Top Red Sox Prospect Says He Deserved Opening Day Roster Spot

The Red Sox’s opening day roster featured some well-deserved new names and excluded others who barely missed the cut. Among those in the latter group is the team’s top prospect, shortstop Marcelo Mayer, who was optioned to the AAA Worcester Red Sox earlier this week. In a Friday interview with WEEI’s Jones & Keefe, Mayer said he did enough to crack the big league rotation.

“Obviously, … all that stuff isn’t up to me, but as a player and based on performance, I did earn a spot on the team,” Mayer said. “With that being said, things didn’t go my way. Now I’m here. Just gonna get after it every single day, [and] keep doing what I’m doing.”

Mayer is coming off of a Spring Training stint where he hit a .333 batting average with two triples, a home run, 11 RBI and eight walks.

He added that while team brass didn’t specify a timetable of when he could move up to the majors, they offered some words of encouragement for his time in Worcester.

“It’s kind of hard to tell,” Mayer said. “It’s also part of the business—they don’t tell you even if they know. But yeah, they pretty much told me to keep doing what I’m doing. I think everyone knows I played really well this spring. … Keep playing the game I know how to play, and everything will fall into place.”

Mayer has moved around the diamond throughout his career, and that appears to be the case going forward with the WooSox. The 22-year-old revealed he will play “one game at second, one game at third, and then four [games] at short” to begin the year.

“It’s a new opportunity, a new challenge for me that I’ve never done in my career,” he said. “I had some reps there in the offseason and in Spring Training, but I’ve never done anything like that in a full season. I’m really excited for that opportunity.”

Mayer’s willingness to play multiple positions could be the key toward accelerating his major league debut, a step that he recognizes, saying: “I just want to be a big leaguer. I’ll play wherever.”

The WooSox season began earlier this afternoon with a weekend slate against the Syracuse Mets.