sort doesn't sort a list in-place. Instead, it returns a new sorted list. So:

foreach (sort @$outputRef) {
   print $_, "\n";
}
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would print out a sorted list, but printing the contents of $outputRef would still print out an unsorted list.

If you need to save the sorted list for some reason, use an assignment:

@sorted = sort @$outputRef;
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stephen

Note: Code untested, my Perlboxen are still in pieces...