MINNEAPOLIS — The Minnesota Twins dealt struggling reliever Jorge Alcala to the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday in exchange for minor leaguer Andy Lugo.

The 29-year-old Alcala (0-2) has an 8.88 ERA in 22 appearances for the Twins this year. His final outing with Minnesota came Tuesday when he gave up five runs — four earned — in a 16-4 loss to Texas.

Alcala debuted with the Twins in 2019 and pitched in a career-high 59 games in 2021. After finishing the 2024 season with a 3.24 ERA in 54 relief appearances, he had five games this season in which he allowed at least three runs out of the bullpen.

Lugo, 21, was batting .265 with four home runs and 20 RBI in 44 games for High-A Greenville. He has played both the infield and outfield during his minor league tenure but has spent most of the 2025 season in the infield. He made 21 starts at first base and 16 at third base.

To make room for Alcala on its 40-man roster, Boston designated right-handed pitcher Brian Van Belle for assignment. Van Belle had not yet appeared in a major league game for the Red Sox this season after he was selected to the active roster on June 9.

Left-hander Joey Wentz will take Alcala’s spot on Minnesota’s 26-man roster. The Twins claimed Wentz off waivers from Pittsburgh on Wednesday.

ROOKIE PITCHER Hunter Dobbins made some headlines prior to his first career start against the Yankees last week when he said he’d rather retire than pitch for New York.

Now he’s explaining why the claims he made about his father once playing in the minors for Boston’s longtime rival aren’t the intentional fabrication a New York Post report says they were.

Hunter Dobbins said Wednesday he was made aware of the Post story, but said there is nothing nefarious about the connections he said his father had to the Yankees.

“My feelings and all that are based on my personal experiences and nothing to do with growing up or family,” Dobbins said. “The whole backstory is stuff I heard growing up and seen pictures of from my dad. At the end of my day it’s just from my dad and how I kind of grew my love for the game. But at the end of the day I don’t go and fact-check my dad or anything like that.”

In a June 7 Boston Herald feature on Dobbins that ran the day before he allowed three runs and four hits in five innings of an 11-7 win over the Yankees, he said that his father, Lance Dobbins, had been drafted twice by the Yankees before being traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks. The story also makes reference to Dobbins saying his father was friends with Andy Pettitte, who played 15 major league seasons with New York.

But the Post report found no evidence of any of that, citing multiple official databases and the Yankees’ own records that couldn’t substantiate Lance Dobbins having played with the organization. Lance Dobbins’ own profile on Baseball-Reference.com doesn’t list any Yankees affiliation. The 2025 Red Sox Media Guide does mention him on Hunter Dobbins’ biography page, but says only that Lance “pitched for 2 seasons (1996-97) in the Diamondbacks organization.”

Dobbins, who is scheduled to pitch again against the Yankees on Saturday at Fenway Park, said he has since spoken to his father “a little, but not really” about the Post story that first noted the discrepancies.

“My whole focus is on Saturday and getting ready to face the Yankees,” Hunter Dobbins said. “This is my first time in the big leagues facing a team for a second time, let alone back-to-back. So that’s where my focus is 100%. I imagine we’ll talk in the future or something like that. But it’s been a bigger deal than it ever really needed to be. But at the end of the day, I really just need to get ready to go for Saturday.”

The 25-year-old is 3-1 with a 4.20 ERA this season.

He said he isn’t surprised the story has gotten the attention it has in recent days.

“This is a great rivalry,” Dobbins said. “Two cities that have a long history together. Anything that’s kind of in the news that goes with both of them, that’s going to turn into a story. It adds to the game, and we just have to embrace it and keep rolling.”

FOR MARCELO MAYER, the soundtrack to his first major league home run was a chorus of boos as he rounded the bases at New York’s Yankee Stadium last week.

The Red Sox rookie added his latest two homers on much friendlier soil. Mayer hit a pair of solo home runs, going 2 for 4, to help the Red Sox claim the rubber match of their three-game series against the Tampa Bay Rays 4-3 on Wednesday night.

“I’d much rather get cheered than booed,” Marcelo said. “I love the energy that Fenway Park brings. It’s something that I’ll remember the rest of my life.”

The 22-year-old, who has played 15 games since being called up on May 24, is the youngest Red Sox player to have a multi-homer game since Rafael Devers in 2018.

Mayer said his comfort level is rising with each one of his appearances at the plate. He credits the work that he’s put in with the Red Sox assistants.

“The process always stays the same. I feel more comfortable every single day I’m here,” he said. “All the adjustments I’ve made have helped me a little more on the timing.”