Manny, Pedro and Papi’s kids are on the same team?! Meet ‘The Sons’ of the Brockton Rox

BROCKTON, Mass.—As outfielder Pedro Martinez Jr., first baseman Manny Ramirez Jr., third baseman D’Angelo Ortiz, outfielder Jaden Sheffield and pitcher Kade Foulke chat in the batting cages, general manager Tom Tracey shoos away fans loitering outside Campanelli Stadium, hoping to get a glimpse of the players known collectively as “The Sons.”

“Brockton High School is next door,” Tracey says. “There are always people hanging around trying to see what’s happening here.”

Indeed, word has been spreading around New England. About an hour drive from Fenway Park, baseball fans can watch the sons of MLB royalty play—on the Brockton Rox of the Futures Collegiate Baseball League. Once there, they might see Hall of Famer David Ortiz helping players fine-tune their swings, Manny Ramirez demonstrating how to lay off the curveball, Keith Foulke—the former Red Sox closer who threw the last pitch of the 2004 World Series—raking the infield dirt, or Pedro Martinez and Gary Sheffield watching from one of the suite boxes.

“I really didn’t understand how big [my father] was until he got into the Hall of Fame. ... Like, that’s Mookie Betts talking to him like he’s someone cool, treating him like he’s royalty. Why is this guy talking to my weird, dork dad? He spends his time at home taking care of his flowers.” Pedro Martinez Jr.