ORLANDO, Fla. — The Red Sox lost pitching prospect Jedixson Paez to the White Sox in the Rule 5 Draft on Wednesday.
Chicago selected the righty with the second overall pick.
MLB Pipeline had Paez, who will turn 22 in January, ranked Boston’s No. 18 prospect. He had been listed as high as the Red Sox’ No. 8 prospect by Fangraphs in July 2024.
SoxProspects had him at No. 20 on its latest rankings.
The Venezuela native spent 2025 at High-A Greenville, where he missed more than three months with a right calf strain. He finished with a 2.79 ERA and recorded 23 strikeouts in 19 ⅓ innings. In 2024, Paez had a 3.17 ERA in 96 ⅔ innings between Single-A Salem and Greenville.
He has never pitched above High A but his excellent control likely piqued the White Sox’ interest. He has just 49 walks in 307 ⅔ innings and a 3.9% walk percentage in the minors. He also pitched well in his limited sample size last year holding opponents to a .228 batting average.
Paez signed as an international free agent for $450,000 in 2021.
Before the deadline to protect Rule 5-eligible players last month, the Red Sox added three pitchers — Shane Drohan, David Sandlin and Tyler Uberstine.
MassLive listed Paez as one of five strong candidates to be taken in the Rule 5 Draft.