The Boston Red Sox are setting the bar high for top infield prospect Marcelo Mayer.
Mayer, baseball’s No. 7 prospect according to MLB Pipeline, will be challenged this upcoming season to showcase his defensive versatility. Red Sox manager Alex Cora told reporters during Saturday’s Fenway Fest that the plan will be for the 22-year-old to play shortstop, second base and third base, per MassLive’s Christopher Smith.
Boston promoted Mayer, alongside Roman Anthony and ex-Red Sox prospect Kyle Teel, to Triple-A Worcester last season. Mayer, now 240 minor league appearances deep into his professional career, has logged 238 appearances at shortstop. So, the organization’s plan will pose an opportunity for Mayer to get familiar with other areas around the infield before Boston gives him the long-awaited call to its big league club.
It’s not an easy transition, but Cora isn’t alone in believing that Mayer is up for the test.
“I think he has the ability and maturity to be an all the way around infielder,” Red Sox infield instructor Jose Flores said Saturday, per Smith. “That being said, no doubt that he can play the left side of the field. Obviously second base will probably be a position that will be a little bit more awkward for him to learn on a faster pace just because it’s his blind side when turning double plays and all that. And it’s a little bit different. But it’s something that I know for a fact that he can pick up really fast. No doubt.”
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Boston selected Mayer, a shortstop out of Eastlake High School, with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft, and allowed him to maintain that position.
Mayer made 65 starts at shortstop for the Double-A Portland Sea Dogs last season and just one at third base, committing a combined 11 errors including one in four defensive chances at the hot corner.
He also batted .307 with eight home runs, 28 doubles, 38 RBIs and a .370 on-base percentage in 77 games with the Sea Dogs. Mayer didn’t get a chance to take the field with Boston’s Triple-A crew after suffering an immediate lumbar strain upon his promotion, which ended Mayer’s 2024 season in late August.
That concluded Mayer’s fourth season in Boston’s farm system on a rough note, however, it didn’t discourage the organization one bit.
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“I want to see the kids play,” Cora said, per Smith. “(Kristian) Campbell and Marcelo and Roman — I want to see them play.”
Mayer is expected to be ready by the start of spring training.
Featured image via Chris Cameron
