The Boston Red Sox came into this season with a plan when it came to their top three prospects, Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell and Marecelo Mayer. All three came into this year ranked in the top 12 of Baseball America’s top 100 prospects list and each had a case to make the major league roster. But Campell was the lone member of the group to do so with Anthony and Mayer optioned to Triple-A Worcester.
Campbell has made an immediate impact, hitting .342/.440/.585 with a pair of homers and five RBI in his first 12 games. But the Red Sox are 6-7 entering Thursday’s series finale with the Toronto Blue Jays. It puts several veterans on the roster on notice with “The Big Three” behind them and one in particular who could be skating on thin ice after Craig Breslow’s comments on Wednesday night.
Craig Breslow Puts Ceddanne Rafaela On Notice After Roman Anthony Comments
Breslow was asked about the status of Anthony, who is Baseball America’s No. 2 prospect entering this season. While the 20-year-old has hit just .167/.375/.433 with a pair of homers and four RBI in nine games with the Woo Sox, many feel it’s just a matter of time before he reaches the majors, which is something Breslow addressed on Wednesday night.
“There are certain players, and we’re hopeful and optimistic that we have a handful of those, who create their own timeline,” Breslow said. “But then, the bulk of the guys who get to the big leagues do so because an opportunity arises on the big league club. I think this will likely be some balance of both of these things.”
Anthony’s slow start isn’t helping matters but there are several obstacles in the way of his promotion. One of the biggest is playing time as the Red Sox already have Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Rob Refsnyder and the injured Masataka Yoshida in front of Anthony. Boston would like to have Anthony play everyday when he reaches the majors but that opportunity doesn’t exist – unless Ceddanne Rafaela continues to struggle.
Rafaela has stumbled out of the gate to begin the year, hitting .229/.308/.229 with six RBI and a pair of stolen bases in 11 games. While it’s early, it’s a ways off of his rookie year when the 24-year-old hit .246/.274/.390 with 15 homers, 75 RBI and 19 stolen bases in 29 attempts. It has many surrounding the Red Sox to take notice, including MassLive’s Chris Cotillo, who believes Anthony could take his spot if he continues to struggle.
“The Red Sox will want Anthony to play every day when he does come up, and there’s no reason to think Boston will cut into the playing time of either Duran or Abreu to do so,” Cotillo wrote. “Therefore, Rafaela is the player most likely to see a role change once Anthony’s up, assuming everyone’s healthy.”
Cotillo also noted that left field is likely to be Anthony’s position when he reaches the big leagues and that should be enough to put Ceddane on notice. He also stated that Anthony’s slow start is misleading as he’s hitting the ball hard and has a .949 OPS in 44 career games despite being the youngest player at the Triple-A level.
The Red Sox still would like to see him get more exposure against left-handers, however, and want to make sure he’s comfortable in left field after spending most of his minor league career in center.
With Mayer also champing at the bit to get to the major leagues, fans will be watching Anthony in the minors just as closely as they will be watching Rafaela to see if he can break out of his slump. If that doesn’t happen, Anthony could be on his way to Fenway Park and leave the veteran embracing a new role.