Article: How Does Marcelo Mayer's Absence Impact the Rest of 2025?

[Finley Rogan]

Marcelo Mayer was officially shut down for the season on Sunday after going on the injured list with a right wrist sprain nearly a month ago. It was announced that Mayer will be undergoing surgery on his wrist, in order to give him time to get healthy and ready for the start of next season.

Overall, it was an inconsistent rookie campaign for Mayer, who featured in 44 games and had four home runs to go with a .674 OPS. Although Mayer never quite broke out this year at the major league level, he showed promise with the bat while playing smooth defense across the infield. 

Mayer only had a 79 wRC+ this season, and he showed no promising ability to hit left-handed pitching. His bat definitely needs more time to develop when compared to Roman Anthony, although he still has a smooth swing. Mayer was excellent in the field, posting three outs above average in his small sample of games. He will definitely stick at any position (second, third, or short) that the Red Sox have a need at.

Since Mayer got hurt in late July, Ceddane Rafaela and Romy Gonzalez have played the most at second base for the Red Sox, and that should continue. Also, the team recently acquired Nathaniel Lowe who may replace Abraham Toro, but that should not affect the second base depth chart. Another option is for the Red Sox to recall David Hamilton once September hits in case the team would like some extra depth up the middle. We can't forget Kristian Campbell, who also has experience playing second base already this season (though he was a train wreck there). Either Hamilton or Campbell feels like a likely candidate to get called up when the rosters expand in two weeks.

In terms of their playoff push, Mayer's injury hurts Alex Cora's flexibility in the lineup, but it won't sink the team's chances. Boston has been getting by fine without the rookie over the past month, and that should continue over the next six weeks, especially if Story and Bregman continue to lead the charge on both sides of the ball.

The biggest concern for the Red Sox following Mayer's surgery has to be their infield depth in the future. Not counting Rafaela (who shouldn't count for the future since he is special defensively in center), the Red Sox have only four listed infielders on their active roster right now. One of those four spots belongs to Nathaniel Lowe or Abraham Toro, and the other three are Trevor Story, Romy Gonzalez and Alex Bregman (and maybe Nate Eaton if he gets recalled). Triston Casas is also injured and should be returning next year, but we have no idea what the team plans to do with him. Beyond Mayer and the other Worcester options who we have seen in the infield this season, who is next for the Red Sox? Clearly major league caliber infield depth should be a priority for Craig Breslow this offseason, and we can start checking out a couple of candidates come September.

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[moonslav59]

Mayer's injury further worries team management and fans on what the future holds. He also has yet to prove or even show great promise in his short time in the bigs. His defense looked pretty good, and his ability to play decent 3B and 2B is encouraging, but we learned we just cannot count on him as a FT, MLB player, until he shows us he can do it.

It's too bad. He had a wide opening at 2B screaming for his taking, and he missed the 2025 window.

I don't think the team can count on him for 2026, either, except as possible, sporadic depth.

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

It could be worse. The Sox best prospect coming into this season could have been the one who was injury prone.

[SPLENDIDSPLINTER]

12 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

Mayer's injury further worries team management and fans on what the future holds. He also has yet to prove or even show great promise in his short time in the bigs. His defense looked pretty good, and his ability to play decent 3B and 2B is encouraging, but we learned we just cannot count on him as a FT, MLB player, until he shows us he can do it.

It's too bad. He had a wide opening at 2B screaming for his taking, and he missed the 2025 window.

I don't think the team can count on him for 2026, either, except as possible, sporadic depth.

I agree with this message.

[moonslav59]

22 minutes ago, SPLENDIDSPLINTER said:

I agree with this message.

The problem is, Brez & Co. may not agree.

Our 1B and 2B play and depth has been atrocious for many years.

I must admit, I did like the idea of Campbell and Mayer in the 2B mix to start, this year, and DHam was coming off a decent second half of '24, so I can't roast Brez, too much, but 1B is another story (on depth.)

