At 27-29 and in fourth place in the American League East, the Boston Red Sox need a spark. Multiple, really.
They've already called up Marcelo Mayer, one of the top prospects in baseball, with Alex Bregman sidelined for potentially a couple months with a quad strain. In Triple-A, Mayer was hitting .271/.347/.471 with nine home runs and 43 RBI. Mayer has three hits in his first 12 at-bats in the Majors and, at age 22, looks like a foundational piece in Boston’s infield.
But the Red Sox should not stop there.
How Roman Anthony, the No. 1 prospect in baseball, is not in the Majors yet is beyond me. It’s shocked me. It has people around baseball perplexed. Quite frankly, it’s long overdue, and something that the Red Sox need to do sooner than later.
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It's well past time the Red Sox called up Roman Anthony
Just look at Anthony’s numbers at Triple-A. In 47 games, he’s hitting .321/.453/.518 with seven home runs and 21 RBI with a .971 OPS. At 21 years old, he’s a franchise-altering talent — and for a Red Sox team in desperate need of a spark, Anthony would provide exactly that.
The question with Anthony, of course, is where the Red Sox put him defensively. They have Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu and Ceddanne Rafaela in the outfield. Rafael Devers is consistently getting at-bats as the designated hitter. Perhaps the Red Sox could move Rafaela, who was signed to a $50 million extension, to a super-utility role to get Anthony into the Majors.
It’s a move that makes too much sense for the Red Sox. Getting Anthony into the lineup every day could vault the team back into contention in the AL East with over 100 games remaining in the season. It also would take some demand off Rafaela, who has not grown into the player the Red Sox envisioned when they gave him that eight-year extension in April 2024.
By moving him into a super-utility role, it could take some of the pressure off Rafaela and allow him to reset. It would also allow the Red Sox to get a look at their future in Anthony and Mayer while also trying to compete for a World Series this season.
Of course, Anthony isn’t on the 40-man roster, so calling him up would result in the Red Sox moving on from a player. But that’s a small price to pay considering Anthony’s talent and potential impact in the Majors. And quite frankly, it’s a move that should have been made already.