Red Sox Writer Floats Risky, Exciting Kristian Campbell Idea

Boston Red Sox fans aren’t comfortable at all these days. Boston has lost six of 10. The Red Sox are by no means out of the woods in the wild-card standings (Cleveland Guardians 2.5 games back, Texas Rangers 3.5 games back entering Wednesday). And generally speaking, the team isn’t playing well in any facet of the game right now.

Something needs to change for Boston. Offensively, the Red Sox haven’t quite been the same since Roman Anthony left the lineup. Boston is even thinking it could use a young, energetic bat like Marcelo Mayer’s right now, but Mayer, of course, was ruled out for the season a month ago.

Here’s an idea … why not bring back the third member of Boston’s rookie “Big 3” into the fold? 

Yes, we are referring to Kristian Campbell, who has been performing well in Triple-A despite ongoing position changes.

As Red Sox On SI’s Patrick McAvoy pointed out on Wednesday, re-inserting Campbell into the big-league lineup could give the Red Sox the spark they need at the moment.

“Campbell struggled at times in Boston, sure,” McAvoy wrote. “But, there also was a time in which he was red-hot at the beginning of the season. The Red Sox need something. In Campbell’s first 28 games of his big league career, he slashed .313/.420/.515 with four home runs, 12 RBIs, and 18 RBIs. The next 39 were a drag. He slashed .154/.236/.215 with two home runs and nine RBIs.”

“It’s important to note the struggles because that is what got him sent down to Triple-A in June,” McAvoy continued. “He’s been solid down in Worcester. He’s played 70 games and is slashing .270/.382/.417 with eight home runs and 36 RBIs in 70 games.”

“A move like this would be a gamble, for sure,” McAvoy added. “The Red Sox already have seen what they have on the roster. Nobody — including David Hamilton, Nate Eaton, or Nick Sogard — have the upside that Campbell does right now. … There is added pressure with the playoff push right now, but Campbell arguably would give the team a (better) chance to compete right now.”

McAvoy is right about the added pressure. It’s not the ideal time to throw Campbell back into the fire, but on the other hand, the Red Sox are running out of impact bats.

Campbell began the season in MLB. Perhaps it’s only fitting that he ends the 2025 campaign there, as well.