Lynn’s Aiven Cabral once suited up for the St. Mary’s Spartans, but Friday afternoon at JetBlue Park in Fort Myers, Florida, the sophomore pitcher started for Northeastern in its exhibition game against the Boston Red Sox.

In Boston’s 7-2 win, the right-handed pitcher tossed two innings, allowing three hits and one earned run against seven batters. He went 1-2-3 in the first inning.

The strong showing shouldn’t come as a surprise to the St. Mary’s faithful, as the 2022 graduate went 8-0 with 106 strikeouts in 2021.

“Aiven is tremendously talented, but, more importantly, a great person from a great family,” said St. Mary’s Athletic Director Jeff Newhall. “A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for someone who has worked extremely hard at his craft and deserves all the good things that come his way.” 

Heading into Friday’s action, Cabral (5-foot-11, 185 pounds) was 9-4 with a 2.78 ERA across 19 appearances. His freshman season at Northeastern, he recorded the best ERA in the Coastal Athletic Association (2.26) and struck out 68 batters.

Peabody’s Tyler MacGregor and former St. John’s Prep teammate Alex Lane also suited up for Northeastern. Lane went home with a line-drive RBI single in the first inning.