When the Red Sox traded Marcelo Mayer to the Giants on August 4, Roman Anthony was sitting on the IL — no goodbye on the field, no last game together. Two weeks later, speaking from Hadlock Field in Portland during his rehab assignment, Anthony put the trade in its real context: Mayer was his roommate from the time they were 18 and 19 years old in the minor leagues. This wasn’t just a roster move. It was the end of a chapter that started long before either of them ever set foot in Fenway Park.
Roommates on the Road to Boston
Anthony and Mayer didn’t meet in Boston — they met on the way there. Two prospects grinding through the minors, sharing a room, figuring it out together. Along with Kristian Campbell, they formed the so-called ‘big three’ of Red Sox prospects: the generation Boston fans had been waiting on as the franchise’s next wave.
What Anthony said in the clip that surfaced August 18 didn’t sound like a rehearsed press-conference answer. He talked about being genuinely happy for his friend — a fresh start, a new opportunity, a chance to get back close to home in California. «The friendship or the relationship when guys get traded, it doesn’t really change,» he added in broader comments picked up by Boston.com. The friendship stays. The shared chapter inside the same organization, though? That one’s closed.
The Timing Makes It Stranger
Anthony has been on the IL since May 4 — a hand injury against the Tigers knocked him out for more than three months. When the trade came through in the final hours of the August 4 deadline, he wasn’t there. No dugout farewell, no last at-bat side by side. Just the news, and his reaction from the outside looking in.
Why Boston Moved Mayer — and What They Got Back
Mayer arrived in Boston as the #4 overall pick in the 2021 Draft, a 23-year-old shortstop prospect with franchise-caliber expectations. It never clicked. In 2025 he slid into an emergency third-base role after Alex Bregman‘s injury and hit .228/.272/.402 in 44 games before landing on the injured list himself with a right wrist injury requiring surgery. In 2026 he appeared in 70 games and posted a .220 AVG and .594 OPS — numbers that told the story of a player who never found his footing in the big leagues.
Statcast made it harder to hold out hope: Mayer averaged 86.1 mph exit velocity in 2026 with an xwOBA of .259 — meaning even the quality of contact he was making didn’t project a meaningful rebound. A 6.1% barrel rate and 36% hard-hit rate completed the picture of a hitter who wasn’t just struggling — the underlying numbers weren’t giving Boston a reason to wait.
The return wasn’t nothing. Left-hander Erik Miller averaged 96.9 mph on his sinker, posted a 2.76 ERA with 45 strikeouts in 32.2 innings in 2026, and is under control through 2030. Boston also received outfield prospect Carlos Gutierrez. The debate over whether it was too soon to move on from Mayer is fair — but the return is legitimate, and the Red Sox made it with a postseason window in mind.
Anthony Returns, the ‘Big Three’ Era Is Over
Anthony began his rehab assignment with Double-A Portland on August 19. With a 20-day maximum on rehab stints, his return to Boston would land in early September — right in the middle of a playoff push. Kristian Campbell, the third member of the trio, remains on the active roster. Of the three prospects Boston built its future around, one is already in San Francisco.
Anthony didn’t speak with bitterness. He spoke like someone who understands the business — but also understands what it means to lose the guy you shared a room with when neither of you knew yet if you were going to make it. That’s what gives his words from Hadlock Field their weight. They’re not a player commenting on a trade. They’re someone quietly closing a chapter of his life.
Mayer’s 2026 Numbers at a Glance
- Games: 70
- AVG: .220
- OPS: .594
- Home runs: 3 | RBI: 22
- xwOBA: .259
- Exit velocity: 86.1 mph average
- Barrel rate: 6.1%
- Hard-hit rate: 36%
