Red Sox: Marcelo Mayer surprisingly falls to No. 4 in MLB Draft
Red Sox select Marcelo Mayer in the first round of the 2021 draft
With the fourth overall pick of the 2021 Major League Baseball Draft, the Boston Red Sox have chose shortstop Marcelo Mayer. Mayer spent the last season playing for Eastlake High School in California.
Although it seemed likely that the Red Sox would go for pitching, that quickly changed with Mayer still being on the board. MLB.com views him as the number one prospect of this draft class, so it is shocking that he ended up going to Boston. This has the potential to be a complete steal for the Sox and fans should be excited. Scouts envision him as becoming a legitimate All-Star for years to come.
In his senior season, the 18-year-old easily dominated his competition. In 34 games, he hit an impressive 14 home runs to go along with a .392 batting average. With statistics like these, it is easy to comprehend why scouts view him as an excellent contact hitter. As he continues to mature, there is a good chance that the left-handed batter will increase his power, too. He of course is already 6’3″ and 188 pounds at such a young age.
More from Red Sox News
- Aaron Judge’s Yankees return a brutal reminder of what could have been for Red Sox
- Red Sox should capitalize on Yankees’ latest roster move
- Red Sox ownership’s latest reported venture could be what’s affected team spending
- How Red Sox’ latest cheap endeavor could carve out a role in 2023
- Conflicting report about Mookie Betts trade paints Chaim Bloom in even worse light
As marvelous as a hitter he is, his fielding appears to be just as impressive. This shows an amazing balance in his game. He has also been praised for having a very strong arm, while simultaneously being intelligent and quite alert in the field. This is why he is being compared to MLB All-Stars like Corey Seager and Carlos Correa so regularly.
The biggest downside of his game appears to be his speed, but realistically, it is not too bad. He has a scouting grade of a 50, which is still definitely serviceable. Therefore, even if he is not stealing bases all that often, he still is plenty quick enough to handle playing shortstop at the MLB level.
The one question that this pick brings up is the future of current shortstop, Xander Bogaerts. He has the ability to opt out after the 2022 season, but also has the chance to play here until the end of 2026. If the latter comes into fruition, it’ll be interesting to see where they decide to play Mayer in the long-run. Yet, at the end of the day, this is certainly not a bad problem to have.
Next. Matt Barnes agrees to 2-year contract extension. dark
The Red Sox definitely did not expect to get a player of Mayer’s level with the fourth pick, but man, it is certainly a pleasant surprise. With scouts seeing him as a potential five-tool MLB player, the Sox now may have their future star.