Now, we know Campbell will not likely ever play 2B, again. (OF and 1B or DH?) Mayer cannot be counted as a FT anything. DHam is nontender fodder, as is Grissom- or traded. Arias is too far away to push Story to 2B.

My guess is we add no 2Bman, this winter. We may not add a 1Bman, either.

[Hitch]

The main impact was that it forced Gonzalez and Toro into every day players, neither of which they are (and takes away our main righty platoon). That's why I was so insistent we needed a 1B at the deadline. Hopefully the new addition helps us.

[Maxbialystock]

16 hours ago, moonslav59 said:

Mayer's injury further worries team management and fans on what the future holds. He also has yet to prove or even show great promise in his short time in the bigs. His defense looked pretty good, and his ability to play decent 3B and 2B is encouraging, but we learned we just cannot count on him as a FT, MLB player, until he shows us he can do it.

It's too bad. He had a wide opening at 2B screaming for his taking, and he missed the 2025 window.

I don't think the team can count on him for 2026, either, except as possible, sporadic depth.

I honestly disagree.

Like you, I've made a big deal out of this injury and previous ones in the minors, but now I'm not so sure.  This injury is a repeat of one he didn't get fixed before.  Now it will be fixed.   So I'm of the opinion he will be fine next year.

As for his hitting, he's only played in 44 freaking games.  Campbell played in 66 games and was a terrible infielder.  

Cora handed Mayer 2d base the day Bregman returned and would have had no hesitation in his playing 3b when Bregman needed a day off or SS when Story needed one.  If Mayer's wrist had been fixed by surgery when he was in the minors, he'd be invaluable right now,

I completely agree Mayer stunk against lefty pitching, but he's had just 26 at bats against them.  We love Duran and he hits .587 against lefties in 164 at bats this season.  

Here's what SoxProspects says about Mayer:  "Potential of above average regular.  Ceiling of a regular all-star.  Has all the tools you look for in a future everyday shortstop and the offensive upside to hit at the top of a contending team's lineup. . . . long term injuries in each of the last 3 seasons raise questions of whether he can stay healthy for an entire season."  

So, yes, there are injury concerns, but the kid has potential the Sox will not turn their backs on.  

 

 

[moonslav59]

12 minutes ago, Maxbialystock said:

I honestly disagree.

Like you, I've made a big deal out of this injury and previous ones in the minors, but now I'm not so sure.  This injury is a repeat of one he didn't get fixed before.  Now it will be fixed.   So I'm of the opinion he will be fine next year.

As for his hitting, he's only played in 44 freaking games.  Campbell played in 66 games and was a terrible infielder.  

Cora handed Mayer 2d base the day Bregman returned and would have had no hesitation in his playing 3b when Bregman needed a day off or SS when Story needed one.  If Mayer's wrist had been fixed by surgery when he was in the minors, he'd be invaluable right now,

I completely agree Mayer stunk against lefty pitching, but he's had just 26 at bats against them.  We love Duran and he hits .587 against lefties in 164 at bats this season.  

Here's what SoxProspects says about Mayer:  "Potential of above average regular.  Ceiling of a regular all-star.  Has all the tools you look for in a future everyday shortstop and the offensive upside to hit at the top of a contending team's lineup. . . . long term injuries in each of the last 3 seasons raise questions of whether he can stay healthy for an entire season."  

So, yes, there are injury concerns, but the kid has potential the Sox will not turn their backs on.  

I really like Mayer and think he can be a plus-plus player.

All I said was he has not proven he can hit in the bigs, so far. You disagree with that?

BTW, we all thought Campbell could hit, too, and so sis soxprospects.com. Maybe he still will, but he has to prove it, first.

[illinoisredsox]

1 hour ago, Maxbialystock said:

I honestly disagree.

Like you, I've made a big deal out of this injury and previous ones in the minors, but now I'm not so sure.  This injury is a repeat of one he didn't get fixed before.  Now it will be fixed.   So I'm of the opinion he will be fine next year.

As for his hitting, he's only played in 44 freaking games.  Campbell played in 66 games and was a terrible infielder.  

