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WORCESTER — The big fish has finally made its way to Worcester.
On Thursday night, word started to spread that Boston Red Sox top prospect Franklin Arias was being promoted from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester.
A day later, Arias arrived at Polar Park for his first day with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate. Although the 20-year-old shortstop wasn’t in the WooSox starting lineup on Friday, he met pregame with media inside the Worcester dugout to talk about his call up.
“It’s something I’ve been dreaming of since I was a little kid,” said Arias through translator Juan Montero. “And now that I’m here, I’m really living my dream being a phone call away [from the big leagues].”
One of the youngest players in AA before his call up to AAA, Arias was second in the Eastern League in batting with his .318 average and was third in home runs with 19. He also had 52 RBIs and an .994 OPS in 75 games with the Sea Dogs.
“When you’re hot, you just feel great. You feel excellent when you enter that box [and] it’s almost [like] when the game ends, you just want to keep going and have more at-bats that night,” Arias told the T&G through translator and Portland pitching coach Juan Rivera last month. “It’s been a good year.”
Currently ranked as Baseball America’s No. 4 prospect in all of the minor leagues, Arias was signed by the Red Sox in 2023 as a 17-year-old international free agent out of Venezuela.
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound infielder was the Florida Complex League MVP in 2024, when he hit .355 and then had a solid 2025 season split between three Red Sox affiliates (Salem, Greenville and Portland) batting .278 with 8 homers and 66 RBIs across 116 games.
This year, Arias erupted in Double-A Portland and was named the Eastern League Player of the Month for April (batting .375 with 8 HR and 20 RBIs in 20 games) and has consistently been among the league leaders in almost every offensive category.
“He can do things that you just can’t teach,” Portland Sea Dogs acting manager Kyle Sasala told the T&G in June.
“He’s been playing pretty freaking well,” said WooSox acting manager Iggy Suarez on Friday before saying: “He put himself on the map.”
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Arias’ offensive numbers earned him a spot on the American League squad for the 2026 MLB All-Star Future’s Game last week in Philadelphia (Arias had an RBI in the game) — before being promoted to AAA this week.
“Seeing him grow up and how each year he’s getting exponentially better in all different areas, how much more physical he is, how he’s been able to drive the baseball, the baseballs he’s getting to defensively, and then even just how attentive he is to the game has been really impressive for a young guy,” Sasala said.
Sasala brought Arias into his office on Thursday following the Sea Dogs’ 3-2 road win over Binghamton. With all the coaches in the room, and even former Portland manager Chad Epperson (who is now the Red Sox’ third-base coach) on speaker phone, Arias was told he was being promoted to AAA.
After calling his parents and packing his bags, Arias jumped in a four-hour Uber ride from New York to Polar Park early Friday morning.
“I’m really happy to be here,” Arias said.
So, too, are the Worcester Red Sox. The big fish is now in the Canal District.
“I’m excited to have him,” said Suarez, who says Arias will most likely make his Triple-A debut on Saturday. “… I’m sure he’s chomping at the bit.”
—Contact Tommy Cassell at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: 'Living my dream': Red Sox top prospect called up to AAA Worcester
Continue reading...
On Thursday night, word started to spread that Boston Red Sox top prospect Franklin Arias was being promoted from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester.
A day later, Arias arrived at Polar Park for his first day with the Red Sox’ Triple-A affiliate. Although the 20-year-old shortstop wasn’t in the WooSox starting lineup on Friday, he met pregame with media inside the Worcester dugout to talk about his call up.
“It’s something I’ve been dreaming of since I was a little kid,” said Arias through translator Juan Montero. “And now that I’m here, I’m really living my dream being a phone call away [from the big leagues].”
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One of the youngest players in AA before his call up to AAA, Arias was second in the Eastern League in batting with his .318 average and was third in home runs with 19. He also had 52 RBIs and an .994 OPS in 75 games with the Sea Dogs.
“When you’re hot, you just feel great. You feel excellent when you enter that box [and] it’s almost [like] when the game ends, you just want to keep going and have more at-bats that night,” Arias told the T&G through translator and Portland pitching coach Juan Rivera last month. “It’s been a good year.”
Currently ranked as Baseball America’s No. 4 prospect in all of the minor leagues, Arias was signed by the Red Sox in 2023 as a 17-year-old international free agent out of Venezuela.
You must be registered for see images attach
The 5-foot-11, 170-pound infielder was the Florida Complex League MVP in 2024, when he hit .355 and then had a solid 2025 season split between three Red Sox affiliates (Salem, Greenville and Portland) batting .278 with 8 homers and 66 RBIs across 116 games.
This year, Arias erupted in Double-A Portland and was named the Eastern League Player of the Month for April (batting .375 with 8 HR and 20 RBIs in 20 games) and has consistently been among the league leaders in almost every offensive category.
“He can do things that you just can’t teach,” Portland Sea Dogs acting manager Kyle Sasala told the T&G in June.
“He’s been playing pretty freaking well,” said WooSox acting manager Iggy Suarez on Friday before saying: “He put himself on the map.”
'This place means the world to me': Chad Tracy enshrined in WooSox Hall of Fame
You must be registered for see images attach
Arias’ offensive numbers earned him a spot on the American League squad for the 2026 MLB All-Star Future’s Game last week in Philadelphia (Arias had an RBI in the game) — before being promoted to AAA this week.
“Seeing him grow up and how each year he’s getting exponentially better in all different areas, how much more physical he is, how he’s been able to drive the baseball, the baseballs he’s getting to defensively, and then even just how attentive he is to the game has been really impressive for a young guy,” Sasala said.
You must be registered for see images attach
Sasala brought Arias into his office on Thursday following the Sea Dogs’ 3-2 road win over Binghamton. With all the coaches in the room, and even former Portland manager Chad Epperson (who is now the Red Sox’ third-base coach) on speaker phone, Arias was told he was being promoted to AAA.
After calling his parents and packing his bags, Arias jumped in a four-hour Uber ride from New York to Polar Park early Friday morning.
“I’m really happy to be here,” Arias said.
So, too, are the Worcester Red Sox. The big fish is now in the Canal District.
“I’m excited to have him,” said Suarez, who says Arias will most likely make his Triple-A debut on Saturday. “… I’m sure he’s chomping at the bit.”
—Contact Tommy Cassell at [email protected]. Follow him on X, formerly known as Twitter, @tommycassell44.
This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: 'Living my dream': Red Sox top prospect called up to AAA Worcester
Continue reading...
