Roman Anthony — baseball’s No. 1 prospect — ready to embrace challenge with Red Sox
"I feel ready. I’m doing everything I can, and trusting the front office -- trusting they’ll make the right decision.”
Roman Anthony has heard it all at this point.
There’s the talk of his advanced approach at the plate, even for a player who was facing high-school pitching just two years ago.
There’s the discourse over Anthony’s relative inexperience and evident production — with a poised outfielder who just turned 20 last year already knocking on the door at the big leagues.
“They’re surprised,” Anthony said of his teammates in Triple-A Worcester — many of whom are at least three to five years older than him. “But it’s not weird for me. Like I’ve always been around older guys, always played up.”
And, of course, there’s the slew of prospect rankings — many of which have already anointed the Red Sox’ skilled outfielder as the top young talent in baseball.
Baseball America was the first to crown Anthony as the No. 1 MLB prospect in September 2024, while Baseball Prospectus tabbed Anthony in the same top spot with their latest rankings on Tuesday.
Those lofty labels bring pressure and high expectations.
But with his first hacks at Fenway Park potentially a few months away, Anthony isn’t spending any time looking at his prospect rankings.
“I don’t think any of it matters, to be honest,” Anthony admitted Tuesday at Boston’s Rookie Development Program at Fenway Park. “I haven’t done anything in the big leagues yet. I’m just looking forward to getting in and helping this team win.”
A 2025 Red Sox roster anticipating for an influx of young talent would welcome the arrival of Anthony at some point this summer.
Even if the talented outfielder needs a bit more seasoning in Worcester to start the new season, the early returns have already been promising at the highest level of the minor leagues.
Anthony first put himself on the radar of top talent evaluators in 2023, with his plate discipline, exit velocity, and bat speed painting the picture of a force at the plate — even if those didn’t exactly translate into elite results in the stat sheet.
The 2024 season was the best of both worlds for Anthony when it came to that knack of hammering pitches leading to production.
He slashed .291/.396/.498 with 18 home runs, 65 RBI, and 21 stolen bases over 119 total games between Double-A Portland and Worcester last season, with his numbers spiking after closing out the summer against Triple-A pitching (.344/.463/.519 over 35 games).
While Anthony has seemingly elevated his ceiling with each new promotion up the minor-league ladder, his rapid growth hasn’t come as a surprise to Red Sox Senior Director of Player Development Brian Abraham.
“I mean the talent, the work ethic, the willingness to push himself in order to get better,” Abraham said of what has stood out in Anthony’s development. “Again, those are the traits and the characteristics you want out of all of our players.
“He represents our young group, our minor-league group. He represents the organization — how you’d want someone who’s willing to push himself. … So we’re really excited about where he is and the progress he continues to make.”
Much like Worcester teammates in Kristian Campbell (No. 3 prospect on Baseball Prospectus) and Marcelo Mayer (No. 25), Anthony will be knocking on the door with Boston in short order.
But Anthony – who compared himself to former MVPs Christian Yelich and Cody Bellinger on Tuesday while speaking to NESN — is not focused on a talk of a mid-season call-up.
“Of course,” Anthony said of trying to break camp with the big-league roster. “Going into spring training with that mentality, trying to win a job. There’s really no other goal for me. So yeah, I feel ready. I’m doing everything I can, and trusting the front office – trusting they’ll make the right decision.”
To comment, please create a screen name in your profile
To comment, please verify your email address
Conversation
This discussion has ended. Please join elsewhere on Boston.com