Righthander John Holobetz had long intrigued the Red Sox.
He went undrafted as an eligible Old Dominion sophomore in 2023 then rebuffed Boston’s offer to sign out of the Cape Cod League that summer.
A year later, the Red Sox hosted him at Fenway Park for a workout and saw a player with intriguing delivery and pitch shape traits who just needed more strength and power.
Though the Brewers drafted Holobetz in the fifth round in 2024, Boston’s interest was undiminished. And so, in the April 2025 deal that sent Quinn Priester to Milwaukee for a supplemental first-round pick—which eventually became Marcus Phillips—and outfielder Yophery Rodriguez, the Red Sox also acquired Holobetz as a player to be named in May.
The righthander proved consistently solid in his first full professional season.
Holobetz’s ability to pound the strike zone—his 4% walk rate was the third-lowest in the minors by any pitcher who threw at least 100 innings—allowed him to handle a 124.2 inning workload. Across three levels, culminating with six appearances at Double-A Portland, he forged a 3.03 ERA and respectable 24% strikeout rate.
Holobetz’s intrigue starts with a fastball that averages around 93 mph but has topped out at 97. While the pitch is lighter on velocity, it has other attributes of note. He delivers from a low release height of 5.3 feet with above-average extension of 6.5 feet and carry of 17 inches to beat hitters at the top of the zone.
The Red Sox are hopeful that increased physicality on his 6-foot-3 frame will also permit his secondaries—a low-80s slider, mid-80s cutter and 86-87 mph changeup—to improve from below-average to average or better.
His slider showed a promising ability to dodge bats at Double-A.
With a little more gas, Holobetz’s precision could allow him to emerge as a back-end starter, with a fallback as a multi-innings reliever. That outlook has positioned him as an important depth piece and subject of industry attention.
“He’s really emerged, and actually he is someone who gets asked about (in trades) a lot now,” Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow said.
SOX YARNS
— The Red Sox invited seven players to their Rookie Development Program in January: shortstop Franklin Arias, second baseman Mikey Romero and pitchers Jake Bennett, Shane Drohan, Tyler Uberstine, Tyler Samaniego and Ryan Watson.