Roman Anthony’s teammates on the Boston Red Sox can’t believe what the rookie is pulling off.
Anthony’s latest stunt was a game-clinching home run and iconic bat flip in enemy territory, a.k.a. Yankee Stadium.
The gutsy, ninth-inning at-bat from Anthony in the Bronx (which featured but one pitch, a hanging slider from Yerry De Los Santos) surely caught the attention of the entire baseball world, which was already closely monitoring a pivotal, four-game series between MLB’s most storied rivals.
And while Anthony is sure to feel the gravity of global praise (for better or worse), he’s probably most impacted by the words of his veteran teammates, a couple of whom spoke to the media about Anthony following the epic 6-3 victory for the Red Sox.
“He’s probably the most mature 21-year-old in baseball I’ve ever been around in baseball in my life,” third baseman Alex Bregman said of Anthony, per MassLive’s Chris Cotillo.
Story continues below advertisement
“We’re trying to figure out what he does wrong, honestly. We don’t know if he has any vices or anything. He just does everything the right way. The moment’s never too big for him.”
Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito also discussed Anthony.
“Looking at him, it’s like, ‘Wow, there’s 21-year-olds that just can come up and do it at the highest possible level. We’re very lucky to have him,” Gioltio said, per Cotillo. “It’s incredible. There’s not much else to say.”
Story continues below advertisement
Giolito, Thursday night’s starter for the Red Sox, was noticeably frustrated in the dugout directly following his exit from the mound in the fifth inning.
Less than an hour later, Anthony did what he could to ease that frustration, delivering Boston a win in the process.