On Monday, Baseball America released their updated list of the top 10 prospects in the Red Sox system.

Here’s the new list of 10 for Boston:

1. Payton Tolle, LHP
2. Franklin Arias, IF
3. Connelly Early, LHP
4. Kyson Witherspoon, RHP
5. Luis Perales, RHP
6. Jhostynxon Garcia, OF
7. Juan Valera, RHP
8. Justin Gonzalez, IF/OF
9. Yhoiker Fajardo, RHP
10. Dorian Soto, IF

Some of these names are incredibly familiar. Others, not so much.

Why does this matter?

Well, unless you’ve been living under a rock, the Red Sox have been in the news almost daily for their connection to numerous trade rumors - both for them sending out talent as well as receiving it.

If they’re going to take big swings, these are the types of rankings teams will be looking at when putting together asking prices. If Boston is going to move on from Tolle in a move for a guy like Tarik Skubal, trading away the organization’s No. 1 ranked prospect carries the requisite amount of weight needed to make a move for a two-time defending Cy Young Award winner.

(and if we’re being honest, Skubal will likely require at least two names from that list, maybe more)

Names like Tolle, Early and Garcia are familiar to almost all Red Sox fans at this point, as all three came up to the big leagues this season to much fanfare, albeit each having varying levels of success once arriving at the MLB level.

It’s no surprise that Early has jumped all the way up to No. 3 on this list, given the multiple gems he tossed after being a late call-up. And it’s also no surprise that former AL Rookie of the Month Kristian Campbell has dropped out of the top 10 given the regression we saw from him after a hot five weeks to start the 2025 season.

Here’s a closer look at each player listed in the top five’s scouting report, with a hat tip to my new friends at Baseball America for providing the amazing research and analysis (they have an amazing pre-Black Friday sale going right now for annual deals, if you’re into that type of thing)

Tolle uses his massive 6-foot-6 build to generate big downhill momentum and unusual extension, giving his fastball a tough look for hitters. What was once a low-90s weapon at TCU became a mid-90s hammer in the minors, and he pushed it even further during his MLB debut, averaging 96-plus and touching 100 with notable carry and armside movement.

Over the season, he continued to tweak his offspeed mix, eventually adding a firm cutter that quickly became his primary secondary pitch ahead of his slider, changeup, and curveball. That mix played well in the minors, where he consistently missed bats and showed solid pitch shapes across the board.

In the majors, though, his feel for the secondaries wavered, leaving him overly dependent on a fastball he grooved too often. If he can regain the balance he showed in the farm system - using a steadier blend of fastballs, cutters, and sliders with occasional offspeed to righties - he still projects as a durable starter with real upside.

Arias shows an advanced internal clock and natural feel for the game well beyond his years. After a strong 2024, evaluators still questioned whether his steeper swing left him exposed up in the zone. In 2025 he adjusted his posture to create a flatter path, and the change paid off—his in-zone contact rate jumped from 82% to 94%, and he cut his strikeouts to just 10%. The tradeoff was a dip in impact when he chased, reflected in a rising groundball rate that climbed to 46%.

He sprays the ball around the field and leans more toward hit tool than power, though his peak exit velocities near 110 mph hint at some untapped thump if he adds strength. On defense, Arias’ instincts and clean actions allow him to handle shortstop with reliability, projecting as a steady to above-average defender even without standout explosiveness.

Early has seen his fastball jump from 90 mph in college to the 93–94 range as a pro, with peaks at 97. Even without big raw grades, the pitch plays up thanks to deception and strong vertical life, helping him fill the zone and miss bats in his debut. His best complement is a fading mid-80s changeup, and he’ll mix in both a slider and curveball to righties.

Lefties saw an even tougher look, as his four-seamer, two-seamer, and a low-80s sweeper combined to generate whiffs at an absurd rate - including a perfect 10-for-10 on swings at the sweeper in the regular season. Early repeats a clean, athletic delivery that supports command across the zone, though he has at times lost sharpness as lineups turn over.

Witherspoon is constantly experimenting with grips and pitch shapes, a habit sharpened through daily throwing sessions with his twin brother, a Tigers draftee. His shortstop background shows in his unusual, quick-to-the-ear delivery, which adds deception to everything he throws.

He works with a deep mix anchored by a fastball that averaged 96 mph and touched 99, and he increasingly leaned on a firm cutter that missed bats in the zone and set up a tighter gyro slider as his chase pitch. He can also manipulate a high-70s curveball and has a changeup with promise, though he rarely needed it at the college level. Because he repeats his delivery so well, he limits walks and can place his pitches throughout the strike zone.

Perales brings top-tier velocity, sitting 98-101 mph with heavy carry in his 2025 return. The fastball can overwhelm hitters when he throws it for strikes, but his command of it remains uneven. His low-90s cutter - one of the keys to his 2024 surge - was the pitch he located most consistently and could become his main tool, with the heater serving as the finisher.

He also mixes a gyro slider and a splitter that can expand the zone vertically, though the splitter often drops out of competition too early. Whether he sharpens that pitch and tightens his overall control will determine if he sticks as a starter or ultimately profiles as a high-leverage reliever.

Tom Carroll is a contributor for Roundtable, with boots-on-the-ground coverage of all things Boston sports. He's a senior digital content producer for WEEI.com, and a native of Lincoln, RI.