Boston Red Sox drafts: How have the last 10 first-round picks done?

Boston Red Sox 2021 first-round pick: Marcelo Mayer (shortstop)

The Boston Red Sox used the 4th overall pick in the 2021 draft on shortstop Marcelo Mayer.

How did Mayer fall to the Red Sox? I know they had the fourth overall pick, so that's not really "falling", but it's still wild. And fans of the organizations that drafted before Boston (particularly the Detroit Tigers) aren't thrilled about it.

Mayer was seen as the best prospect in the draft at the time. Two years later, it's hard to argue with that assumption.

Mayer's introduction to a full season in the minor leagues was very encouraging. The right-handed hitting shortstop slashed .280/.399/.489 with 30 doubles, two triples, and 13 home runs in 91 games (350 ABs) between Single-A and High-A. He drove in 53 runs, scored 61 more, and was a perfect 17-for-17 on stolen base attempts.

Somehow some fans didn't think that was good enough because of how highly touted he is. I guess the fact that he was a teenager in his first year in professional baseball putting up fantastic stats wasn't a positive to some people.

Well, Mayer's shutting them up now. He's slashing .299/.370/.547 with 11 doubles, one triple, and seven home runs in High-A in 2023 at the time of writing.

Slim Shady has driven in 32 runs in 33 games. He's also scored 23 runs and stolen four bases.

Mayer has looked extremely smooth defensively at shortstop. He's consistently hitting the ball hard and even had his first professional two-homer game this season.

The shortstop has all the tools to be great, and fans have routinely been asking when he's going to get moved up to Double-A. Luckily for them, it shouldn't come much later than July.

We're starting to creep closer to Marcelo Mayer in the Major Leagues. The excitement of the fans (despite him still being in High-A) should tell you all you need to know. This might be seen as the most obvious draft pick of all time, but that doesn't make it any less perfect.

Draft Grade: A+