The Boston Red Sox are still trying to add before the 2026 MLB trade deadline, and Zach Neto has surfaced as one of the names in the mix. But if the Los Angeles Angels are really setting the price at Boston’s top prospect, Franklin Arias, plus more, that’s a steep number that feels out of line for where this deal sits.
Tim Healey of The Boston Globe reported that the Angels want Arias to be the centerpiece in any Neto return.
"With two days until the deadline, the Sox continued to face a significant asking price from the Angels in their ongoing talks about shortstop Zach Neto. The Angels seek shortstop Franklin Arias, a source said, to headline a package that would include other prospects," Healey wrote.
Neto is a legitimate big leaguer. He’s 25, has three more seasons of control, and came into 2026 off consecutive years with more than 5.0 wins above replacement.
This season, he has put together a .230/.320/.427 line with a .747 OPS, 19 home runs and 46 RBIs. The production is solid, but the strikeout total is glaring: he leads the league with 153 strikeouts in 108 games.
His batting average has also dipped from .257 last year to .230 now.
Even with those flaws, the ask Boston is hearing is enormous. Arias is 20 years old, one step from the majors, and tearing through the system with a .310/.398/.578 slash line, a .976 OPS, 21 homers and 59 RBIs in 82 games between Double-A and Triple-A. He has only played seven Triple-A games and already has two home runs.
He also comes with far more years of control than Neto. That’s why the idea of Arias plus additional prospects is hard to square for Boston.
The comparison that jumps out is the Los Angeles Dodgers landing two-time reigning American League Cy Young Award winner Tarik Skubal without surrendering their No. 1 prospect. Skubal is a rental, but he’s still one of the best pitchers on the planet.
Neto has never made an All-Star team, either. If a player like CJ Abrams or Elly De La Cruz were available, the conversation might start with Arias.
For Neto, though, that kind of package looks too rich. He’d help the Red Sox, but not at this price.
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