dakota State, Feeney was chosen to the All-Summit League First Team after going 6-5 with a 4.57 ERA in 14 starts.
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Feeney’s baseball journey abruptly ended June 23, when his official transactions page listed him as voluntarily retired. The 24-year-old right-hander made his final appearance for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs just two days earlier.
MORE: Nationals’ World Series champion announces immediate retirement from MLB at 31
Feeney made 17 appearances in all with Portland this season, going 2-2 with a 5.86 ERA across 35.1 innings. He also made two appearances for Triple-A Worcester, including a spot start on May 15.
In two innings that day in Buffalo, Feeney allowed one run. He then returned to Portland, picked up a win and a save in nine appearances, and ostensibly decided to call it a career.
Feeney missed all of the 2025 season after undergoing Tommy John surgery with an internal brace.
“They reconstructed it and then put a brace over the top of it,” Feeney said of his right ulnar collateral ligament (UCL) on the To The Show We Go podcast. “So it’s kind of like the new hybrid they’ve been doing for the last couple of years.”
Healthy in 2026, he reported to the Red Sox’s minor league spring training camp, and saw action in three Grapefruit League games. Across 1.2 innings, he allowed four hits and three runs.
MORE: Red Sox veteran issues warning to teammates after Blue Jays sweep
A native of Bismarck, N.D., Feeney signed with Boston for an at-slot $150,000 out of college.
Armed with a mid-90s fastball, sweeper and changeup, Feeney was impressive in a 20-game season with the Greenville Drive in 2024.
That season, he ranked among the best pitchers in the South Atlantic League in WHIP (0.91) and opponents’ batting average (.220) while striking out one batter an inning.
At North Dakota State, Feeney was chosen to the All-Summit League First Team after going 6-5 with a 4.57 ERA in 14 starts.
Continue reading...
