As Roman Anthonyâs breakout run continues to turn heads following his World Baseball Classic surge, Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora revealed that New York Yankees manager Aaron Boone recently gave him a strong message about the rising star â an opinion that highlights just how quickly the 21-year-old Anthony is drawing attention across the league.
For a Yankees manager to communicate such a positive opinion of a Red Sox player directly to a Red Sox manager may come as a surprise to fans and, in all likelihood, has not happened too often through the history of the bitter Yankees-Red Sox rivalry. But Anthony impressed baseball opinion leaders not only with his abbreviated 2025 season, but as the breakout star of Team USA in the World Baseball Classic.
Anthony played all seven games for Team USA in the WBC, which concluded on March 17 with the American teamâs defeat to Venezuela in a hard-fought final. Though he struck out to end that game, Anthony ranked among the top Team USA hitters, with a .920 OPS and two home runs in 30 plate appearances.
Though, at 21, Anthony was the youngest player on the team, only team captain Aaron Judge of the Yankees and last yearâs National League home run leader Kyle Schwarber of the Philadelphia Phillies saw more action at the plate.
Boone Says he Looks Forward to Watching Anthony
Speaking on Tuesdayâs edition of the ESPN Baseball Tonight podcast, Cora was asked by host and veteran MLB insider Buster Olney, âFrom your conversations with other managers and folks with other teams, what do people love about Roman Anthony?â
While MLB managers are not generally willing to publicly share comments from other managers, Cora did not hesitate to relay Booneâs views on Anthony, a former No. 1-ranked prospect in baseball.
âI got a call from Aaron Boone two days ago,â Cora revealed. âAnd he said, âMan, this is going to be fun to watch.ââ
Cora told Olney that the young Red Sox star maintained an even demeanor throughout the WBC, as he usually does
âOne thing you see is how calm he is â he doesnât get too high, doesnât get too low,â Cora told Olney. âAfter that big home run the other day to advance to the finals, his interviews were on point â very humble, very thoughtful. He represents his family, his country and the Red Sox the right way.â
Booneâs Views Not Shaped by Anthonyâs Outings vs. Yankees
Perhaps most interesting about Booneâs enthusiastic, behind-the-scenes comment on Anthony, as relayed by Cora, is the fact that Anthony did not perform especially well against the Yankees in his rookie season last year.
In seven games, Anthony came to the plate 27 times, with only four hits. One of those hits was a home run, however, off New York starter Will Warren in a 12-1 Red Sox win at Yankee Stadium on Aug. 23.
But Cora said that Anthonyâs brief experience as a teammate of Yankees three-time American League MVP Aaron Judge on Team USA was perhaps the most valuable aspect of the tournament for the young star.
âHonestly, Buster, being selfish, it was important for us too â for him to be around Kyle (Schwarber) and Aaron,â Cora said in the interview. âThat was perfect.â
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