The Boston Red Sox, as everyone knows by now, have the #1 farm system in the MLB, according to Baseball America. While the best prospects are now at the MLB level, there's more coming, especially in the pitching department.
RHP Luis Perales has been the highest riser in these past two seasons. Signed out of Venezuela in 2019, he's vastly improved his command and control of his pitches. In 2024 (playing for A+ Greenville and AA Portland), he maintained a 2.94 ERA while striking out 56 and cutting his walks down to just 12 (50 in 2023) in nine games.
The reason he only played nine games last year is that he underwent Tommy John Surgery and will be out until 2026. However, he'll still be a pitcher to watch in these next two years, and he'll only be entering his age-23 season with a possible call-up next year as well. He'll most likely be starting in AAA in 2026 if everything goes well in Spring Training, but he definitely won't make the Opening Day roster just yet.
This next pitcher is a high-riser as well, and it's LHP Peyton Tolle, a draftee in the second round of the 2024 draft out of TCU. He was one of the best pitchers coming out of college and did more than pull his weight as a former two-way player. He was drafted as a pitcher, and he'll be expected to be a starter when he inevitably gets called up.
However, his emphasis on his pitches was mainly with his fastball, which maxes out to around 96 MPH. The Red Sox have been wanting him to use a slider, changeup, and now a cutter that's just been added to his arsenal. Many had projected him as a back-end starter, but now his massive improvement in the quality of his pitches and this fast, has influenced a higher ceiling for him.
He's 22, just out of college, and will be turning 23 on November 1st. He'll most likely be in the big leagues at 24 or just a bit earlier than that. Most likely, he'll be in AAA to end the season, because the Red Sox truly believe in this kid to be a great pitcher.
With Tolle and Perales, the rotation's future may just be salvaged in the next couple of years. If these two youngsters pan out to be what they could be, the Red Sox's World Series ambitions could be closer than they appear.