Inside The Red Sox

This Red Sox 'Big 3' Star Will Win Rookie Of The Year, Says Top Prospect Evaluator

How will each of these young studs fare in the majors?
Jackson Roberts|
Boston's top-three prospects in Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony stand for the national anthem ahead of a Spring Training breakout game on March 13, 2025.
Boston's top-three prospects in Marcelo Mayer, Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony stand for the national anthem ahead of a Spring Training breakout game on March 13, 2025. | WooSox Photo/Ashley Green / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

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Wednesday is the final day before the Boston Red Sox's "big three" prospects will finally break through to Major League Baseball.

Kristian Campbell made the Opening Day roster, thanks to his monster 2024 season at the plate and the Red Sox's need for a second baseman. And his close friends Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer can't be long for the minor leagues after excellent spring training showings.

All three of these young stars should get the chance to impact the majors at some point this season. Anthony is the youngest and most highly-touted of the bunch, while Mayer had the best spring at the plate after recovering from a back injury that prematurely ended his 2024 campaign.

However, starting the year in the majors is a big-time advantage for Campbell when it comes to securing an award that the Red Sox would surely love one of these youngsters to take home at the end of the year.

On Wednesday, Keith Law of The Athletic, who has long been regarded as one of the top prospect evaluators in all of baseball, predicted that Campbell would win the 2025 American League Rookie of the Year Award, becoming the first Red Sox winner since Dustin Pedroia in 2007.

"Campbell won the second base job in the waning days of spring training, and he’s likely to get a long runway even if he starts slow, giving him a big leg up on the competition for this honor," Law wrote.

Campbell, 22, slashed a ridiculous .330/.439/.558 in 115 minor-league games last season. He made it from High-A at this time a year ago to the big leagues, after the Red Sox made him a fourth-round compensation pick in the 2023 draft.

Though Campbell struggled for much of this spring, he's come alive in a major way in the last week, swatting home runs on Saturday and Tuesday and piling up hits during the Red Sox's exhibition series in Monterrey, Mexico. He's peaking at the right time before making his highly-anticipated debut.

There's no doubt that Campbell has all the tools to win the award. And if he doesn't do so, the Red Sox just have to hope it's because Anthony or Mayer came up a bit later and took the league by storm.

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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

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