Red Sox 27-Year-Old Deemed 'Likeliest' To Be Marcelo Mayer Roster Casualty

As Boston Red Sox fans begin to grow restless over their team's inconsistent start to the season, the front office has to already be thinking about some tough decisions.

Rookie second baseman Kristian Campbell has been one of the team's biggest bright spots so far this season, and he has two close friends and fellow top prospects who will soon force their way onto the active roster. How will they fit into the picture?

Outfielder Roman Anthony comes with a fairly simple solution. He'll get a starting job and someone, most likely Ceddanne Rafaela, will be relegated to the bench. For shortstop Marcelo Mayer, though, the fit is decidedly less simple.

The Red Sox have a shortstop making $22.5 million this year in Trevor Story. They have Campbell at second base and superstar Alex Bregman at third. If Mayer is going to get a starting job at all, either Story will have to be benched (or get injured again) or Campbell will have to move to the outfield too.

Plus, someone will need to be booted off the active roster to make way for Mayer. FanSided's Katie Manganelli believes the short straw will be drawn by infielder David Hamilton, a fellow left-handed hitter and backup shortstop and second baseman.

"Hamilton is quick on the base paths and is a valuable pinch-running option for the Sox, and his defense has been solid so far. Still, the Red Sox have a top prospect infielder in the minor leagues who's been swinging a hotter bat and could be one of the smoothest defenders in the game," Manganelli wrote.

"There's still no hint of a timeline for the Sox's plans to call up Marcelo Mayer, but when it happens, Hamilton seems like the likeliest roster move."

This writer is going to disagree with Manganelli. Hamilton proved how valuable he is as a bench player when he scored the winning run from third base in a pinch-running appearance on Thursday. He's a manager's dream as the 12th or 13th position player on a roster, and any offense he gives them in his rare starts is gravy.

If no injuries happen, it feels at this point like a trade has to be made to fit both Mayer and Anthony on the roster, and Rafaela, even with his contract extension, might be easier to trade than Hamilton. And if someone else has to be demoted and it's not Rafaela, Romy González feels slightly less essential.

The point, though, is that it's an extremely tough decision. And unless there's an injury, the Red Sox are going to have to make someone very upset down the road.

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