Top Red Sox Prospect Roman Anthony Blasts Another Eye-Catching Homer
Roman Anthony continues to put pressure on the Boston Red Sox to call him up to the big leagues.
The 21-year-old outfielder belted another impressive home run Tuesday for Triple-A Worcester against Scranton/Wilkes-Barre when he launched the second pitch of the game well over the wall in left-center field. Arguably the most notable aspect of Anthony’s homer was that it had an eye-popping 115.5 mph exit velocity.
It’s the second time in a matter of days that Anthony hit a scorching ball over the fence. He notched a homer with a 116 mph exit velocity this past Saturday.
Just how extraordinary is that from Anthony? According to MassLive’s Christopher Smith, just 23 balls put in play this season at the major league level have notched an exit velocity of at least 115.5 mph.
Anthony is the consensus No. 1 prospect in all of baseball and has played like it, too. The first-inning round-tripper was his eighth homer of the season as he entered Tuesday’s matchup, slashing a ridiculous .321/.453/.518 with a .971 OPS. He also recorded 21 RBIs and walked (42) almost as much as he struck out (43) in 47 games.
MassLive’s Chris Cotillo predicted Tuesday that Anthony could get called up to the Red Sox “any day.” But Anthony is just trying to remain patient even though all signs are showing that he’s ready for the big leagues.
“We joke about (when a callup might happen), and we make light of it,” Anthony told The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier last week. “And I think that’s the only way to kind of go about it. No reason to be salty. I get to play baseball here, regardless of what level I’m at. I get to play baseball every single day, so not really worried about it.
“I think when you start wondering too much and worrying too much about tomorrow or the next day or the next week, that’s when you sort of get yourself in trouble. So I think I’ve been off to a great start this year, just being where my feet are and enjoying it, enjoying this team, this staff and getting better every day.”