4 Red Sox prospects earn spot on MLB.com’s latest Top 100 list
Marcelo Mayer leads the way at No. 15 overall.
Four Red Sox prospects garnered recognition on MLB.com’s latest Top 100 list.
Shortstop Marcelo Mayer (No. 15), outfielder Roman Anthony (No. 24), catcher Kyle Teel (No. 40), and outfielder/shortstop Ceddanne Rafaela (No. 76) all earned a spot.
Mayer, the No. 4 pick in the 2021 draft, missed the end of last season after suffering a shoulder injury. He’s a .261 career hitter in the Minors, with 29 home runs and 124 RBIs, in 195 games over three seasons.
MLB.com comment: “He has swung and missed a bit more than expected, particularly on pitches in the zone, but he has a pretty left-handed stroke and generally makes good swing decisions, so he should be a solid hitter.”
Anthony, 19, was a second-round selection in 2022. He rose up the ranks, from Salem to Greenville to Portland, and is a career .277 hitter, with 14 homers and 76 RBIs, over 126 games in the Minors.
MLB.com comment: “His swing decisions and penchant for making extremely hard contact translated at higher levels, bode well for his future and give him a higher offensive ceiling than fellow Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer in the minds of some evaluators.”
Teel, the No. 14 pick in 2023, hit .364 with two homers and 22 RBIs in 26 games, between the Florida Complex League, Greenville, and Portland. Teel was 88th on the previous list and jumped 40 spots.
MLB.com comment: “More hitter than slugger, he has a sound left-handed swing and a disciplined, all-fields approach. He features 20-homer upside and should produce plenty of doubles with pop that plays to all parts of the ballpark.”
Rafaela, originally signed as an international free agent in 2017, hit .280 with 60 HRs and 264 RBIs over 424 games in the Minors. He made his Major League debut in August and hit .241, with two homers and five RBIs, over 28 games with the Red Sox.
MLB.com comment: “Rafaela has a quick right-handed swing, sneaky strength and a knack for putting the barrel on the ball, but he’s also an extremely aggressive hitter who chases too many pitches out of the zone and piles up strikeouts.”
The site’s writers appear to think highly of the group overall.
Per MLB.com: “The Red Sox hope that this group of position players can team with Rafael Devers to form the core of their next contender. Mayer and Anthony are impact bats, Teel looks like a steal as the No. 14 overall pick last July and Rafaela is one of the best defensive prospects in the game.”
For reference, the Orioles have six players in the Top 100, the Yankees four, the Rays four, and the Blue Jays two.
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