It’s the second full week of the major league season and you know what that means. We’re officially back for our first Boston Red Sox prospect update of the season.
The season has been off to a rough start for the Red Sox. However, the minor league season has already given us some exciting moments. This is the first of our weekly breakdowns on which prospects showed out at each level of the minor league system. Tune in every Tuesday for the rest of the year for all the prospect knowledge you could possibly need.
Justin Gonzales
Worcester Red Sox (Triple-A)
Mikey Romero has wasted no time stoking the flames of a call-up. Boston’s offense is struggling, and fans are clamoring for offense. Meanwhile, there’s Romero in Worcester, slashing .333/.395/.515 with three doubles and a home run. The left-handed hitter has driven in seven runs and scored six more. Romero has played second and third this season and has made some headlines due to his high exit velocities.
Allan Castro had a rough first series, going 0-for-9 with five strikeouts. However, things went much better for the switch-hitting outfielder in the second series, during which he went 4-for-13 with his first Triple-A home run. Castro also drew five walks against St. Paul, while only striking out two times. He’s driven in four runs, scored two more, and stolen one base.
Jake Bennett’s made quite a first impression. The left-handed pitcher made his organizational debut and his Triple-A debut on March 27. In two starts, Bennett has thrown eight innings. He has allowed just one unearned run on three hits. Bennett has walked just two batters (and hit two), while striking out nine batters.
Portland Sea Dogs (Double-A)
John Holobetz was one of the few bright spots for Portland this weekend. They lost the first game of the series in embarrassing fashion, before the pitching (led by Holobetz) helped the Sea Dogs win 1-0 in the second game. The right-handed pitcher allowed two hits in five shutout innings. He struck out three batters and walked two.
Franklin Arias only played one game, going 2-for-4 with two strikeouts. The right-handed hitting shortstop drove in Portland’s first run of the season. Portland’s lineup doesn’t have a lot of heavy-hitters at the moment, but Arias should be incredibly fun to watch.
Marvin Alcantara went just 1-for-6 over the first two games, but he did Marvin Alcantara things. The right-handed hitting infielder drew more walks (three) than he had strikeouts (two). Alcantara’s been praised heavily for his defense and leadership. At only 21, there’s still time for an offensive breakout, which would make him a seriously intriguing prospect to watch.
Greenville Drive (High-A)
Justin Gonzales is already stealing the show in High-A. If you want to find something to complain about, the right-handed hitter struck out five times in 15 plate appearances. Outside of that, wow. Gonzales has made multiple highlight plays in the outfield. Meanwhile, the 19-year-old is slashing .286/.333/.714 with two home runs. He’s driven in four runs and scored five more.
Yoeilin Cespedes is off to an incredible start to his Greenville career. The right-handed hitting infielder struggled in an up-and-down season in Single-A last season. Cespedes is smoking baseballs in 2026, though. The 20-year-old is 7-for-14 (.500) with four doubles. He’s driven in one run and scored two more.
Anthony Eyanson carried the hype from the Spring Breakout game and showed out in his High-A debut. The right-handed pitcher allowed one run on three hits over three innings. He struck out six batters without walking any. There’s no radar gun visible on the broadcast, but the announcers mentioned 96 MPH a few times, and his secondaries looked great.
Juan Valera got the nod to be the Opening Day starter for Greenville. The right-handed pitcher allowed two runs on two hits over 3 1/3 innings. He struck out seven batters and walked two. Valera had injury issues in 2025, so the main goal is to stay healthy in 2026.
Salem RidgeYaks (Single-A)
Stanley Tucker missed all of 2025 due to injury. In his first at-bat since August 13, 2024, the 23-year-old crushed a home run. That was an awesome moment, but the good times didn’t stop there for Tucker. The right-handed hitter went 3-for-6 with that home run. He drove in four runs, scored two more, and stole two bases. Tucker has drawn two walks without striking out. He even made a fantastic play at second base.
Skylar King is going to give us a ridiculous number of defensive highlights in the outfield in 2026. However, he’s also showing off the offense early on. The left-handed hitter went 3-for-7 with two doubles this week. He drove in three runs, scored one more, and stole one base. King has two walks compared to just one strikeout.
Anderson Fermin is a high-OBP guy who can steal bases. He apparently also hits home runs. The switch-hitter went 3-for-6 with three walks (only one strikeout) over his first two games of the year. Fermin hit the first home run of his professional career on Friday. He drove in two runs and scored four more. Don’t expect homers to become a regular part of his game, but any added power will be nice.
Dylan Brown was lights out in his professional debut. The left-handed pitcher allowed two hits over five shutout innings. He struck out six batters without walking any. It only took Brown 52 pitches to get through those five innings.
Devin Futrell got some decent buzz this offseason and proved he should probably have started the year in High-A. The lefty finished the 2025 season with Greenville last year, where he was phenomenal, but the numbers game led to Futrell starting 2026 with Salem. Don’t expect it to be a long stay, though. Futrell allowed one hit over four scoreless innings. He struck out six batters and only walked one.
Christian Foutch started the third game of the season for Salem and couldn’t have been much better. The right-handed pitcher didn’t allow a hit or a run over three innings of work. He walked one batter and struck out two.