Of all the issues the Boston Red Sox have had amid their 3-8 start to the 2026 season, Roman Anthony’s throwing woes have been the biggest head-scratcher.
Anthony’s arm has been a topic of discussion since Boston’s second game of the season in Cincinnati on March 28. In the bottom of the 11th inning, Dane Myers sealed the Reds’ win with a single to left field that scored the runner from second. A good throw still may not have been enough to nail the runner at home plate, but Anthony’s attempt barely reached the infield:
Three days later in Houston, Anthony tried and failed to gun down Carlos Correa at home plate. While it was a better throw than the one in Cincinnati, it still left plenty to be desired. Correa was hardly past third base when Anthony gathered himself and fired toward home:
Anthony’s arm was put in the spotlight again in Saturday’s loss to the San Diego Padres. His inaccurate throw didn’t give the Red Sox a chance to prevent the go-ahead run from scoring in the ninth:
Lastly and certainly the worst of the bunch, Anthony allowed the Milwaukee Brewers to score two runs with a short and wildly inaccurate throw that skipped through the infield late in Monday’s loss:
After that alarmingly poor throw vs. Milwaukee, Anthony said he struggled to get a grip on the ball.
“I’m doing everything I can pregame and just struggling to get a grip,” he said. “At the end of the day, there’s no excuse. It’s terrible. It’s bad baseball, and it’s on me.”
Red Sox manager Alex Cora attributed Anthony’s issues to mechanics and footwork rather than injury (he suffered a season-ending oblique injury last year) or something on the mental side.
It’s an odd situation, but Sox fans can take solace in the fact that Anthony’s arm had never been a problem throughout his professional career. In fact, SoxProspects.com touted the 21-year-old’s defensive prowess and “above-average arm strength” during his days as a top Red Sox prospect.
So, what has changed?
We talked to prospect expert Ian Cundall of Baseball America, formerly of SoxProspects.com, to get his insight on Anthony’s arm troubles.
“If you look at his throws this year, velocity-wise, they’re kind of fine,” Cundall told NBC Sports Boston. “His max velocity on a throw this year is 91 miles per hour. It’s the same as Wilyer Abreu’s. So, it’s not a velocity thing, it’s just inaccuracy.
“I think that comes down to mechanics. You look at his footwork, he does not look that confident when he’s coming in and charging balls.”
Cundall’s view on the matter echoes Cora’s assessment: Anthony’s mechanics are off. That should be a fairly simple fix, but one has to wonder whether Anthony could also be dealing with a classic case of the “yips.” As a young star with pressure on him to lead the club in his first full MLB season, that wouldn’t be a surprise.
“I think it’s a combination of mechanics and a confidence issue,” Cundall added. “The arm strength is there, the accuracy is not. It’s not fluid. He does not look confident charging the ball …
“One of the hardest things to judge — and this applies to not just him, but all prospects — is that adjustment to the major leagues is massive talent-wise. You go from being the biggest fish in a normal-sized pond to all of a sudden you’re a small fish in a big pond again. That could be a little more of a difficult adjustment. … I don’t think it’s helped that the weight of the franchise is more or less on his shoulders.”
Last year, Cora stated his preference to make Anthony an everyday outfielder rather than a designated hitter. This season, however, Anthony has been a DH in five of his 12 games played, with Jarren Duran and Masataka Yoshida taking turns replacing him in left field.
Anthony will likely continue to be rotated in and out of the DH spot. As for a more consistent DH role, Cundall believes it’s far too early to jump to that conclusion.
“Having to shoehorn someone into DH who’s 21 years old is just not where you want to be, both roster-wise, and just for the type of player he is,” Cundall said. “It’s easy to forget that he was a very good defensive outfielder last year. … In the minors, there was never any concerns about his defense.
“He’s not Ceddanne Rafaela out there, but he was not expected to be a DH. … It’s too soon to overreact and say shoehorn him into a DH role.”
Overreaction or not, the Red Sox must operate with urgency as they enter Wednesday with MLB’s worst record (3-8). If Anthony makes headlines with another terrible throw, the calls for him to DH will grow even louder.
Cundall doesn’t see that being an issue long-term.
“It was not something that was ever an issue coming up through the system,” he said. “The rest of his defensive ability is still there, so it’s not like he’s missing fly balls or anything like that. You want him to be able to play the outfield, because that’s the way to maximize his value. … Long-term, you want him playing the field. He’s a good outfielder.”
All eyes will be on Anthony as he returns to left field for Wednesday’s rubber match against the Brewers at Fenway Park.
