The Boston Red Sox have had trouble developing pitching prospects in recent years.
Brayan Bello showed enough promise in his rookie season to think he might buck that trend. And the Red Sox have a few intriguing young hurlers who could debut in 2023, including Bryan Mata and Brandon Walter. But Boston hasn't produced many impact arms, relative to position players, leaving a noticeable void despite the farm system's overall improvement under chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom.
That said, one pitcher is starting to generate buzz early in his professional career: Luis Perales.
Perales, a right-hander from Venezuela, will turn just 20 years old this week and hasn't pitched above Single-A, yet his talent already is obvious to industry experts.
"His raw stuff is insane," Ian Cundall, director of scouting for SoxProspects.com, told NESN.com back in January. "He has the potential to be the Red Sox's next big pitching prospect if the stuff he showed in limited outings last year carries forward. His questions have just been injuries; he just hasn't been able to be on the mound consistently. But just on raw stuff alone, we're talking about a kid who was 19 last year, 95 to 98 (mph) with a plus curveball and an above-average changeup. It's good stuff there."
MLB.com's Jim Callis, Jonathan Mayo and Sam Dykstra recently identified one "breakout prospect candidate" for each organization, and Perales was their pick for the Red Sox. MLB Pipeline ranked Perales the No. 13 prospect in the Red Sox system. SoxProspects.com had him at No. 8 as of Monday.
"I think number one is slowing things down and really challenging the strike zone with the stuff he has," Brian Abraham, Red Sox director of player development, told MLB.com during spring training. "He has really good stuff. Now, we want him to challenge the strike zone, challenge hitters because it's really hard to hit what he has. From there, it's continuing to develop a slider and a changeup so he has a mix."
Still not sold? Well, Baseball America included Perales among its 50 prospects who stood out to scouts during spring training, further solidifying his status as a name to watch this season.
"The 19-year-old Perales made his full-season debut toward the end of the 2022 season and ran into issues with control and command, walking 11 in 10.2 innings over four starts," Baseball America's Josh Norris wrote last week. "Nonetheless, he's wowed evaluators on the backfields with his outstanding pure stuff. From an overhand delivery, Perales fires a fastball that parks in the mid 90s and peaks at 98. He complements the fastball with a curveball in the low-to-mid 80s and a changeup in the high 80s. He has a better feel for the curveball now, but scouts believe the changeup could be a better pitch with increased use and further development. Perales learned a hard lesson in 2022 about the dangers of nibbling on the corners of the strike zone rather than just letting his pure stuff work its magic. He's one of the biggest up-arrow candidates in Boston's system entering 2023."
Don't expect to see Perales in Boston this season. Or even next season. MLB Pipeline and SoxProspects.com both see 2026 as a realistic ETA, as he entered 2023 with fewer than 40 innings of pro experience.
But definitely become familiar with the name. Perales might be a homegrown star in the making.
