The Red Sox have found recent success in identifying talent on the mound through the draft, and Brandon Clarke seems to be their latest success story. A fifth-round JUCO product, Clarke was selected 148th overall by the Red Sox in last year's draft. Since he didn't play after being drafted, 2025 has been his introduction to professional baseball, and the 22-year-old lefty has not disappointed. He opened the season in Low-A Salem, where he threw nine and two-thirds innings over three starts while allowing just one run. That included his first start in which he delivered four perfect innings while striking out five. Clarke was recently called up to High-A Greenville where he has made one start thus far, tossing four and two-thirds scoreless innings while striking out seven and allowing just one hit.

Not only has Clarke made the TalkSox top 20, but he also recently managed to crack Baseball America's recent edition of the top 100 prospects in all of baseball at 96, despite having only made four starts at the pro level. There's certainly a lot of upside for Clarke, and he's looking more and more like a future starter with every outing. Standing in at 6'4" and 220 pounds, he definitely has the physical traits to succeed, but he has the arsenal and feel on the mound as well. His fastball is the headliner, as it sits in the mid-to-high-90s, topping out at 99.5 mph. A fastball with that kind of life is typically going to play in the lower levels of the minors, but he also has a group of well-developing secondaries to complement it. His changeup and curveball are two pitches he has thrown dating back to his high school days, but he has introduced an effective cutter and a sweeper that are both finding a lot of success thus far. Clarke has displayed excellent command of the strike zone, walking only 3.8% of hitters he has faced this year while striking out 45.3%. His command and ability to withstand a starter's workload are likely the two factors that will determine his role down the road.