After missing the final two months of the 2024 season with a lumbar strain in his lower back, top Red Sox prospect Marcelo Mayer provided an update on his health in a recent conversation with MassLive.com’s Sean McAdam.
“I’m really good,” Mayer told McAdam. “Lower back’s great. I’ve been cleared for a while now, so I’ve been progressing swinging-wise, doing my stuff and working hard in the weight room, doing whatever I can to get my body in the best position for this upcoming season.”
As noted by McAdam, Mayer has not done much in terms of hitting so far this winter, though that will likely change soon.
“I’m still ramping up,” Mayer said. “But as far as that goes, my swing feels phenomenal right now. It feels like I haven’t missed a beat, which is weird because usually when I take a week off, I feel extremely rusty. But I took like two months off and I feel great right now. I’ll be ready to (be a full-go for the start of spring training).”
Mayer, the No. 10 prospect in Baseball America’s top 100 rankings, saw his season cut short by injury for a second straight year over the summer. The recently-turned 22-year-old was limited to 78 games between High-A Greenville and Double-A Portland in 2023 due to a lingering left shoulder impingement that ultimately shut him down that August.
Mayer broke camp with Portland this past spring and was putting together a stellar season at the plate through late July. The left-handed hitter netted 2024 Eastern League Post-Season All-Star honors by batting .307/.370/.480 with 28 doubles, eight home runs, 38 RBIs, 60 runs scored, 13 stolen bases, 30 walks, and 66 strikeouts in 77 games (335 plate appearances) for the Sea Dogs.
On the other side of the ball, Mayer drew encouraging reviews for his defensive ability at shortstop, where he started 65 games and committed 10 errors in 212 chances with Portland this year. The 6-foot-3, 188-pound infielder also made exactly one start at third base for the second season in a row.
In the weeks following his second straight trip to the All-Star Futures Game, Mayer hit a snag. He was placed on Portland’s injured list on August 1, two days after leaving a game early with what was initially described as lower back and upper glute muscle soreness. Since the issue was deemed minor, the Red Sox proceeded to activate and then promote Mayer to Triple-A Worcester on August 12 with the expectation that he would quickly find his way into the lineup.
The soreness in Mayer’s back, however, persisted. Further medical evaluation, including an MRI, led to the diagnosis of a lumbar strain. Rather than act aggressively, the Red Sox ended Mayer’s season before he could even notch his first Triple-A at-bat by placing him on Worcester’s injured list on August 20 and sending him to extended spring training in Fort Myers, Fla. so he could focus on his rehab.
“Extremely frustrating. As a player, of course you don’t want to get injured,” said Mayer. “I work extremely hard while I play to try to prevent injury. I think I’ve just been unlucky these past couple of years. I don’t think it’s something that happened because I didn’t do that or didn’t do this. I fell (resulting in the shoulder injury), something I can’t control. And the other one, I just had a little back problem.
“It’s obviously not ideal, but that’s the situation I’ve been put in and all I can do now is work my ass off (to rehab),” he continued. “I went down to Florida (in the fall) for a month, worked with the trainers there, did workouts, did some core stuff. They sent me home and I continued that training, and I’m pretty much a full-go right now. I’ll start hitting around the new year, which is more than enough time for me. You don’t need to be hitting all off-season.”
Originally selected by Boston with the fourth overall pick in the 2021 draft out of Eastlake High School (Chula Vista, Calif.), Mayer — barring a trade or other surprise move — is expected to open the 2025 campaign at Worcester. If he can stay on the field and quell any concerns about his durability, he should be able to put himself in a position to make his major league debut before the season draws to a close.
