Alex Cora Discusses Red Sox’s Plans For Roman Anthony
Heading into 2026, the Boston Red Sox have one of the best young players in baseball in Roman Anthony. The 21-year-old outfielder hit the ground running as a rookie last season, immediately establishing himself as one of the sport’s best all-around players and finishing third in the AL Rookie of the Year race.
Now, it’s up to manager Alex Cora to maximize his talents and put him in a position to succeed next year, especially coming off a season-ending oblique injury.
Part of that involves figuring out where to slot Anthony in the batting order. He primarily batted first, second and third last season thanks to his elite on-base skills, but there’s a chance he could also hit cleanup depending on how the lineup shakes out.
“I see him hitting at the top of the lineup,” Cora said on Wednesday’s episode of “Foul Territory.” “It’s gonna be a debate if we’re gonna lead him off, hit him second or hit him fourth. We’ll see how the roster looks when we get to Cincinnati next year for Opening Day.”
Anthony had his most success batting leadoff last season, slashing .336/.439/.564 with 12 extra-base hits, 17 RBI and 26 runs in 31 games there. However, the Red Sox may move him down to cleanup to maximize his emerging power stroke, which improved as the season progressed.
That said, Cora’s goal is to keep Anthony on track and help him reach his full potential.
“As far as the player, keep him healthy, let him be who he is,” Cora said. “We are far away from the best version of Roman Anthony, but the one we have right now and the one we’re going to have next year is really, really good.”