The Boston Red Sox arguably made the right call.

Over the course of Spring Training, it wasn’t guaranteed that young infielder Marcelo Mayer was going to be with the team out of camp. While it was the most likely option for the club, Red Sox manager Alex Cora challenged Mayer to win the job out of camp and made it clear that nothing was guaranteed.

Well, Mayer did just that. He played well enough throughout camp that Cora announced on Saturday that Mayer won an Opening Day roster spot.

“Marcelo is going to be our second baseman,” Cora said on Saturday. “I talked to him today. He did an amazing job in the offseason. … I wanted to push him. Nothing is given here. Obviously, last year wasn’t great for him offensively but it’s part of the process and he understands that. We have some capable players here that can play second base most of the time, too. It was out of respect for the whole group and understanding there were certain things he needed to do.”

The young infielder responded well

In the aftermath, Mayer had the perfect response to earning his first Opening Day roster nod, as transcribed by Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.

“Not many people are given that opportunity to wear the ‘B’ on the hat and ‘Red Sox’ across the chest,” Mayer said. “It’s an amazing feeling and I don’t believe that should be given to anybody. I love that he told me I had to work for it. I took it to heart every day, worked hard and am grateful for the outcome.”

Mayer couldn’t have had a better response. Obviously, he had positive things to say about the history of the organization. But the fact that he talked about how he loved how Cora challenged him also shows the type of competitor that the young infielder is. Simply put, if you’re a Red Sox fan, it’s hard to ask for much more.

The fact that Cora consistently challenged Mayer and reaffirmed that he had to win the job was important. Mayer is just 23 years old and has only 44 games of big league experience under his belt so far. Over the course of his young professional career he has dealt with multiple injuries, which is why his 2025 season was cut short, for example. He only played in 77 games overall down in the minors as well in 2024.

There’s no question about his talent. He was the club’s No. 1 prospect for a reason before Roman Anthony. But those injury questions slowed his momentum down a tad. He stayed healthy throughout camp and continued to show upside offensively and defensively at second base. Boston made the right call.