Here's What it Might Take For Boston Red Sox to Promote Top Prospect Roman Anthony

The Boston Red Sox enter Saturday's doubleheader with the Baltimore Orioles at 26-26 and in second place in the American League East.

Though the Sox come in on the heels of a 19-5 drubbing of Baltimore on Friday, they still have plenty of questions, namely: Who is going to play first base moving forward? And when are top prospects Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer going to get their shots in the big leagues?

Well, according to MLB.com's Sam Dykstra, it might take an injury to get Anthony up at least:

On merit, it could come at any time. Triple-A pitchers aren’t giving Anthony much to hit, and he’s willing to take the free passes given to him instead of pressing. In reality, it might take an injury to one of the outfield mainstays or DH Rafael Devers to open up a lane for Anthony. And no, don’t expect him to play first base either.

That might be disappointing for Sox fans to read, but it's likely true. Jarren Duran is the reigning All-Star Game MVP, Ceddanne Rafaela has a $50 million contract, and Abreu is hitting .257 with 11 homers and owns an OPS+ of 133. He also has a Gold Glove under his belt. There's just no one easy to replace of that outfield trio.

As for Anthony, he's the No. 1 prospect in the sport, per MLB Pipeline. Drafted in the second round of the 2022 draft out of the Florida high school ranks, he's hitting .323 with six homers and 18 RBIs.

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