Red Sox

What Marcelo Mayer said of Roman Anthony extension, his own contract talks

"We all want to get better every single day. When you’re around guys like that, you become closer with them."

Roman Anthony and Marcelo Mayer have been close friends over the years. (AP Photo/John Froschauer)

August 7, 2025 | 6:11 PM

3 minutes to read

Marcelo Mayer might be roommates with Red Sox teammate Roman Anthony, but the young infielder didn’t have any inside information before Anthony signed an eight-year extension with Boston on Wednesday.

“I was watching Narcos on the couch this morning eating a bagel and my buddy texted me about it and I opened Twitter and that’s all I saw,” Mayer told the Boston Herald’s Mac Cerullo on Wednesday. “I gave him a text, told him how proud of him I was and saw him at the field and gave him a big hug. Super happy for him and his family.”

Anthony officially crossed the t’s and dotted the i’s on a contract that will keep the 21-year-old outfielder in Boston through the 2034 season, so long as the Red Sox pick up the club option on the final year of the deal.

The contract — which features $130 million in guaranteed salary but could escalate as high as $230 million if Anthony hits several incentives — stands as the latest move by Craig Breslow to lock up Boston’s core for the long haul.

Beyond Anthony, the Red Sox have also doled out long-term deals in recent years to retain other players aged 25 or below at the time of their respective signings — including Garrett Crochet (six years, $170 million), Brayan Bello (six years, $55 million), Ceddanne Rafaela (eight years, $50 million), and Kristian Campbell (eight years, $60 million).

With Anthony and Campbell both signed to hefty deals, it remains to be seen when the final member of the “Big Three” prospect grouping in Mayer also signs a new contract.

Speaking Wednesday, Mayer said that the Red Sox haven’t started up talks on a new deal.

“No, not really. I’m not really focused on that right now,” Mayer told MassLive’s Chris Cotillo about contract talks. ““I’ve got a lot on my plate right now trying to get back on the field with my wrist and stuff.”

Even with Mayer’s potential as a smooth-fielding shortstop with strong hit tools, the Red Sox likely want to see the 22-year-old infielder quiet some of the concerns regarding injuries before committing to him with a lengthy contract.

Mayer — who is batting .228 with eight doubles, four home runs, and 10 RBI over 44 games this season — is dealing with a wrist sprain that has put his 2025 season in jeopardy.

Despite his standing as a blue-chip prospect, Mayer has regularly been sidelined due to ailments during his tenure in the minor leagues. He missed the end of the 2023 campaign in Portland due to shoulder pain while later getting shut down in 2024 with Worcester due to a back strain.

Season-ending surgery remains on the table for Mayer to correct his wrist injury, although he and the team are waiting to see how he responds to an anti-inflammatory injection in his wrist before deciding on the next steps.

“It feels really good. Taking it day by day, trying to get better,” Mayer told Cotillo. “There’s no limitations. It really just depends on how my wrist is doing.”

Beyond returning for the stretch run and helping Boston clinch its first playoff berth since 2021, Mayer is hoping to develop alongside Anthony as a lineup regular over the coming years.

“Breslow called us up to Double-A at the same time and we all clicked. We all had the same goals,” Mayer told Cotillo. “We all want to get better every single day. When you’re around guys like that, you become closer with them.

“We have fun. [Anthony] is my roommate. I think that says enough. We had the chance to finally not be roommates. We chose to live together again. That’s like a brother to me. We’ve created a really good friendship outside of baseball and I’m super happy for him.”