Cora handed Mayer 2d base the day Bregman returned and would have had no hesitation in his playing 3b when Bregman needed a day off or SS when Story needed one.  If Mayer's wrist had been fixed by surgery when he was in the minors, he'd be invaluable right now,

I completely agree Mayer stunk against lefty pitching, but he's had just 26 at bats against them.  We love Duran and he hits .587 against lefties in 164 at bats this season.  

Here's what SoxProspects says about Mayer:  "Potential of above average regular.  Ceiling of a regular all-star.  Has all the tools you look for in a future everyday shortstop and the offensive upside to hit at the top of a contending team's lineup. . . . long term injuries in each of the last 3 seasons raise questions of whether he can stay healthy for an entire season."  

So, yes, there are injury concerns, but the kid has potential the Sox will not turn their backs on.  

 

 

I agree on the wrist (which he first hurt in 2022).  However, both his 2023 and 2024 seasons were also ended early via injury; one of those years it was a shoulder and the other a back. That each of his 4 professional seasons has ended early due  to 3 different type injuries is concerning.

[moonslav59]

10 minutes ago, illinoisredsox said:

I agree on the wrist (which he first hurt in 2022).  However, both his 2023 and 2024 seasons were also ended early via injury; one of those years it was a shoulder and the other a back. That each of his 4 professional seasons has ended early due  to 3 different type injuries is concerning.

It's hard to know if this was all just bad luck or something else.

We went through tis with Sale, and traded him at exactly the wrong moment, then lo and behold, he still has had injury issues, again.

[mvp 78]

55 minutes ago, moonslav59 said:

It's hard to know if this was all just bad luck or something else.

We went through tis with Sale, and traded him at exactly the wrong moment, then lo and behold, he still has had injury issues, again.

Sale also had several years where he was healthy and pitched full seasons. The TJS wasn't a surprise considering his throwing mechanics. With Mayer, he has yet to have a full season. I'm not sure it's comparable. 

[moonslav59]

16 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Sale also had several years where he was healthy and pitched full seasons. The TJS wasn't a surprise considering his throwing mechanics. With Mayer, he has yet to have a full season. I'm not sure it's comparable. 

Indeed. I think Mayer missed significant time in Little League, too.

[5GoldGlovesOF,75]

1 hour ago, moonslav59 said:

Indeed. I think Mayer missed significant time in Little League, too.

He had promise as a student, too. One time he promised to pick up all the Lego pieces, but only scooped 37.5 big parts before pulling a lego muscle.

And little Early-Pearly came by in his curly-wurly and finished for him.

[moonslav59]

6 minutes ago, 5GoldGlovesOF,75 said:

He had promise as a student, too. One time he promised to pick up all the Lego pieces, but only scooped 37.5 big parts before pulling a lego muscle.

And little Early-Pearly came by in his curly-wurly and finished for him.

You'd go on the IL, if you stepped on a lego bare-footed, too!

[Deja Doh]

Right now I don't see where he fits in.  His 0.228 AVG and 0.272 OBP makes him AAA capable.  He has to improve on being more disciplined at the plate.

[TedYazPapiMookie]

One injury is blown off with the statement that "it could happen to anyone."  Two injuries in back-to-back seasons where you miss significant time and you don't hit like a first round pick is concerning.  Three injuries in back-to-back-to-back seasons where you miss significant time is a HUGE RED FLAG especially when the player is finally hitting like he was supposed to hit his first three seasons.  During this entire time fans love Mayer for his athleticism despite all his errors at SS. 

Then he gets a call-up and plays 3B and 2B, positions he didn't play much in the minors and for a small sample size looks like the fielder he was supposed to be, and then he gets hurt yet again for significant time. 

