Red Sox Prospects: Lefty Shoots Up Latest Top 100, First-Round Pick Makes Cut

The Boston Red Sox's farm system continues to shine even as its crown jewel, Roman Anthony, leaves the picture.

Midseason top prospect lists are informative, because they capture how players are performing in their minor league environments. And in MLB Pipeline's midseason release, Boston's farmhands continued to make an impression on the league as a whole.

Over the last few seasons, the Red Sox's prospect pipeline was well-stocked with exciting young hitters. But as Anthony and fellow youngsters Marcelo Mayer and Kristian Campbell have graduated, the pitchers have begun taking over.

Red Sox land four on MLB Pipeline's new Top 100 list

May 21, 2025; Hoover, AL, USA; Oklahoma pitcher Kyson Witherspoon (26) pitches against Georgia in the second round of the SEC Baseball Tournament at the Hoover Met. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Boston had four representatives on MLB Pipeline's new Top 100 overall prospects list: shortstop Franklin Arias (No. 24), left-handed pitcher Payton Tolle (No. 28), outfielder Jhostynxon Garcia (No. 78), and right-handed pitcher Kyson Witherspoon (No. 94). All four should have Red Sox fans excited, for very different reasons.

In Arias, the Red Sox might have a future Gold Glover at shortstop if everything breaks right. He's the youngest of the names here at age 19, and he's having an up-and-down season at High-A Greenville. But he's been an impressive contact bat during his time in the minors, and his stock has been steadily rising.

Not only is Arias an exciting potential starter for the Red Sox in a few years, but he could still become a headliner in a major trade due to the presence of veteran Trevor Story and/or the rookie Mayer.

Meanwhile, Tolle is already knocking on the door of the big leagues only a year after being drafted in the second round out of TCU. He's got elite extension and a fastball that hitters can't figure out, and that's led to a ludicrous 13.1 strikeouts per nine innings across three levels of the minors this year.

Tolle may get a shot at the bullpen in September, and if not, he can be expected to impact the big-league roster early in the 2026 campaign.

Garcia is the Red Sox's closest position player to the majors, and though the outfield in front of him is stacked, he's also started getting some workouts in at first base. It was somewhat surprising to see him not get traded at the Jul. 31 deadline, but that could be a sign that the front office values his bat enough to give him a chance to make the roster out of spring training.

And rounding out the group is Witherspoon, who fell into the Red Sox's lap with the 15th pick in last month's draft. The hard-throwing righty was one of the best pitchers in the toughest conference in college baseball this season, and he could climb quickly through the system next year.