The start of the 2025 season has been a fun one for Boston Red Sox fans. The team might only be 4-4 as of this writing, and the Rafael Devers Red Sox fans know and love remains nowhere to be found. Still, they've been very fun to watch, and Kristian Campbell is a big reason why.
It was a mystery whether Campbell would open the regular season with the team until right before Opening Day, but he has looked like nothing but a budding star thus far. Campbell has 11 hits in 26 at-bats (.423 BA), has reached base in over half of his plate appearances (.515 OBP), and has hit two home runs in his eight games played. The Red Sox reaffirmed their belief in him by extending him on a deal that could keep him in Boston for an entire decade.
Campbell's blazing start to his MLB career has Red Sox fans wanting to see the team's top prospect, Roman Anthony, at the sport's highest level. Frankly, it's hard to blame them, especially after seeing Campbell thrive. The Red Sox are not making this move just yet, though, and there's one obvious reason as to why.
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Delayed Roman Anthony call-up has everything to do with service time
MLB roster rules are nothing but complicated, and this whole Roman Anthony situation highlights that exact fact. By holding a player who has yet to be promoted to the big league level down in the minor leagues for the first 16 days of any given season, teams can "steal" an extra year of club control. The Cubs famously did this with Kris Bryant at the start of his career.
By calling Campbell up on Opening Day, the Red Sox were willing to take the risk of potentially losing him after just six seasons instead of the seven they would've had him for had they waited for 16 days. That, of course, doesn't matter now that Campbell has signed an extension.
Anthony is a higher-touted prospect than Campbell, had more Triple-A experience than Campbell, and was better in spring training than Campbell. The reason he didn't make the Opening Day roster likely has everything to do with service time as well as the positions they play.
Campbell plays second base, a position the Red Sox are relatively weak at without him. David Hamilton as an alternative is a lot less exciting than Ceddanne Rafaela, Boston's backup option in center field. Given that, the Red Sox are more than fine with a couple of weeks with Anthony at Triple-A.
Is Anthony better than Rafaela right now? Almost certainly, but it's not as if the gap is wide enough to justify risking losing Anthony one year earlier than they have to by waiting an extra 10-ish games. With that in mind, don't be surprised to see Anthony in a Red Sox uniform sooner rather than later once the 16 days pass.