Patience can be a virtue!
Relax... Everything will work out! Trust me!
Patience is a virtue!
Coming out of Spring Training, most Red Sox fans either wanted or even expected to see all the big three (Kristian Campbell, Marcelo Mayer, and Roman Anthony) to break camp with the big club. Kristian Campbell was the only one of the three that did because the team needed a second baseman with positional versatility to be a 5th outfielder and most importantly, a right-handed bat to balance the lineup.
The gamble has paid off and he is playing well and adjusting to the adjustments of the opposition at the plate. Further, he is being tutored to improve his game defensively by both the coaching staff and teammates like Trevor Story. He quickly demonstrated that he has been an on-base machine, and no moment seems too big for him.
So, what of Mayer and Anthony? Are they ready and how soon before are they playing regularly in Boston? The answer is both simple and complicated at the same time. The team is taking a patient approach with both players. This has led to a large and growing legion of fans to publicly call out why both players aren’t in the majors. Let’s examine each player and the reasons I think they are still in AAA Worcester.
Marcelo Mayer
Mayer has been the most verbal of the pair. When he discovered he was beginning the season in AAA. He expressed his “disappointment” at not making the opening day roster. This is not unexpected in that he is a young player, with high expectations and is eager to play at the highest level of the game.
A quick look at his history in the minor leagues and the most glaring statistic is the number of total games played is a lot smaller than expected. The former 1st Round Draft pick from Eastlake High School in Chula Vista CA and fourth overall in the 2021 draft is no stranger to injury since becoming a professional. To say that he has been injury prone is a bit of an understatement. In 2022 Mayer played only 91 games, in 2023 just 78 games and in 2024, he was limited to 77 games. In fact, right after getting promoted to AAA in 2024 he was lost for the season with a back injury and never played a game at that level.
Despite the injury cloud that follows him, when healthy he performed extremely well, but the Sox Management is taking a healthy “wait and see” approach to ensure that history is not going to repeat itself and for the player to force their hand.
As a practical matter, the team had him play second and third base in addition to his normal shortstop spot on the field during spring training. This increased versatility being of great importance to the club and giving them some quality depth behind Campbell, Bregman and Story. Given Trevor Story’s own injury prone experience since joining the Red Sox, I think that the Red Sox want to be sure that their investment is protected and ready.
So far in Worcester, Mayer, who is recovering from a slow start, has begun to become a force in the lineup for the Woo-Sox. In 17 games and 77 plate appearances Mayer has 4 homers, 22 RBI’s, an OPS of .684 and a .411 slugging percentage. He has improved his batting average to .233 and has continued to improve offensively with each at bat, while playing consistently good defense.
If this trend continues, I expect him in Boston sometime in the mid to late May timeframe. As he is not on the 40-man roster, the Sox would need to make a corresponding move to promote him to the big club. Only time, injuries and performances will dictate that outcome.
Roman Anthony
The consensus number one overall prospect in MLB, the 6-3, 200-pound outfielder has been a rising star in the Red Sox system since being drafted in the 2nd round of the 2022 draft out of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Parkland Florida.
Last year, he started the season with AA-Portland but was promoted to AAA-Worcester where he finished the season. In 35 games at Worcester, he hit .344 with 3 homers, 20 RBI’s. 12 doubles, a triple. His OBP was .463, he had an OPS of .983 and a slugging percentage of .519. These numbers solidified his ranking as the number one prospect in baseball.
While less vocal than Mayer about his fate after spring training, he went to Worcester to show he belonged playing in Fenway. Despite dealing with a nagging shoulder injury, Anthony has continued to put up good numbers, and those numbers have continued to improve over the last couple of weeks. After 18 games, he has a batting average of .273, an OBP of .415, a slugging percentage of .530 and an OPS of .945. He has also hit four home runs and driven in 12.
His efforts have not gone unnoticed and in fact have been presented to manager Alex Cora for comment. He is doing his best to push the Red Sox to decide on the next step of his career. If this trend continues, I expect him in Boston sometime in the mid to late May timeframe. Like Mayer, he is not on the 40-man roster and the same determining factors of injury and performance would dictate something to occur to promote him to the major league roster. In the meantime, he just needs to put his head down and perform! He has shown his response has been an emphatic “ CHALLENGE ACCEPTED!”
Conclusion
Both players have done what they have been asked to do. If they were in another organization, they would already be on the major league roster. This is where the situation becomes more complicated.
The Sox are coming off a string of poor finishes over the past few seasons. In Mayers’ case, they dealing with have a heavy contractual investment in Trevor Story. Also, Story has been extremely productive at the plate so far this season. Story’s play has been instrumental in the successes of the team so far in 2025. That said, they are also wary of Mayers’ injury woes and want to be certain that he is ready to go if called upon.
In the case of Anthony, the Sox have a very capable outfield. A gold glove defender in Abreu in right, a plus defender in center in the person of Ceddanne Rafaela and Jarren Duran in left who is coming off a productive 2024 season which saw him become the MVP of the All-Star game. Add to this a player such as Rob Refsnyder whom I have called the “best fourth outfielder” in baseball, and this is a tough group to crack.
Now add in the desire by the club for Masataka Yoshida to become an outfielder again and this just adds to the murkiness and complexity of the overall situation. It is a problem in dire need of a solution or solutions.
Baseball at times can be a very humbling game. Injuries are part of the game and happen at the most inopportune time. They derail careers, while at the same time open a door for a younger player to ascend to the majors and help the team.
Player performance is also a factor. Expectations fail to meet the mark, and players are benched, demoted or traded in the name of improving overall team performance.
Lastly, sometimes it is simply a numbers game. There are too many talented players at a position to allow everyone to play and allow younger players to grow without stunting their progression due to being relegated to being a bench or platoon player. It is not a bad problem to have, but to the everyday fan it can be maddening and frustrating. There is no right or wrong approach to solving this dilemma.
In the end, the adage of “patience is a virtue” is the mantra we need to repeat. Some days are easier than others and every day is a learning experience. Anthony and Mayer are knocking at the door. The Sox will either open it or they will knock it down!
Take a deep breath and know that everything will work out!