Red Sox’ prospects waiting for ‘Barry Bonds’ to join them in Triple-A

WORCESTER — The Red Sox’ “Big Three” prospects of Marcelo Mayer, Roman Anthony, and Kyle Teel all earned their promotions up to Triple-A Worcester after tearing the cover off the ball in Portland. 

But the Double-A Sea Dogs are certainly not lacking in terms of star power, even with Boston’s trio of top prospects making the jump up to the next level. 

However, it seems all but inevitable that Portland infielder/outfielder Kristian Campbell will join the “Big Three” in Worcester in short order — so long as he continues to torment Double-A pitching. 

“We call him Barry Bonds just because of how good of a hitter he is,” Anthony said about Campbell, who has been on a tear since joining Portland in early June. “He’s a great player. He’s a freak athlete.

“Plays the game the right way and he’s a great person on and off the field. And it’s rare that you can get a guy like that who can play so many different premium positions and play at the level that he plays at while putting up the numbers that he has put up.”

Campbell, who can play second base, shortstop, and the outfield, has seen his stock soar this summer as Boston’s breakout prospect in an impressive farm system. 

Selected by Boston in the fourth round of the 2023 First-Year Player Draft out of Georgia Tech, Campbell’s scorching surge at the plate since arriving in Portland has put him on the map across scouting circles. 

In MLB Pipeline’s updated list of the top 100 prospects in baseball, Campbell ranks 80th overall — while ESPN’s latest prospect list updated on Wednesday tabbed the 22-year-old slugger as the 54th-ranked prospect in the game today. 

After slashing .306/.418/.558 with 13 doubles, eight home runs, and 25 RBI over 40 games in Greenville, Campbell earned a promotion to Portland on June 4.

While most prospects understandably traverse through some growing pains upon making the jump to the next level of competition, Campbell has managed to be even better with Portland — by a sizable margin.

Since getting the call-up from Greenville, Campbell is slashing an absurd .374/.481/.589 over 51 games in Portland with 16 doubles, seven home runs and 32 RBI.

Even with an aggressive swing, Campbell has showcased strong plate discipline in Portland — with his strikeout rate of 14.8 percent standing as the 13th-best in Double-A, as noted by The Boston Globe’s Sarah Barber. 

Despite showcasing a high contact rate during his collegiate career, the Red Sox have make a concerted effort to harness more power out of Campbell’s swing — with the results speaking for themselves so far this summer. 

“Contact was the big thing in college, just trying to hit the ball and get on base for my teammates,” Campbell told Boston.com back in June. “And that’s still the goal here, make contact with the ball, get on base for my teammates. But just with a little bit more authority. I feel like rather than just getting a bunch of singles — trying to turn some doubles into home runs and stuff like that.”

While Red Sox fans have largely focused their attention on the “Big Three” in hopes of franchise-shifting reinforcements in 2025 and beyond, a slugger like Campbell may not be very far behind the trio. 

“A credit to him he came in, and it was kind of a new style of hitting for what he came from at Georgia Tech, I think, and he was willing to learn and he grinded all offseason. He was there every day in Florida when we were there,” Anthony said. “Every day at spring training. He’s constantly grinding. So it’s not by accident. But we’re hoping to see him here soon because he’s a stud.”