Inside The Red Sox

Red Sox's Marcelo Mayer Has Perfect 2-Word Response to Teammates' WBC Clash

Sox fans have to love Mayer's sentiment...
Aug 16, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran (16) and left fielder Roman Anthony (19) react after defeating the Miami Marlins at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images
Aug 16, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox center fielder Jarren Duran (16) and left fielder Roman Anthony (19) react after defeating the Miami Marlins at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

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Monday night's World Baseball Classic showdown between Team USA and Team Mexico quickly became a showcase for the Boston Red Sox.

Outfielder Roman Anthony's three-run home run proved to be the difference in the U.S.' 5-3 win. But outfield teammate Jarren Duran hit two solo shots for Mexico in a spirited late-game comeback attempt.

That comeback attempt was snuffed out by reliever Garrett Whitlock, who struck out two batters in a scoreless ninth inning to pick up the save. That made it 3-for-3 on Red Sox players having star performances on the evening.

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Marcelo Mayer loved what he saw from Sox teammates

Marcelo Mayer
Jun 30, 2025; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox third baseman Marcelo Mayer (39) looks through the viewfinder of a camera prior to a game against the Cincinnati Reds at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images | Bob DeChiara-Imagn Images

Red Sox infielder Marcelo Mayer, who was born in California to a pair of Mexican parents, isn't participating in this year's WBC, opting instead to focus on his quest to earn a starting job for Boston to begin the regular season.

So when Mayer was asked by WEEI's Rob Bradford which country he was supporting, both of whose national teams featured Red Sox ties, he came up with the perfect response.

"Asked Marcelo Mayer who he was rooting for in last night’s Mexico vs. USA game: ‘The boys,'" Bradford tweeted.

On Monday night in Houston, "the boys" certainly delivered. In fact, the Red Sox's fingerprints have been all over this WBC.

Masataka Yoshida has been crushing the ball for Team Japan. Willson Contreras has had plenty of important RBIs for Team Venezuela. Brayan Bello had one of the best starts of the tournament for Team Dominican Republic on Monday. Even relievers Jovani Morán and Greg Weissert have had scoreless relief outings for Puerto Rico and Italy, respectively.

If someone hooked Mayer up to a lie detector test, we suspect that he might be cheering the hardest for Anthony, who was his roommate for the last two seasons both in the minor leagues and the majors.

Anthony's star performance at the WBC could also be great motivation for Mayer, who was once looked at as the consensus better prospect, to prove this season that he's a cornerstone for the Red Sox, too.

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Jackson Roberts
JACKSON ROBERTS

Jackson Roberts is a former Division III All-Region DH who now writes and talks about sports for a living. A Bay Area native and a graduate of Swarthmore College and the Newhouse School at Syracuse University, Jackson makes his home in North Jersey. He grew up rooting for the Red Sox, Patriots, and Warriors, and he recently added the Devils to his sports fandom mosaic. For all business/marketing inquiries regarding Boston Red Sox On SI, please reach out to Scott Neville: scott@wtfsports.org