Rise Of Red Sox’s Roman Anthony Doesn’t Shock This MLB Player

Boston Red Sox rookie Roman Anthony has surprised the baseball world with his rapid ascent in 2025, but some people close to Anthony aren’t shocked.

One of those people happens to be Baltimore Orioles second-year infielder Jackson Holliday, who has been friends with Anthony since they were in middle school.

Holliday and Anthony were both selected in the 2022 Major League Baseball draft; Holliday by the Orioles at No. 1 overall, Anthony by the Red Sox at No. 79.

The two friends are sharing a diamond this week as Anthony’s Red Sox are in Camden Yards battling Holliday’s Orioles.

The Athletic’s Jen McCaffrey caught up with Holliday, who had plenty of nice things to say about Anthony.

“Since we were 15 years old, I knew there was something different about the way he swung the bat,” Holliday said of Anthony, per McCaffrey.

“I was shocked that he got drafted so late,” Holliday added, per McCaffrey. “He didn’t really get the credibility that I think he deserved. Now, to watch him do everything that he’s done, it’s honestly not surprising because I watched him train in the offseason and watched him do his thing. … I could have told you this (success) was going to happen at some point. Maybe not this soon, but watching him establish himself as one of the better hitters in the league, I knew it was definitely coming.”

Anthony continued his epic season on Monday with a lead-off home run against Baltimore, becoming the youngest Red Sox player to hit a lead-off blast.

At some point, Anthony will cool off. The Red Sox are hoping it’s not anytime soon.