The first-round pick from 2021 struggled with a shoulder issue in 2023.

Before the 2024 season begins, NESN.com is assessing a number of notable prospects in the Boston Red Sox organization. To determine each player’s outlook for the forthcoming season, the site is utilizing analysis and information from industry professionals. It’s Marcelo Mayer first.

The Red Sox organization’s top prospect going into 2023 was Marcelo Mayer, the No. 4 overall pick in the 2021 MLB Draft.

Even after a year, he continues to be the top expert in the field, though perhaps not as well as one might anticipate given his past performance.

What, therefore, are our thoughts on Mayer’s prospects going into the 2024 campaign?

Mayer was regarded by many as the top prospect in the MLB Draft for 2021. And the Red Sox ended up acquiring him when the Pittsburgh Pirates, Texas Rangers, and Detroit Tigers selected right-hand pitcher Jack Leiter, right-hander Jackson Jobe, and catcher Henry Davis with the first three picks, respectively. Not a bad consolation after the Red Sox went 24-36 under Ron Roenicke during the miserable pandemic-shortened 2020 season in Boston.

initial perception? Both on and off the field, Mayer has the appearance. If baseball doesn’t work out, the graduate of Eastlake High School in Chula Vista, California, might be able to make a name for himself in Hollywood. Adrian Grenier, who portrayed Vincent Chase in the popular television series “Entourage,” looks very similar to the student on social media.

In any case, Mayer was the highest draft choice made by the Red Sox since they chose pitcher Mike Garman third overall in 1967. In previous selections, Boston has placed a strong emphasis on position players, particularly infielders, thus selecting Mayer was an easy decision. (Interestingly enough, in the first round of 2022, the Red Sox returned to Southern California, selecting Mikey Romero, Mayer’s longtime traveling companion, with the 24th overall pick.)

Scouts were initially drawn to Mayer when she was playing with Keoni Cavaco, the 2019 first-round selection of the Minnesota Twins—the second player from Eastlake High School to ever be picked in the first round of the MLB draft. (In 2000, Adrian Gonzalez, a former first baseman for the Red Sox, became the first.) The arrow continued to point upward after that until 2023.To be clear, it’s still pointing skyward; a shoulder injury last season caused it to begin swaying slightly back and forth. Because of this, Mayer is having a big year as he tries to prove that he is still one of baseball’s top prospects.