Red Sox Farm Director Hints Boston Has Future Ace Waiting In Minors

Boston Red Sox fans struggling to wean off their baseball intake after the season may be watching one top prospect who took a trip to the Arizona Fall League.

Luis Perales, the Red Sox's 22-year-old fireballer who returned from Tommy John surgery last summer to make a few short appearances in the upper levels of the minors this season, has all the makings of a front-line major league starter. That's hard to project at this stage, of course, but the talent is obvious.

Perales is MLB Pipeline's No. 9 prospect in the Red Sox system heading into the offseason, but he's been higher on the list before and could shoot back up with a strong fall performance. He's already off to a strong start in that regard, striking out nine batters in his 5 1/3 innings in the AFL and regularly approaching 100 mph.

Farm director Brian Abraham gives glowing review of Perales

May 27, 2025; Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA; A Boston Red Sox hat and glove sit in the dug out before a game against the Milwaukee Brewers at American Family Field. Mandatory Credit: Michael McLoone-Imagn Images | Michael McLoone-Imagn Images

In MLB.com reporter Ian Browne's recent newsletter, Red Sox director of player development Brian Abraham discussed Perales' return from injury, saying he can't wait to see the Venezuelan fireballer complete for a roster spot next season.

"It’s always exciting to get a player back after a long layoff due to injury -- even more so when it’s one of your top talents and potential impact arms," Abraham told Browne. "We saw a version of Luis pre-injury that was incredibly exciting, and now we’re looking forward to an enhanced version of that -- healthy, stronger and ready to compete as a 40-man-roster player."

Perhaps even more exciting for Red Sox fans, Abraham had comments on Perales' overall skill set that strongly suggest Boston could have a future top-of-the-rotation starter on its hands.

"Luis embodies a lot of the traits we value -- he’s aggressive, confident and always wants the ball," Abraham told Browne. "The combination of his triple-digit fastball and quality secondary pitches gives him multiple ways to get outs and generate swings and misses in the zone. As he continues to refine his ability to pitch, not just throw, we believe that will serve him well as he faces higher levels of competition."

The pitching pipeline is in a fantastic spot right now, with Payton Tolle and Connelly Early reaching the majors last season and Peraltes, Brandon Clarke, and Kyson Witherspoon not far behind. But which of those arms will emerge to become future rotation staples?

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