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Red Sox roster: Is Alex Cora hinting at Marcelo Mayer, Caleb Durbin positions?
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- Red Sox roster: Is Alex Cora hinting at Marcelo Mayer, Caleb Durbin positions?
FORT MYERS, Fla. — Red Sox manager Alex Cora still won’t say exactly how he envisions what his starting infield will look like on Opening Day in Cincinnati on March 26 . The first few days of spring training workouts, however, suggest a pretty big hint to that end.
So far, in team infield drills on the back fields at Fenway South, newcomer Caleb Durbin has taken ground balls exclusively at third base and Marcelo Mayer has been at second base for three consecutive days. The Red Sox have not yet flip-flopped them. Willson Contreras will start at first base and Trevor Story will be the shortstop but Cora has not yet announced the starters at second and third.
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Durbin and Mayer, of course, are the leading candidates at both those spots, and the Red Sox want to make a decision soon.
“Everybody will benefit from reps, but we’ll make a decision, probably sooner rather than later,” Cora said. “We’re not going to be waiting.”
Durbin came up as a second baseman in the minors but played third base in Milwaukee last year, logging 1,060 ⅔ innings over 131 games (119 starts) while seeing just 43 ⅓ innings at second base, where Brice Turang is entrenched. Mayer is a natural shortstop who played 248 ⅔ innings over 39 games (28 starts) at third base when Alex Bregman was hurt last season, plus 57 innings over eight games (7 starts) at second. Both players have experience at both spots but the early positioning in camp suggests the Red Sox want to see Durbin at third, where he played last year, and Mayer back up the middle.
“Caleb will take grounders at second at one point, but I just want to make sure they get settled and go from there,” Cora said. “I truly believe Marcelo will benefit from more reps at second base. Third base for him, everything is very similar to shortstop. Caleb played (10) games at second base, so he’ll get some work and probably work with Flo (infield coach José Flores) on the back fields or here on the turf, working on turns or starting the double play.”
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Perhaps the biggest clue when it comes to where each infielder will play comes in the way of Cora’s penchant to platoon. While Durbin is seen as an everyday player who will start against righties and lefties, the Red Sox will likely want to protect Mayer by sitting him against left-handed starters. Romy Gonzalez is a clear option to be Mayer’s platoon partner in 2026 but might not be ready for the season due to lingering shoulder soreness that has caused him to not yet start baseball activities. Notably, Cora said he prefers Gonzalez at second base over third, meaning a platoon is more likely at that spot.
“We’ve got to get him healthy first,” Cora said of Gonzalez. “We’ll move him around, but his best position is second base.”
In 2025, Mayer hit .154 with a .416 OPS and 10 strikeouts in 27 plate appearances, continuing a concerning trend from his minor league days. The Red Sox have been very hesitant to let young left-handed hitters face big league southpaws in Cora’s tenure and the expectation is that will continue in Mayer’s second taste of big league action. If Gonzalez isn’t ready, Isiah Kiner-Falefa and non-roster invitee Brendan Rodgers are potential platoon partners at second. Rodgers, a former Gold Glover with the Rockies, has only been in camp for a couple days as one of Boston ’s final arrivals.
“I think there’s always a progression, right? I’ve done it since 2018 with Raffy (Devers),” Cora said about platooning young lefties. “We just have to make sure he’s healthy and see what happens over camp. Hopefully, he can take the baton and run and win the position, whatever position it is. Then we’ll decide how many at-bats he gets.
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Mayer was streaky at the plate last year. In 44 games, he hit just .228 with four homers, 10 RBIs, a .674 OPS and a 30.1% strikeout rate.
“He swung a lot and he chased a lot, but then toward the end, he was getting locked in,” Cora said. “He’s still a kid.”
Durbin, who had a better offensive year than Mayer, said he is taking it day-by-day when it comes to his position with the Red Sox.
“We haven’t sat down yet. Not sure if we will,” Durbin said. “We’ll just see where I am that day and take my reps there. I think they still want us working around at all the spots.”
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