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Here’s what Tanner Houck said about Marcelo Mayer’s ‘unforgettable’ home run off of Nathan Eovaldi at Red Sox camp
"It will be something that for him I hope he remembers because it’s the start of the journey."
Top Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer hasn’t done much in professional baseball yet, but Monday morning felt like an arrival point for the 19-year-old shortstop.
Mayer went viral on Twitter after cranking a Nathan Eovaldi fastball into the Red Sox bullpen in right-center field during an intra-squad scrimmage Monday, showing a glimpse of what the 2021 No. 4 overall pick can do against Major League-caliber pitching.
Though Tanner Houck is a few years further along the big-league road than Mayer at this point, the young pitcher knows what it’s like to have a defining encounter against imposing Red Sox stars.
“Unforgettable, plain and simple,” he said when asked about Mayer’s home runs. “It will be something that for him I hope he remembers because it’s the start of the journey.”
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Houck says his own “you belong” moment came when he struck out the likes of J.D. Martinez and Mookie Betts during a live session in his first Spring Training back in 2018.
“When you first get drafted you definitely feel like, ‘OK, I made it.’ There is no denying it. I felt like I made it a little bit. Looking back I was a little silly back then because I hadn’t done anything because I had just got drafted and started the journey,” Houck said. “But to have those moments of facing J.D. and Mookie and Xander (Bogaerts), that’s the top echelon. You dream about facing those guys. So getting to do it the first year was like, ‘Holy cow!’ Also during that time, I didn’t know who I was facing. They stuck them in the box. I didn’t know until I stepped in and then I was like, ‘Oh…’”
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Houck is now 25 and is set to begin what could be his first full season in the Red Sox’ starting rotation. On the other hand, Mayer will soon head to the minor leagues and almost certainly won’t see competition above Double-A this year as he gets seasoned for the majors. With the likes of Bogaerts and Trevor Story ahead of him on the shortstop depth chart, Mayer won’t see action with the big club for some time.
But the starting pitcher kept referencing “the journey” as a way for both he and the exciting young prospect to keep perspective as they strive for excellence with the Red Sox.
“I thought I had things figured out and I didn’t have anything figured out,” Houck admits about his early days with Boston. “I still don’t have it figured out. But we’re all working to the end goal, which is trying to get things in line and ultimately reach the end goal. It’s all part of the journey.”
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