There was a time when the Boston Red Sox had hoped that infielder Marcelo Mayer would be a future cornerstone. That didn’t happen, though, and the California native was traded to the San Francisco Giants for relief pitcher Erik Miller.
It was a kind of fresh start that he and the Red Sox both needed. After years of not living up to expectations, sometimes that change of scenery helps. Certainly, his father Enrique Mayer was happy enough to jump “30 feet in the air” when he found out, per the San Francisco Chronicle.
“In Boston, if you’re going well, you’re a god and if you’re struggling, they’re going to tear you apart,” Enrique Mayer said. “He didn’t come out as hot this year and the fans thought he didn’t care — that’s the most ridiculous thing to say about a major-league baseball player, people don’t know the sacrifices and work it takes just to get there. But he got a bad rap and if you get a little bit of one in Boston, it just snowballs.”
Marcelo Mayer was the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft as a high schooler. He was given a slot price of $6.66 million, and would quickly be put on a pedestal among prospects within the Red Sox Farm System. However, that also added pressure in an intense media market that he struggled to live up to.
“If you set a record for signing bonus, you’re going to have the spotlight on you anywhere — in Boston, multiply that by 10,” Enrique Mayer said. “It was intense. Marcelo started feeling a ridiculous amount of pressure. He’d say, ‘Dad, I’m on the on-deck circle and they’re ripping me apart, yelling, ‘Go back to Cali! ’”
Marcelo Mayer Consistently Dealt With Injuries With the Boston Red Sox
One of the narratives around Marcelo Mayer with the Boston Red Sox was that he was injury prone. Worse, that he wasn’t willing to play through pain or discomfort. However, his father also pushed back on that.
“Marcelo got a cortisone shot to be ready to come back a month and a half early to help the team in the playoffs and then he gets the rap he doesn’t play in pain?” Enrique Mayer said. “That couldn’t be further from the truth.”
Whether the injuries were bad and real or not, they were becoming very common for Mayer. In 2023, he dealt with a shoulder injury, and then a wrist injury. In fact, wrist injuries were a common issue for Mayer, who would see them end his rookie season in 2025 early.
In 2026, Mayer’s dealt with a foot contusion and then a forearm stress reaction. It was the forearm injury that put him on the IL when the Red Sox finally traded him to the Giants.
For his part, Mayer blames the injuries on working too hard. Overuse, in particular, leading to the breakdowns.
“My whole life I’ve always tried to perfect my craft,” Mayer said. “I train really hard and do all I can, that’s how I was raised, but I definitely need to learn how to turn it down a notch sometimes.”
Marcelo Mayer with the San Francisco Giants
When Marcelo Mayer was traded to the Giants, he needed to get healthy. It was a move then that San Francisco hoped would help for the future.
On September 21st, Mayer was finally able to make his debut with the Giants. He’s had four at-bats in those two games, only one of which he played the entirety of. That was his 0-4 debut with 4 strikeouts on off-speed pitches low in the zone, a weakness from his time with the Red Sox.
There is less than a week left in the regular season, but after an up-and-down year, Mayer would love to finish strong. After that, the Giants will be on the outside looking in at the postseason.
Family of Former Top Red Sox Prospect Marcelo Mayer React to Giants Trade