The Boston Red Sox's recent series win over the New York Yankees and Roman Anthony's call-up have brought good vibes back to Red Sox Nation amid a disappointing season.
For years, Boston fans have had visions of Anthony and Marcelo Mayer crushing the Yankees alongside Rafael Devers in the Red Sox's lineup. Manager Alex Cora revealed that those visions may not come true when New York comes to town from June 13-15.
Cora has opted to sit Mayer against left-handed starting pitchers during his short tenure in the big leagues, and since Anthony is also a lefty, the trend will likely continue with him. Boston will face three left-handed starters in its upcoming tilts with the Yankees — Ryan Yarbrough, Carlos Rodón and Max Fried (subscription required).
Yarbrough has been solid in the rotation and out of the bullpen for New York this season, but Rodón and Fried have been two of the best pitchers in the American League. Rodón has posted a 2.87 ERA with a 0.94 WHIP and 103 strikeouts over 84.2 innings so far. The Red Sox were lucky enough to miss Fried's 1.84 ERA the last time they faced their rivals, but they won't have the same fortune this time. Fried has clocked a 0.93 WHIP and 81 strikeouts over 88 innings of work.
Red Sox likely wil not use young lefty hitters Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer against Yankees
The Red Sox have two lefty specialists on their roster who are better suited for the team's need to win divisional matchups as it hunts for a record that justifies buying at the trade deadline. Romy Gonzalez and Rob Refsnyder are slashing .353/.421/.529 and .279/.400/.558, respectively, against left-handers this year, and starting Anthony and Mayer over them should not be a risk Cora is currently willing to take.
Anthony and Mayer haven't struggled to hit lefties in their minor league careers. Mayer slashed .271/.300/.458 against southpaws in Triple-A, and Anthony raked against them, with a .367/.486/.483 slash line. But the difference in the quality of pitching between Triple-A and the big leagues is enormous.
Marcelo Mayer destroys his first Major League home run 💥 pic.twitter.com/pPpL2TvfGd
— MLB (@MLB) June 7, 2025
“Especially if you’re a lefty that’s 95 or better and can command it enough to execute game plans, every major league team wants that on their staff,” Red Sox assistant hitting coach Dillon Lawson said to Alex Speier of The Boston Globe. “So you’re not seeing that in Triple-A.”
Anthony agrees with the spike in difficulty between Triple-A and the major leagues, and understands that it may take some time for the Red Sox to justify playing him against lefties.
“That’s why they’re here. That’s why they’re not in the minor leagues,” Anthony said. “You come to learn from it and realize, ‘OK, this isn’t the same guy you’re facing in Double A or Triple A three times a week,’ so now we’ve got to adjust.”
Anthony and Mayer will get their moments in the sun against the Yankees at some point, and it may even be this year. Boston and New York have two more series against each other later in the season, and Mayer could already be establishing himself as a Yankee killer after he hit his first homer at Yankee Stadium on June 6. Hopefully, that trend continues with both top prospects in due time.