Craig Breslow Addresses Key Question About Roman Anthony, Marcelo Mayer

It’s a question seemingly every Boston Red Sox fan wants to know the answer to early in the season.

When will Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer, who are tearing it up with Triple-A Worcester at the moment, get the much-anticipated call up to join the Red Sox in the big leagues?

Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow was asked that prominent question about the top two prospects prior to Wednesday’s game against the Toronto Blue Jays and he kept the timelines for Anthony and Mayer’s arrival to the majors open-ended.

“It’s a balancing act trying to look at what’s best for the development of individual players, what’s best for the organization,” Breslow told MLB.com’s Ian Browne. “We have identified development opportunities for those guys. We want to make sure we see that through. There is likely to come a time when the best development environment for those guys is here with our major league team, and we’ll figure things out. Obviously my job is to balance those things, and sometimes it’s easier to do than others. But having really talented guys being on the cusp (of) contributing is a great position to be in.”

Anthony and Mayer certainly have proved they are worthy of a promotion. Anthony, a 20-year-old outfielder, is batting .306 with a 1.004 OPS to go along with five home runs and 14 RBIs in 24 games. Mayer, a 22-year-old shortstop, has been just as good slashing .268/.318/.526 with seven home runs and an eye-popping 34 RBIs.

The Red Sox could want Anthony and Mayer to get more seasoning since they have relatively limited experience at the Triple-A level. Anthony has played in 59 games with Worcester while Mayer has suited up in just 24. But as Kristian Campbell showed, getting experience at that level for an elite prospect isn’t exactly necessary.

Complicating the matter of when Anthony and Mayer get called up is where they will play for the Red Sox. Boston already has a crowded outfield with Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu holding down starting roles, so Anthony would have to bump one of those three out. Mayer might have an even bigger obstacle than Anthony with veteran Trevor Story manning shortstop for the Red Sox and no other infield spots up for grabs.

The roadblocks are an issue in getting Anthony and Mayer to Boston. But Breslow doesn’t view it that way.

“The alternative to that would be that it’s so obvious where these guys slot in, and even if they weren’t ready, there (would be) this urge to rush,” Breslow said. “That’s actually not the position you want to be in. We’ll balance all of those considerations, and as those guys continue to progress and meet their development goals. That’s what’s most important.”