Kristian Campbell made the Red Sox Opening Day roster after an impressive spring training that made it difficult for him to start the 2025 season anywhere else.
“It’s a dream come true,” Boston’s No. 2 prospect told reporters on Monday. “It’s definitely something I’ve worked for for my whole life.
Campbell said manager Alex Cora asked him about the Georgia Tech players who made it to the majors.
“He told me my name would be added to that list,” Campbell, who played at Georgia Tech, said.
There were plenty of questions about Boston’s infield throughout spring training — mainly who would play second and third base. The Red Sox traded Chris Sale for Vaughn Grissom, but hamstring injuries kept him in Triple-A for most of the 2024 season. David Hamilton was also in the mix, too, as was fellow Big Three prospect, Marcelo Mayer.
Once Campbell began to impress the Red Sox early in spring training, it became clear he had a legitimate chance to be the team’s Opening Day second baseman.
Then the Red Sox signed Alex Bregman. And while he has experience playing the position, Campbell’s emergence gave Boston an option to put Bregman at third, move Rafael Devers to the designated hitter spot and keep Campbell on the roster.
Grissom was optioned to Worcester on March 20, then Mayer was, which paved the way for Campbell to make the team, despite some struggles at the plate this spring. He slashed just .174/.304/.283 going into Sunday’s finale.
But his final performance Sunday was encouraging between his diving grab to rob Jonny DeLuca of a base hit and hit his first big league home run of the spring.
“He’s hitting the ball hard and not chasing. He’s a good hitter, man,” Cora said prior to Sunday’s spring finale. “Last year, going into the season, we knew (Ceddanne) Rafaela was going to chase pitches and not catch up with the fastball. This year, if you take a look at the at-bats of the kids … Kristian was chasing pitches, and now he’s not.”
The Red Sox have been patient with Campbell and will continue to be as they develop him throughout the year. And even though it didn’t seem like a possibility when players began to report to Fort Myers, Campbell will be in the lineup when Boston opens its season Thursday on the road against the Texas Rangers.
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