The Boston Red Sox haven't had the greatest start to their 2024 season, as they've gone 30-30 through the first 60 games and have dealt with a ton of injuries to key players as well.
While most are focused on the team playing in Boston, many are keeping their eye on what's happening in the farm system, and Roman Anthony is one of the most exciting guys to watch in Double-A Portland this year.
SoxProspect's top prospect in the Red Sox's system has hit .243 with a .757 OPS at just 20 years old. However, it's not the stats that Anthony is focused on, it's the results on the field for the team.
"Most of the time, it's like 'Hey, what can I do to get better myself, and what can I do to move up to Triple-A or to the big leagues,'" Anthony said on the "Section 10" podcast. "But, plenty of people have told us, and we've seen it firsthand now when you go out and you just try to win, if the one goal is to win, not to get three hits or not to steal a bag, whatever it may be, those things are going to come.
"When you go out there, and you compete, and you want to win more than the other team, and you have a group of guys that want to do that, it's special. It makes it a lot more fun, and winning is a lot more fun when it's like that. Because, in the minor leagues, winning, losing, it can be easy to just change and leave and be on to tomorrow.
"So, getting used to it now, so that way it's not something that you get to the big leagues and it's super overwhelming. Obviously, it's different. There's a lot more fans, a lot more pressure to win. It just slows it down a little bit, I think. I haven't played in the big leagues yet, so I can't speak from experience, but I think when your goal is to show up and win, it makes the game a lot easier. You're not worried about results and getting hits or stealing. You're worried about winning. If you win and you helped the team win that day, it's OK, cool. Move on tomorrow, and let's win tomorrow."
It's important for these young players to start looking at the game this way, and with so many of Boston's top prospects in Double-A at the moment, they're all learning to think this way together.
As they move up the minors, they'll take that mindset with them and be ready to go when they make it to Fenway.
