(Photo credit: Jonathan Dyer-Imagn Images)

Following an uneven rookie campaign that included a season-ending wrist injury, Marcelo Mayer will be on his first Opening Day roster after the Boston Red Sox named him their starting second baseman on Saturday.

'Yeah, Marcelo is going to be our second baseman,' manager Alex Cora told reporters before Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Atlanta Braves. 'I talked to him today. He did an amazing job in the offseason. Like I told him, he's always been a good player, but he actually did an amazing job putting himself in the conversation to play in October last year after the surgery.'

Mayer, 23, played in only 44 games in 2025, hitting .228 with four home runs and 10 RBIs before undergoing wrist surgery in August.

'It means a lot,' Mayer said. 'Obviously, that was the goal coming into camp. (Cora) made it well known that the spot wasn't given to me, so I worked hard, and I'm really happy with the outcome. I'm excited about the team.'

A natural shortstop, Mayer played 39 games at third base in 2025 and eight at second base, where the 2021 first-round pick will now form a double-play combination with veteran shortstop Trevor Story.

'I love it,' Mayer said of playing alongside the two-time All-Star. 'Trevor is an amazing teammate, an amazing person. So for us to be able to work together, understand each other a little bit more, it's gonna be nice.'

Meanwhile, Kristian Campbell, last year's Opening Day second baseman for Boston, was optioned to the minors on Saturday after spending most of the spring in center field. Campbell, 23, was the American League Rookie of the month last April but was demoted to Triple-A and did not return to the majors. He batted .223 with six homers and 21 RBIs in 67 games.

Campbell, who signed an eight-year, $60 million contract last April, struggled offensively this spring, batting .220 with one home run and four RBIs in 46 plate appearances.

''You've got to go back to the big leagues. Just got to play better,'' Cora told Campbell. There's a few things that he did in camp and he didn't do in camp. And obviously, in camp, he didn't walk as often. He struck out a lot, right? So that's not him. We just have to keep working together. But at the end, he said, 'It's up to me. It's up to me to get back here.' And we will help him.'

--Field Level Media