No. 19: Right-handed pitcher John Holobetz
John Holobetz was part of the large haul the Red Sox received in return for Quinn Priester from the Milwaukee Brewers. Milwaukee shipped outfield prospect Yophery Rodriguez, a comp pick (turned into Marcus Phillips), cash, and a player to be named later. It surprised many that the PTBNL was Holobetz, who seemed far too talented to be a PTBNL “throw-in”.
The right-handed pitcher posted a 3.03 ERA, .238 BAA, and 1.06 WHIP in 23 games (19 starts) between Single-A, High-A, and Double-A. He struck out 120 batters compared to only 20 walks in 124 2/3 innings. Holobetz was at his best in Double-A, tossing six-plus innings in all six of his outings at the level.
The 23-year-old has a good fastball, but his other pitches need work. His fastball works in the low-to-mid 90s with decent life and great control. His curveball is his next best pitch. It sits around 80 MPH, and honestly, it is the pitch he probably struggles to locate the most. However, when it’s on, it has a sharp biting movement to it and will get whiffs.
Holobetz has a slider and a changeup as well. Both can sit flat, which can lead to them getting hit around. They sit in the mid-80s and have shown life at times.
The Pottstown product doesn’t miss a ton of bats with his secondary pitches. He’s going to have to develop them if he wants to stick as a starter. Holobetz’s ability to throw strikes and create weak contact with his fastball gives him a nice floor. He could be a solid rotation arm that can eat innings.
Fastball: 50
Changeup: 35
Slider: 35
Curveball: 35
Control: 55
Overall: 40
No. 18: Right-handed pitcher Tyler Uberstine
Tyler Uberstine would be the comeback player of the year for the Red Sox minor league system, maybe in all of baseball.
The right-handed pitcher tossed zero innings in 2023 and just 4 2/3 innings in 2024. He hadn’t made it past High-A yet — he only had 38 innings in High-A prior to 2025. Despite that, Uberstine started the year in Double-A. After just six starts (29 2/3 innings), he was promoted to Triple-A.
Uberstine finished the year with a 3.58 ERA, .244 BAA, and 1.26 WHIP in 25 appearances (21 starts) between Double-A and Triple-A. He struck out 137 batters compared to 41 walks in 120 2/3 innings. The 26-year-old didn’t walk too many batters and had one of the better strikeout rates and whiff rates in Triple-A. His fastball has good life and sits in the low-to-mid 90s. He can reach back to get over 95 MPH. It’s easily his best pitch.
Uberstine has a slider that looked strong most of the season. The pitch works in the mid-80s with a sweeping break. He was good at getting right-handed hitters with the offering.
Uberstine also has a decent cutter and changeup in his repertoire. Both showed promise, but neither is at the level of his slider as a secondary pitch. The changeup is mid-80s while the cutter is high-80s. While neither is world-breaking, they are both serviceable.
Uberstine got a little work out of the bullpen towards the end of the 2025 season. His pitches could play up nicely as a reliever and become extremely dangerous.
Fastball: 50
Cutter: 35
Slider: 45
Changeup: 35
Control: 45
Overall: 40
No. 17: Right-handed pitcher Jedixson Paez
Jedixson Paez didn’t get to pitch much in 2025 due to injury, but he continued to show ridiculous command for anyone, let alone a young prospect.
The 21-year-old posted a 2.79 ERA, .228 BAA, and 1.09 WHIP in 19 1/3 innings in High-A this season. He struck out 23 batters and walked three. Last season, he racked up 113 strikeouts in 96 2/3 innings while walking just 12 batters.
Paez has always had elite command. The big issue was velocity. Two years ago, he was barely hitting 90 MPH on his fastball. It’s seen a slight uptick in each of the last two seasons, though. Paez can now sit in the low-90s and reach back to mid-90s. That’s perfectly fine when considering the fantastic control he has of the pitch.
The right-handed pitcher also has a strong changeup, which sits in the mid-80s. With his fastball velocity increasing, this pitch becomes even more dangerous. There’s now a significant difference in velocity to his fastball, and there’s a sharp late dip to it.
Paez also has a slider and a curveball. Both hover around 80 MPH. At their best, they will disappear on hitters and cause flailing swings. The slider is sharper and more consistent than the curveball. Neither is an elite pitch, but both are solid.
It stings that we didn’t get to see more of Paez in 2025, but a strong 2026 is very much on the table, and he could realistically shoot into the top 10. The command of the strike zone that he possesses will always keep him interesting.
Fastball: 40
Changeup: 50
Slider: 45
Curveball: 40
Control: 65
Overall: 45
No. 16: Outfielder Nelly Taylor
Nelly Taylor didn’t exactly have the breakout year some were expecting, but he continued to do just about everything the right way.
The left-handed hitting outfielder slashed .216/.355/.349 with 24 doubles, three triples, and seven home runs. He drove in 41 runs, scored 62 more, and stole 29 bases. Taylor had a rough 28.1% K rate, but a strong 17.1% walk rate with it.
Defensively, Taylor is one of the best outfielders in minor league baseball. He’s well above-average when it comes to speed, and he uses that to cover a ridiculous amount of ground. It also doesn’t hurt that he has fantastic instincts, gets a good read off the bat, and takes good routes.
Taylor is never going to hit for average, but he can post solid OBPs and might be able to get to 20-plus homers and 30-plus steals.
Taylor will make the major leagues at some point, thanks to his Gold Glove defense and elite speed. He’s also been marked as a team leader multiple times and has some power potential.
Hit: 35
Power: 45
Run: 65
Arm: 55
Field: 70
Overall: 45
No. 15: Infielder Yoeilin Cespedes
Yoeilin Cespedes had a ton of hype a year ago. There was a point where he was more highly regarded than Franklin Arias. An injury meant Cespedes didn’t get to appear in Single-A in 2024, though. Then he struggled for the most part in 2025. He still has very clear potential.
Cespedes slashed .227/.292/.376 with 24 doubles, five triples, and 10 home runs. He drove in 54 runs, scored 56 more, and stole 11 bases. The right-handed hitting infielder only had an 8.6% walk rate, while striking out 21.2% of the time. He could definitely stand to draw some more walks and limit the chase rates. Cespedes has a good-looking swing with elite bat speed, so even with the chase rate, his strikeout percentage wasn’t miserable.
Meanwhile, his power is above-average, especially for a middle-infielder.
Defensively, Cespedes is fine. He has a decent arm that plays perfectly fine at second base (and works at shortstop). His speed isn’t bad, but it’s not good. That limits his range in the middle infield, but he tends to make it work.
Cespedes has every chance to bounce back in 2026 and become an elite, top 100 prospect again. The 20-year-old raw power as a middle infielder could take him far.
Hit: 40
Power: 60
Run: 35
Arm: 40
Field: 40
Overall: 45