The Boston Red Sox are well represented on Baseball America’s top 100 list with four prospects cracking the rankings.

But one Red Sox prospect came up just shy of making it onto the distinguished list.

A devastating injury to starting pitcher Luis Perales last season probably made the difference in not getting the recognition. But there’s still plenty of potential when it comes to the 21-year-old right-hander.

“Perales has long been one of the more intriguing arms in Boston’s system,” Josh Norris of Baseball America wrote. “He’d just begun to put it all together in 2024 when he tore his ulnar collateral ligament and had Tommy John surgery. He made the jump in part by tweaking his pitch mix to add a cutter and turn his slider into a sweeper. Those changes, plus a well-shaped, high-octane fastball could lead to a future in a rotation, though his development is likely on hold until 2026.”

Perales dazzled with High-A Greenville in 2024 by striking out 46 batters in 26 1/3 innings to earn a promotion to Double-A Portland. Perales made two starts with Portland in which he allowed just one earned run in 7 1/3 innings before suffering the significant elbow injury.

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The Red Sox in all likelihood will be cautious with Perales in his return. Perales could come back at some point in the second half of the season or spend the entire campaign rehabbing. It appears he’s recovering well from Tommy John surgery as video surfaced on social media Wednesday of him throwing off a mound.

The Red Sox signed Perales out of Venezuela in 2019 for $75,000. After having the COVID-19 pandemic delay his development, he opened up eyes in the organization with his fastball that sits in the mid-90s and can reach 99 mph.

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MLB Pipeline ranks Perales as Boston’s top pitching prospect and seventh-best prospect overall.

Featured image via Annmarie Sinicki/Salem Red Sox