Boston Red Sox top prospect, shortstop Franklin Arias, went from a good prospect to a great prospect in 2026. After entering the season ranked as a top-50 prospect in baseball, the 20-year-old skyrocketed up the rankings to a consensus top-three prospect thanks to newfound power. Arias incredible season at the plate earned him a litany of awards, including the Eastern League Player of the Year and Red Sox Minor League Hitter of the Year. However, on Sunday night, he added yet another piece of hardware to his bookshelf that had nothing to do with his breakout season at the plate. 

Shortly after Major League Baseball announced the Gold Glove winners, Minor League Baseball announced its Gold Gloves, naming Arias the winner at shortstop. 

Entering the season, Arias was seen as a safe, high-floor prospect thanks to his strong contact skills and solid defense at shortstop. MLB Pipeline grades Arias' defense a 60 on the 20-80 scale, while Fangraphs rates the 20-year-old a 50-grade current defender, with a future projection of a 55-grade glove. In 115 games with both Double-A Portland and Triple-A Worcester, Arias made only five errors. 

Arias began the season in Portland, where he quickly established himself as one of the best players at the level, hitting .318/.407/.587/.994 with 19 home runs in 75 games, surpassing his 2025 home run total of eight in his first 34 games. 

After 3.5 months of tearing up the Eastern League, Arias was promoted to Triple-A Worcester on July 23, picking up right where he left off in Portland. In 42 games with the WooSox, Arias hit .331/.388/.506/.894, all while being the second-youngest player at the level.

Across both levels, the 20-year-old hit .323/.400/.557/.957, hit 25 home runs and 28 doubles, drove in 91 runs, and posted a WRC+ of 145, tying for the 18th-best mark among all minor league hitters with at least 400 plate appearances.

It was a great Sunday night for Red Sox defenders. For the fifth time in franchise history, three Red Sox players won the Gold Glove Award in the same season: Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela, and Caleb Durbin all won at their respective positions. Abreu and Rafaela became the first pair of Red Sox outfielders to win Gold Gloves in back-to-back seasons since Fred Lynn and Dwight Evans in 1978 and 1979. Durbin became the first Red Sox third baseman to win the award since Frank Malzone in 1959. 

With seven players who ended the season on the 60-day injured list returning to the 40-man roster on Monday, the Red Sox must clear two roster spots to remain compliant with roster restrictions.