Over the last few seasons, the Boston Red Sox farm system has been brimming with talent. The pipeline has been regarded as one of the best in the league, with potential impact players on both sides of the ball littering the system.
But now, new rankings are starting to roll out, and the Red Sox are slipping. This slide started mid-season last year, when MLB Pipeline dropped them from No. 3 in the 2025 preseason rankings all the way down to No. 11 last August. Now, The Athletic's Keith Law and
ESPN's Kiley McDaniel are following suit, ranking Boston 10th and 11th, respectively.
The main reason for the drop isn't that Boston's prospects have suddenly gotten worse. It's actually the opposite. Many of the club's top young talents got the call last season, and graduations have begun.
Roman Anthony might have fallen short in the AL Rookie of the Year voting, but he became a star in the process. Marcelo Mayer's season ended before he could fully get off the ground, but he showed enough flashes to become a player the Red Sox will count on in 2026.
The Red Sox's farm system is dropping in the rankings, but it's not time to ring the alarm bells
Both Kiley McDaniel and Keith Law dropped their farm system rankings this morning.
— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) January 29, 2026
Law had the Red Sox with the #10 farm system in the game. McDaniel had them at #11, despite mentioning they might only have 1 position player in the Top 250 prospects in baseball. pic.twitter.com/8URXOvmZ60
Both youngsters, along with Kristian Campbell, who admittedly is still a work in progress, graduated from prospect status in 2025.
This is the primary point of the minors: to give the big league club a funnel to add cheap talent to build out the roster. Boston has already seen some of these youngsters become foundational pieces, while others are more complementary players; that's still a big win.
Let's also not overreact to a top-10ish ranking. That's still better than most, and it highlights the depth that is still present down on the farm. Connelly Early and Payton Tolle still have massive potential on the mound. Franklin Arias could be a star in the making. Kyson Witherspoon's pro debut is highly anticipated for a reason. Further down the list, guys like Juan Valera are on the verge of breaking into the top-100, which could restart the system's ascension.
Going back to last winter, the Red Sox have made a flurry of trades, including blockbusters like the one that landed them Garrett Crochet, mid-level moves that netted the club Sonny Gray and Willson Contreras, and other minor moves sprinkled in. All of those transactions had a prospect capital cost, and despite the talent flowing out, the farm is still regarded as better than average.
At the end of the day, Boston hasn't been constrained by the farm system. The club has been able to make whatever moves it pleases on the trade market, while also feeding the major league team with talent and depth. That's the name of the game. There's still a lot more talent remaining, and as it develops the system will rise once again.