Top Red Sox Prospects on Display During Spring Breakout

Major League Baseball’s second annual Spring Breakout event is set to take place next week, and 20 of the top 30 Red Sox prospects are set to showcase their talents. A lot of hype surrounds these prospects, especially the Big Three of Roman Anthony, Kristian Campbell, and Marcelo Mayer, who rank second, seventh, and 12th on MLB Pipeline's Top 100 list, respectively.

What is Spring Breakout?
Spring Breakout is a four-day event in which top prospects from every club compete against each other. The games are held March 13-16 at the Grapefruit and Cactus League spring training facilities. A total of 16 games will be played, giving the future of MLB a stage to showcase their skills. For Red Sox fans who are excited about an extended look at the Big Three, this should be a great chance.

When are the Red Sox games, and how can I watch them?
On March 13, at 7:05 PM, the Red Sox's prospects will face a Tampa Bay Rays team every bit as loaded with talent in its farm system. The next day, the prospects will face a split squad of Red Sox big leaguers. The games will be broadcast on MLB.com, the MLB App, MLB.TV, MLB Network, NESN, FDSNSun App, WEEI, 850AM, and MLB Gameday.

Which prospects should fans keep a close eye on?
Anthony, Campbell, and Mayer headline an impressive list of Red Sox prospects. Their potential to crack the Opening Day roster is a hot topic that won't be cooling off soon. Anthony slashed .284/.398/.474 over his three-year minor league career, with 32 home runs and 141 RBIs. He has not displayed that power during spring training, but he is running a .500 on-base percentage. The 21-year-old has gone 4-for-13 with four RBIs and four walks. His path to the big leagues is somewhat impeded by Wilyer Abreu, Jarren Duran, Ceddanne Rafaela, Masataka Yoshida, and Rob Refsnyder, and he will likely start the season at triple-A Worcester. However, Abreu is coming off a gastrointestinal illness that sapped his strength, and Yoshida is coming off shoulder surgery. If one or both fail to be ready for Opening Day, then Anthony would likely be called upon. Regardless, if Anthony continues his torrid hitting, the Red Sox will find a place for him on way or another.

Campbell was in line to compete for the open second baseman job at the beginning of spring training, but Alex Bregman's signing might have filled that hole. Campbell has been impressive in his two-year minor league career. He has hit .327/.439/.546 with 21 home runs, 82 runs batted in, and 27 stolen bases. In spring training, Campbell has struggled mightily, with only one hit in 17 at-bats and nine strikeouts. He will use this Spring Breakout event to hopefully get plenty of reps and break out of his slump. The 22-year-old can play every position except catcher and first base, and that versatility could help him earn an early call-up.

Mayer is a middle infielder who offers five-tool production like Anthony and Campbell. In four minor-league seasons, he slashed hit .274/.362/.465 with 37 home runs, 162 RBIs, and 46 stolen bases. He has had a successful spring, going 5-for-17 with a home run and five RBIs, but he has not yet spent any time at Triple A, and he team will likely want him to get more seasoning. His path to the big leagues will depend on the oft-injured Trevor Story's health, as well as the evolving second base situation, but he has also been spotted taking infield at third base.

David Sandlin and Connelly Early are the Red Sox's ninth- and 10th-rated prospects, respectively. Neither has put up impressive overall numbers in their minor-league careers. Sandlin has a 4.29 ERA over three seasons, putting up a 5.34 overall mark between High A and Double A in 2025. However, he also struck out nearly a third of the batters he faced and he's run some extremely high BABIPs, which indicate that he's been somewhat unlucky. Early has a 4.00 ERA over two seasons, but advanced metrics have liked him much better. He ran a 3.24 FIP in 2024 while running a 31% strikeout rate. Both pitchers will need to improve their control before a call-up to the big leagues will happen, but Sandlin is 24 and Early is just 22, so time is on their side.