Red Sox prospect Roman Anthony goes 3-for-4 in Triple-A debut
WORCESTER -- There was a buzz in the air in Worcester on Tuesday, as top Red Sox prospects Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, and Kyle Teel spent their first day at the Triple-A level. That buzz carried into Tuesday night's game against the Lehigh Valley IronPigs, as Anthony collected three hits in his WooSox debut.
Anthony -- the No. 13 prospect in all of baseball -- got the start in centerfield and hit leadoff for Worcester, going 3-for-4 at the dish with a run scored. After swinging and missing at the first pitch he saw, Anthony took a fastball from IronPigs starter Kolby Allard and lined it into right-center. He put on his jets and hustled to second for a leadoff double for his first hit in Triple-A.
Roman Anthony's first Triple-A hit is a leadoff double 👏👏👏 pic.twitter.com/MTVEvehEOd
— Worcester Red Sox (@WooSox) August 13, 2024
"My first swing was a little weird, but I kind of settled in right away," Anthony said after his debut. "I was just excited to be here, and it was nice to get that first one out of the way."
Anthony made it to third on a fielder's choice by Chase Meidroth, and then was able to walk home when Triston Casas crushed a moonshot homer to put Worcester on top, 2-1.
It didn't take long for Anthony to get hit No. 2. He led off the bottom of the third with a single to right field on a 2-1 cutter, before Meidroth grounded into a double play. The 20-year-old hit a first-pitch single to short in the bottom of the fifth, and then closed his evening with a groundout to cap off an eight-pitch at-bat in the bottom of the seventh.
The IronPigs scored a pair of runs in the top of the eighth, but Worcester held on for a 4-3 victory.
"It was a lot of fun," Anthony said of his debut. "Sharing the field with these guys who have so much experience, it was a great time. And it was great that we got the win."
Teel -- who was drafted 14th overall by Boston in 2023 -- also made his debut. He started behind the plate and hit fifth for Worcester, and went 0-for-4 with a pair of strikeouts. Mayer did not play as he continues his recovery from a lower back injury.