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The lethal bat that turned Roman Anthony into MLB Pipeline’s No. 1 overall prospect has led to the 21-year-old outfielder’s much-anticipated promotion to the Red Sox, a source told MLB.com on Monday afternoon. The club has not confirmed the news, but Anthony himself told reporter Katie Morrison-O’Day he was headed to The Show on Monday.

The Red Sox open a three-game series against the Rays at Fenway Park tonight at 7:10 p.m. ET.

For weeks, Red Sox Nation had clamored for Anthony to join a team that has struggled to meet expectations.

When Anthony mauled a Statcast-projected 497-foot grand slam for Triple-A Worcester on Saturday, the buzz surrounding his callup got even louder.

From Dustin Pedroia to Xander Bogaerts to Rafael Devers to Mookie Betts to even the recent promotion of Marcelo Mayer, the Sox have cultivated several prospects who have generated significant hype from fans and media throughout their time in the Minor Leagues.

However, none of those players was the top-ranked prospect in the game at the time of their big league debut, making Anthony’s ascension all the more noteworthy.

A left-handed hitter, Anthony is not only known for his power and hard-hit rate (his much-discussed grand slam was scalded at 115.6 mph) but for his standout plate discipline.

“Just watching not only the highlights and all that, but watching what he’s doing offensively, it’s been impressive,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said recently. “And we knew this about him. The way he controls the strike zone, how hard he hits the ball.”

In 212 at-bats for Worcester this season, Anthony has a batting line of .288/.423/.491 with 10 homers and 29 RBIs.

It has been a swift rise for Anthony, who was drafted out of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School (South Florida) with the 79th overall pick in the 2022 Draft.

Now, he will have a chance to display his skills at the highest level and in one of the most demanding markets.

For more, read our full story on Anthony’s call-up here.

— Ian Browne

Pick one of the day’s games, open up your board and see if you can get bingo with these baseball occurrences. Play free >>

• Marlins @ Pirates (6:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): Tonight marks the long-awaited return of one of the game’s most electric young arms, as former top prospect Eury Pérez rejoins the Marlins’ rotation. Pérez, whose recovery from Tommy John surgery spanned nearly 21 months, sidestepped the typical rookie learning curve in posting a 1.34 ERA across his first nine big league starts — as a 20-year-old, no less. How does he feel now? Pérez hit 99.3 mph during his eight rehab starts, putting up a 1.99 ERA.

• Cubs @ Phillies (6:45 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): Zack Wheeler’s return from the paternity list couldn’t come at a better time for the Phillies, who have dropped five straight and nine of 10, flipping their lead atop the NL East into a 4 1/2-game deficit. The Cubs, up to No. 2 in our latest Power Rankings, enter with an MLB-best +105 run differential.

• Dodgers @ Padres (9:40 p.m. ET, MLB.TV): This increasingly fierce rivalry opens tonight with the first of three in San Diego before shifting to Chavez Ravine next week for four more. Just one game separates the West-leading Dodgers from the Friars, who have the right man on the hill for the opener: Nick Pivetta has a 1.78 ERA in five career starts vs. L.A.

• The Mets padded their NL East lead with a sweep of the Rockies in Denver thanks to two more homers by Pete Alonso, who passed David Wright for second on the club’s all-time HR list. With 10 more homers in orange and blue, Alonso would take over the Amazin’s all-time lead — and compel us to update this franchise HR leaders quiz.

• The Athletes Unlimited Softball League celebrated a range of milestones during its inaugural weekend, but none may have been more impressive than the RBI knock from Blaze infielder Danielle Gibson Whorton in her first at-bat since becoming a mother back in November.

• Pirates reliever Isaac Mattson grew up in Erie, Pa., attending games at PNC Park, so just having a chance to pick up his first big league win with the Bucs, as he did Saturday, must have been a thrill. Alex Stumpf details the circuitous path to the 29-year-old rookie’s lifelong dream.

• Evan Longoria officially hung up his spikes last month, and the ceremony celebrating his retirement — and iconic status — with the Rays was held before Saturday’s game. Adam Berry breaks down the Rays’ tribute for “the most transformative player we have had, by leaps and bounds.”

• The AUSL wasn’t the only softball worth celebrating over the weekend. A few nights after opening the Women’s College World Series with a shocking comeback win, the Texas Longhorns finished off Texas Tech to claim the first title in the program’s history.

If you visit the Big Apple, a stop at the MLB NYC flagship store is practically mandatory. That holds true for fans and players alike, as Red Sox star Jarren Duran made sure to do some shopping before starting a weekend set against the Yankees.

One thing Boston’s star outfielder picked up was the brand new MLB City Connect x Nike Air Max 270, which conveniently dropped on Friday. Jarren picked up — of course — the Red Sox edition that pairs nicely with their new Green Monster inspired uniforms, but every single City Connect jersey that dropped this season has a sneaker to match. Our favorites? We love literally all of them, but the Dodgers (front middle, classic L.A. cool) and Marlins (front right, South Beach sizzle) stand out.

If you want your own pair, they’re available online at MLBShop.com and Nike.com. Or if you happen to be in New York, you can follow Jarren’s lead and pick them up in person at MLB NYC.

— Bryan Horowitz

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