Here is his injury history:

2022 - Right wrist injury which impacts one's ability to hit and throw effectively

2023 - Shoulder soreness injury which impacts one's ability to hit and field

2024 - Lumbar strain injury which impacts one's ability to hit

2025 - Right wrist injury which again impacts his ability to hit and throw effective

These injuries have been used as excuses as to why he was so mediocre at hitting and bad at fielding until 2024.  The injuries may have caused his very average numbers in the minors, but the fact remains he can't seem to avoid them so is his value still his potential or is it his actual performance due to injuries?  I've been arguing for the past several years that his performance is all about execution and that's the value of a player which made him no better than Meidroth despite his athleticism.  People prefer to suggest his paper skills are more accurate than his actual performance, but I disagree.  Until he actually performs at a star level his prospect rating is completely misleading.  Only Anthony has proven his prospect rating to be correct so far.  

The key question for the front office is - "How many more seasons will you keep the SS position protected/reserved for Mayer?  In 2024 Campbell was asked to play half his games at his normal position of SS because Mayer got hurt again in 2023.  Now that BOS has two qualified SSs, someone needs to decide to the future of the position.  Either keep Story at SS for the remainder of his contract and permanently reposition Mayer at another position like 2B so Campbell is free to pursue a long-term position as well OR keep Mayer as a utility player since he's completely unreliable and make Campbell the future 2B and ONLY 2B so he can get back to contributing to the success of the Red Sox. 

With the addition of Nate Lowe, the 1B position in 2026 can be Lowe or Casas so the wasted effort to convert Campbell to a 1B just shows the stupidity of the front office/Cora when it comes to planning the future.  They forced the Minor League Player of the Year to be a utility player so the injury prone prospect could have a spot in the infield when Story finally lived up to his contract and Bregman returned from his injury.  

Somebody needs to get their ____ together and figure out where the long-term positions are for the top prospects that graduated to the MLB this year.  Based on what's left in the minors (other than Garcia) it's going to be years before we see the same or higher level of talent in the farm system at any position other than pitcher. 

For me, it always comes back to firing Cora because this team just needs some good old fashion baseball logic to determine the batting order and the best defensive set-up.  The fact that Anthony has proven to be good enough to stay makes him the weakest defender among Duran and Rafaela placing him in LF in the tradition of Ted, Yaz and Jim Rice.  Duran clearly is outstanding in CF and Rafaela is the best defender on the team and should play the most difficult field - RIGHT FIELD.  Abreu and his platoon issues needs to be outside the normal fielding line-up and focused on the one thing he does well and that is hitting RH pitchers as a DH or PH.  Refsnyder can be the other half of the DH tandem and either of them can fill the role of 4th outfielder making the outfield one of the best in baseball.  

Mayer like Abreu is the piece of the puzzle that doesn't really fit anywhere.  He could be the injury prone SS if Story was not here yet Campbell could be the more reliable choice for that position if Story was not available or Mayer could be the injury prone 2B when you have the player of the year qualified to play the same position 150 games a year not 110.  His presence ruins things for Campbell just like Abreu's presence ruins things for Rafaela.  If the front office prefers Mayer and Abreu, then give Campbell and Rafaela a chance to play for another team who will see that they are the two superior choices to the platoon guy and the injury prone guy.  The misuse of resources continues to be a huge issue under Cora.

[moonslav59]

1 minute ago, Deja Doh said:

Right now I don't see where he fits in.  His 0.228 AVG and 0.272 OBP makes him AAA capable.  He has to improve on being more disciplined at the plate.

It was just 136 PAs, but yes, he does need to prove he can hit and stay healthy to win any FT role, and we should not assume he fills a FT role to start 2026.

[mvp 78]

2 minutes ago, Deja Doh said:

Right now I don't see where he fits in.  His 0.228 AVG and 0.272 OBP makes him AAA capable.  He has to improve on being more disciplined at the plate.

Better than Duran showed in his first taste of the bigs. 

[moonslav59]

3 minutes ago, mvp 78 said:

Better than Duran showed in his first taste of the bigs. 

...and his second, too...

.578 in 107 PAs in 2021 (awful on D)

.645 in 223 PAs in 2022 (still awful on D)

That's .622 in his first career 335 PAs (more than double what Mayer has had.)

 

BA .219

OBP .269

Maybe Cora "ruined him" by moving him off 2B...LOL