Boston Red Sox prospect Roman Anthony isn’t averse to some trickery. The rising star hid from autograph-hungry fans in a laundry cart after a Triple-A game in Moosic, Pennsylvania, on Sunday.
The move, which was captured in a now-viral video, drew comparisons to Tom Cruise’s “Mission: Impossible” franchise and pop superstar Taylor Swift, who used a similar strategy to get to the stage on her “Eras Tour.”
The Worcester Red Sox even used the “Mission: Impossible” theme and captioned the video “Roman’s version,” a reference to Ms. Swift’s albums.
Anthony is the top prospect in baseball, according to MLB.com. The slugging outfielder is primed to become a household name whenever the Red Sox call him up, many analysts agree.
The fans at PNC Field, home of the Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre RailRiders, were eager to get an autograph and photo of Anthony on Sunday. The video showed about a dozen fans clamoring for the young star outside the clubhouse. They left disappointed.
The move drew criticism on social media.
“I just don’t love this,” one fan wrote on X. “Would have taken two seconds to say hi to those fans.”
Team staff piled a case of beer and laundry on top of Anthony to complete the laundry cart disguise, letting him make it to the team bus without greeting fans.
Anthony is batting .303 with eight home runs and 23 RBIs through 53 games this season. Analysts widely expect him to make his MLB debut with Boston this summer.
• Liam Griffin can be reached at lgriffin@washingtontimes.com.
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