The Boston Red Sox were forced to take a big swing on Saturday afternoon, promoting top infield prospect Marcelo Mayer from Triple-A in the wake of Alex Bregman's quad injury. It's certainly not the circumstances they'd envisioned back in the spring, but this is still a day years in the making, one that fans in New England have dreamed about ever since Mayer was taken No. 4 overall out of high school back in the 2021 MLB Draft.
While plenty of concern still remains about Bregman's status moving forward — he's undergoing further testing to determine the extent of his injury, which apparently is worse than he and the team initially thought — there was still some room for celebration amongst Red Sox Nation. But no fan was happier than Mayer's most famous former teammate: Roman Anthony, the No. 1 overall prospect in baseball.
Anthony was drafted a year after Mayer, and the two have come up through the Minors together, sharing the field at Triple-A for the first two months of the 2025 season. When Mayer got the call that he was headed to Boston, Anthony was one of the first people to greet him, and his reaction was everything you'd hope for.
Fans had to love the sight of two of the brightest young talents in the organization celebrating a seminal moment together. But amidst all those warm feelings, there was still one question on everyone's mind: So, when will it be Anthony's turn?
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When will Roman Anthony follow Marcelo Mayer to Boston?
The Red Sox were more or less forced into promoting Mayer this weekend; the team's infield was already stretched thin, with Trevor Story and Kristian Campbell struggling and neither of Abraham Toro or Nick Sogard doing much to replace the injured Triston Casas at first base. Bregman going down (and likely needing a trip to the IL) was the straw that broke the camel's back, and there was no way to avoid Mayer as the next best option.
Anthony, however, has a bit murkier path to the Majors, despite how sensational he's been at Triple-A this season (.968 OPS). Boston's corner outfield dance card is pretty full between Jarren Duran and Wilyer Abreu, and Rafael Devers has the DH spot occupied. Anthony can't play center field, so it's unclear just where his playing time would come from.
Of course, there are ways around that problem, even allowing for the fact that Devers playing the field is apparently no longer an option. You could slide Duran back to center field, bench Ceddanne Rafaela and put Anthony in left field, for instance. Anthony is simply too good a player to hold down for too much longer, especially considering how desperate the Red Sox are for a spark as they look to try and keep pace with the New York Yankees in the AL East.