Can Red Sox’ trio of top prospects right the ship in Boston? They’re embracing the challenge.
"The end goal is the same. It's to roll out that banner and win a World Series here in Boston."
For all of the talk this winter about the Red Sox’ “full throttle” efforts toward constructing a contending roster, Craig Breslow has opted to look at the big picture.
The Red Sox have been mired in mediocrity for years, with Boston coming off of a last-place finish for the third time in four years in 2023.
The 2024 campaign might see Boston reduced to a punching bag against its AL East foes once again.
With less than a month to go before pitchers and catchers report in Fort Myers, Boston’s offseason hasn’t cultivated a lot of optimism.
Breslow’s top additions this winter have been starter Lucas Giolito, second baseman Vaughn Grissom, and outfielder Tyler O’Neill. Even with the team’s payroll still $35 million below MLB’s first competitive tax threshold of $237 million, the Red Sox have largely stayed on the sidelines as marquee free agents like Yoshinobu Yamamoto have signed elsewhere.
As disheartening as the immediate returns might be in Breslow’s first year as Boston’s chief baseball officer, hope resides in the form of a stacked prospect pool — headlined by three potentially franchise-altering youngsters in Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, and Kyle Teel.
And Breslow is not shirking away from putting those three in the spotlight.
“I think the reality is that it’s going to require a step forward from the young position players,” Breslow told Peter Abraham of The Boston Globe about Boston’s long-term outlook. “It’s going to require the build-out of a talent pipeline of arms that we can acquire, we draft, and we can develop internally.
“And it’s going to require aggressive player development in the minor leagues and the major leagues so guys that we think are the next wave — [Marcelo] Mayer and [Roman] Anthony and [Kyle] Teel, that group — are not just big leaguers but impact big leaguers. The convergence of all those pieces is the fastest path to a World Series team.”
That’s plenty of pressure to put on prospects like Mayer (21 years old), Teel (21), and Anthony (19) — especially considering that all three haven’t faced a single pitch against Triple-A competition.
But a potential star shortstop like Mayer has no qualms with Boston’s evident investment in their long-term outlook.
“I wouldn’t say pressure,” Mayer said Wednesday following the end of Boston’s Rookie Development Program at Fenway Park. “I think that we all love the game and we all love to be around each other and we all want to win.
“Every single person in this clubhouse wants to win, the Red Sox organization wants to win, and that’s the only thing that matters in this city. So we’re aware of that and that’s our goal as well. So we do everything we can every day to hopefully make that dream come true.”
There’s plenty to like about what all three of Mayer, Anthony, and Teel can eventually offer at the big-league level.
The grouping headlines Boston’s list of top prospects, with Baseball America’s latest Top 100 Prospects list holding Mayer (No. 14 overall), Anthony (No. 21), and Teel (No. 62) in high regard.
For Red Sox Director of Player Development Brian Abraham, they represent the most talented crop of young talent within the organization in years.
“I guess it was probably Mookie [Betts], Xander [Bogaerts], that kind of group of players I guess,” Abraham said of the last top group of prospects in Boston. I was working for the for the Blue Jays when it was Dustin [Pedroia], when it was Jacoby [Ellsbury], when it was [Jon] Lester, that group. … I think that would be the closest [comparison].
“Still obviously a lot to be told for these guys’ careers. But in terms of what they’ve done so far, the types of people they are, the type of work they put, in their willingness to be great — we’re really excited.”
Mayer’s ceiling as an All-Star caliber option at shortstop is very appealing for Boston, especially with Bogaerts leaving in free agency in December 2022. But the rapid rise of Anthony and Teel has also shifted the landscape of Boston’s prospect pipeline in short order.
Anthony — an athletic outfielder with high hit tools — wasn’t tabbed on any national prospect rankings entering the 2023 season. That changed in short order.
During Baseball Prospectus’ midseason rankings update, they listed Anthony as the No. 9 prospect in all of baseball, even ahead of Mayer (No. 10). He became the first Red Sox prospect to reach Double-A Portland as a teenager since Bogaerts, earning a spot with the Sea Dogs just 14 months after he wrapped up his high-school career.
Teel was taken 14th overall in the 2023 MLB Draft by Boston in July, with the Red Sox impressed with the University of Virginia catcher’s defensive ceiling and high contact rate.
He quickly carved a path through Boston’s farm system, logging just 17 total games between the Florida Complex League Red Sox and High-A Greenville Drive before ending his year with the Sea Dogs.
All three of Mayer, Anthony, and Teel are expected to start the 2024 season with Double-A Portland. For Teel, those valuable reps will also allow Boston’s next wave of talent to build some chemistry together down in the minor leagues.
“When you first get to college, there’s a period where you’re getting comfortable and you’re learning [about] the guys and you’re becoming friends with them. And I would say just coming here — that was a fairly quick process for me,” Teel said. “Guys like Marcelo Meyer and Roman Anthony — on the field, we work hard and we get after it. But outside of the field, we hang out and we’re good friends. So the transition has been really easy. And I’ve been having a lot of fun with it as well.”
Based on Breslow’s comments, any hope for an immediate turnaround for the Red Sox’ fortunes might rest on the performance of Mayer, Anthony, and Teel — be it in 2025, or even later this summer if they manage to punch their ticket to the big leagues.
It’s a welcome challenge for Anthony and Boston’s next group of potential franchise fixtures.
“It’s an honor to be counted on. And it’s an honor to be mentioned,” Anthony said of Breslow’s comments. I think that you’re always going to take that as a positive, obviously. But we’re not there yet. And none of us have gotten there yet. So we’ve got a lot of work to do.
“We’ve got a long way to go before we’re there. But, I think I can speak for all the guys here when I say the end goal is the same. It’s to roll out that banner and win a World Series here in Boston. So I think we’re all just working as hard as we can to get there.”
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