No one burst onto the scene in MiLB quite like top Boston Red Sox infield prospect Kristian Campbell last season.
Campbell ascended through three levels of Boston's farm system in commanding fashion in 2024, slashing .330/.439/.558 with a .997 OPS in 115 games on the year. He netted multiple awards, including the Eastern League MVP, Baseball America Minor League Player of the Year, MiLB Awards Breakout Player of the Year, and some experts tabbed him as the best prospect they've ever seen.
The Red Sox are justifiably excited about Campbell after his outstanding year. He appeared in Boston's March 17 spring training game alongside the likely Opening Day starting lineup, but quite a few scouting reports have suggested he may not be ready for that yet.
On March 7, MassLive published a scout's assessment of Red Sox players halfway through spring training, and they concluded that Campbell's defense didn't look big-league ready (subscription required). Jen McCaffrey of The Athletic also noted how much instruction the Sox have had to give Campbell at second base, which suggests he may need more time to develop in the minor leagues. He only has 19 games of Triple-A experience under his belt, after all. He made a few great plays on March 17 to begin to change the conversation about his defense, but the consensus among scouts and reporters is that Campbell needs more time in the minors.
Despite other players' better spring performances, the Red Sox seem dedicated to putting Kristian Campbell on the Opening Day roster
The young righty has also struggled at the plate in Grapefruit League action. He's batting .158/.289/.211 with 15 strikeouts in 16 appearances, a stark difference from his performance in Worcester last year, which is to be expected in his first few weeks against big league pitching.
Campbell is still just 22 years old and has plenty of time to mature as a player, but Boston seems committed to including him on the Opening Day roster despite other middle infielders posting better performances. Nick Sogard, who has played second base, third base and shortstop in the Red Sox organization, is batting .262/.367/.476 and hasn't logged a single error in 21 appearances, but the Sox still gave Campbell the starting nod in the big league lineup.
One of the reasons the Red Sox may be committed to starting Campbell at second on Opening Day is because Alex Bregman hasn't had any in-game playing time there since he signed with Boston. Alex Cora billed the former Astro as a potential second base option earlier in the offseason, but he hasn't been able to play there due to Rafael Devers' injury recovery keeping him out of action — with Devers on the sidelines, Boston had no one but Bregman to play the hot corner.
Starting Campbell at second base and Bregman at third means Devers will need to transition to designated hitter, which Masataka Yoshida seems more than capable of doing on Opening Day. There have been rumors that Yoshida will open the upcoming campaign on the injured list, but he wouldn't need to if he slotted in the lineup at DH instead of in the outfield. HIs throwing progression is still behind as he recovers from a labrum surgery he underwent this offseason, but he can surely swing as well as ever — he homered in the Sox's March 18 spring training game against the Yankees in one of his final cases for an Opening Day roster spot.
The Red Sox seem devoted to starting Campbell at second base on Opening Day, which would be a curious choice given the experienced players they have available. Cora attested that Boston's Opening Day roster would contain the 26 best players to help the team win, and at the moment, that lineup does not include Campbell — his offense and defense are behind some of the other players in the running for the same job.