Why Ranking Update Shouldn’t Limit Excitement For Red Sox Top Prospect

Roman Anthony has several outlets crowning him baseball’s top prospect, but the Boston Red Sox talent did fall for a brief reason.

Roki Sasaki took on the No. 1 spot on MLB Pipeline’s Top 100 list over the Red Sox prospect after signing with the Los Angeles Dodgers following his posting from Japan and NPB. Given his rookie status, Sasaki is eligible for status on the prospect list but will graduate after his early season string of starts for the Dodgers. The 23-year-old joins an unstoppable rotation with Blake Snell, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani, to name a few.

Anthony leads four Red Sox prospects on the list and is the highest-rated minor leaguer on the list, so that should be taken with context with Sasaki in front of him for the time being prior to statistical graduation.

Anthony and fellow elite prospect Kristian Campbell should be early contributors for the Red Sox in 2025. Marcelo Mayer, who can stay healthy from previous ailments that prematurely ended his last two seasons, could debut in the second half.

So, while Sasaki may have the top spot for now, that’s no knock on Anthony, and there’s no reason to second-guess the rankings update entering the 2025 season.