Why Roman Anthony Enters 2024 With Improved Red Sox Potential

Before the start of the 2024 season, NESN.com is evaluating several noteworthy prospects in the Boston Red Sox organization, using insight and analysis from industry experts to gauge each player’s outlook for the upcoming campaign. Next up: Roman Anthony.

Roman Anthony took the Red Sox farm system by storm in 2023, making quite the jump while producing at three different levels of the minor leagues.

The 2022 second-round draft pick enters his second full professional season as one of Boston’s most important building blocks for the future within the organization.

As the No. 24 prospect in the sport, according to MLB Pipeline, Anthony is ready for another step forward.

With potential surrounding him, here’s everything you need to know about the 19-year-old outfielder.

Background
After the Red Sox selected a California high school infielder in the first round for a third straight year with Mikey Romero, Boston drafted Anthony in the second round of the 2022 MLB Draft.

The Red Sox clearly liked what they had in Anthony, signing him for $2.5 million when the slot value of his pick was $820K. The outfielder made his jump to professional ball after a solid run at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School in Florida, winning Gatorade Player of the Year in the Sunshine State for the 2021-22 year.

Anthony played just 20 games in 2022 after being drafted, hitting .306 overall before struggling in a small sample size after a promotion to High-A. The Red Sox showed faith in Anthony in 2023, a sentiment in which the prospect rewarded.

Across Low-A Salem, High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland, Anthony hit .272 with a .869 OPS in 106 games, earning him Minor League Player of the Year honors in the Red Sox farm system.

At 6-foot-4 with flowing baseball hair, Anthony offers a solid build as his professional career rolls on, as he looks to produce as he has at every previous stop of his baseball journey.

Scouting report
On paper, Anthony is a talented hitter who hits the ball hard with encouraging metrics. His athleticism shows in his play, stealing 16 bases last season and playing a smooth defensive outfield.

Arguably his best trait is his patient approach at the plate, to the point that Red Sox infielder Triston Casas took time to dissect Anthony’s production. Last season’s breakout campaign answered plenty of early questions about Anthony’s development.

“Anthony is a real baseball rat,” Baseball America’s Geoff Pontes recently told NESN.com. “Even when he wasn’t hitting, the data was tremendous. … He’s a little over passive at times, he doesn’t swing much. You’d like to see him get a little bit more aggressive. Some of that was starting to come later in the season when he went up to High-A. I don’t mind him having a little bit of whiff because he’s got great impact. I think the big thing for him is learning to get that impact to his pull side. A lot of his best drives are center and opposite field. I think you want to be able to get that guy to spray around the field. There is barrel control. I think some of his whiff or strikeout rate are probably inflated by his passive approach at the plate.”

“When you do all of that, you answer a lot of those questions really quickly,” Ian Cundall of SoxProspects.com told NESN.com recently. “I think it was a combination of on the field and also when you look at the more advanced data, that he’s just one of those darlings who just really pops ,especially in comparison to others in the system and others in minor league baseball.”

Anthony’s ability to hit the ball the other way with authority also offered a major area of interest during his 2023 rise, particularly with a power surge with the Greenville Drive. The ability to use all fields while earning his way on base stands out within Anthony’s offensive profile.

“That’s one of his biggest advantages as a hitter,” Cundall explained. “He can let the ball get deep on him and he’ll just go the other way. I think one thing you see a lot with younger power hitters is they have a tendency to try to drop their barrel and try to open up with their front side in order to yank the ball to the pull side, because that’s just what they’re more comfortable doing. … He’s comfortable going the other way and he’s not someone who’s going to try and swing out of his shoes just to pull the ball. He knows if he makes solid contract, regardless of where it is, it’s going to go far.”

Defensively, Anthony’s long-term projection depends on how the Red Sox shuffle their surplus of outfielders. Based on pure ability, Anthony has proven he can stick in center field for the early duration of his career.

“He can handle center,” Pontes added. “I don’t think that would be a problem. He would probably be average eventually. That would kind of be where he settles in. That remains to be seen.”

Most likely outcome: Consistent outfielder.

Anthony’s power and improved offensive productivity could decide his future.

What’s evident for now is that the Red Sox have a major-league outfielder with an excellent plate approach and can play smoothly defensively across each outfield position.

Best-case scenario: All-Star center fielder.

The Red Sox have had a pair of centerfielders emerge as All-Stars in recent memory with Jacoby Ellsbury in 2011 and Jackie Bradley Jr in 2016.

If Anthony can build up the rest of his game on top of a solid base of tools, he more than has the potential to join the class as a consistent contributor for the Red Sox.

Fenway forecast
Given the overflow of outfielders on the Red Sox roster, Anthony likely heads to the majors to start the 2025 season. Jarren Duran and Ceddanne Rafaela could end up in center field, though Duran could shift to left while Wilyer Abreu patrols right field.

Anthony also has plenty of time on his side to keep developing. Both he and Kyle Teel had two weeks at Double-A to close out last year, so that’s likely where the two will start the 2024 season. Given that progression, another full year in the minors would be a benefit to Anthony and the Red Sox.

As the Red Sox decide where everyone fits moving forward, Anthony makes the most sense to debut at the start of 2025.

SoxProspects Ranking: No. 1

Anthony’s massive boost in 2023 was enough to leap over Mayer in the SoxProspects rankings for the 2024 season. While Boston has legitimate talent in both players, Anthony truly made a statement in 2023.

“It was not easy, and it’s more of a 1A and 1B situation,” Cundall shared. “No. 1 for me, I think Anthony has a pretty good chance to stay in center field. If he was a corner-outfield profile, it’s a tougher sell.”

Cundall cited Anthony’s overall athleticism and improved power potential as the key factors in the switch to the top of the rankings for the Red Sox.

“I think Anthony did enough last year to answer our questions and show that he deserves to get that slight nod at No. 1,” Cundall added.