The Boston Red Sox bring a new crop of top prospects into the 2026 season.
Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell graduated from prospect consideration during the 2025 campaign. After those promising young hitters arrived, two intriguing prospects joined them to headline the next wave of incoming talent.
MLB analyst Thomas Nestico shared his top-100 MLB prospect rankings on Wednesday. Four Red Sox players made the cut.
Nestico ranked Payton Tolle 15th overall, the fourth-highest pitcher behind fellow late-season arrivals Nolan McLean, Bubba Chandler and playoff hero Trey Yesavage. September call-up Connelly Early didn’t trail far behind at No. 29.
Franklin Arias represents Boston’s only ranked position player at No. 55, and right-handed pitcher Luis Perales narrowly made the list at No. 99.
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Tolle allowed 21 baserunners and 10 runs in 11 innings for the Red Sox, but the left-hander flashed upside when collecting eight strikeouts in his MLB debut. The 23-year-old rapidly climbed Boston’s farm system by registering a 3.04 ERA and 133 strikeouts in 91 2/3 innings across three different levels.
Early enjoyed more instant major league success, posting a 2.33 ERA in four September starts. He stockpiled 29 strikeouts to just four walks in 19 1/3 innings before starting a playoff game against the New York Yankees.
MLB.com ranks Arias above those two southpaws as Boston’s top prospect. The middle infielder moved up to Double-A at age 19.
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Nestico is higher on Perales than MLB.com, which grades the righty as the Red Sox’s No. 9 prospect. The 22-year-old has reached triple-digits in the Arizona Fall League after missing most of the 2025 season recovering from Tommy John surgery.