Red Sox $60 Million Man 'Almost Certainly' Going to Triple-A

The Boston Red Sox are a team that just scratched the surface in 2025.

After a few down seasons, Boston went 89-73 and made it back to the playoffs. While the Red Sox lost Alex Bregman in free agency, this is a team that arguably will be better in 2026. Boston boasts arguably the best rotation in baseball on paper led by Garrett Crochet and Ranger Suárez. The future is bright as well with Connelly Early and Payton Tolle looking like potential long-term rotation pieces, even if they don't make the Opening Day roster. The outfield is the best in the game with Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu.

Even without Bregman, the infield should be elite with Willson Contreras, Trevor Story, Caleb Durbin and likely Marcelo Mayer. There's a lot to like about this team and they're just going to get better. The club is loaded with young guys who have impressed in the majors and haven't even reached their peak yet. Anthony is just 21 years old, for example. There is so much talent with the club right now, to the point where it's going to be hard to get everyone involved. Masataka Yoshida is someone who could feel the brunt of that early in 2026. Another guy to watch is Kristian Campbell, who signed a $60 million extension last season.

For most teams, a 23-year-old on a $60 million extension would be a no-brainer for Opening Day. For Campbell, he'll "almost certainly" begin the season in Triple-A, per The Athletic's Jen McCaffrey.

The Red Sox have a lot of tough decisions to make

Feb 17, 2026; Lee County, FL, USA; Boston Red Sox second baseman Kristian Campbell (28) poses for a photo during media day at JetBlue Park. Mandatory Credit: Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images | Kim Klement Neitzel-Imagn Images

"Defensively, the long-term plan is for him to be a versatile defender, one who could bounce between the outfield and infield," McCaffrey wrote. "But for now, they want to take away that extra variable and have him focus on hitting. He noted when I spoke to him about his swing that he feels better focusing on one position while he tries to lock in his offense.

"He’ll almost certainly start the year in Triple A, where he’ll be able to get consistent at-bats and playing time to keep focusing on his offense away from the pressures of the majors. The Red Sox will surely have an injury in their outfield at some point this season, opening the door for Campbell to be recalled as long as he’s showing progress in Triple-A."

This shouldn't shock anyone because it's been pretty clear throughout camp that Campbell has been getting work in the outfield and it has been known how stacked Boston's outfield currently is. With Campbell, it's not like the upside isn't there. He has star potential himself. But it just goes to show how things have shifted for Boston, even since the start of the 2025 season.

This is a club that is young and hungry and everyone is going to have to earn their spots because there are other intriguing prospects trying to take them. For now, Campbell is someone seemingly on the outside looking in on the big league club, but his time will come at some point to show why he got the big deal last year.