This season was supposed to be one where the Boston Red Sox returned to postseason contention. New additions such as starting pitcher Garrett Crochet and third baseman Alex Bregman brought more star power. Top prospects such as Kristian Campbell, Marcelo Mayer and Roman Anthony were knocking on the doors of the big leagues. Yet, the team has struggled. Currently mired in fourth place in the AL East, nine and a half games behind the New York Yankees, something has to give. MLB insider Ken Rosenthal suggested in a Sunday article on the Athletic that the time is now for the team to promote Anthony and send Campbell back to Triple-A.

“Boston Red Sox rookie second baseman Kristian Campbell needs more defensive reps at Triple A,” wrote Rosenthal on Sunday. “Top prospect Roman Anthony needs to be hitting his 497-foot grand slams in the big leagues. Exchanging one for the other would make the Sox a better team.”

Rosenthal's argument makes sense. By running an outfield of Anthony in left, Jarren Duran in center field and Wilyer Abreu in right, the team could use Ceddanne Rafaela and David Hamilton at second while Campbell gets more reps in Triple-A. The rookie started off strong but has cooled off quite a bit lately. Would bringing Anthony up and sending Campbell down help spark the Sox back into contention?

Can young players help Red Sox get back to their past winning ways?

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Mandatory Credit: Brad Penner-Imagn Images

Campbell's defense at second has been a sore spot all season, and he made an inexcusable mistake during Saturday's 10-7 win over the Yankees. Offensively, he is hitting .129 in his last 25 games. For a team that has playoff aspirations like the Red Sox, that simply isn't good enough. It's time for manager Alex Cora and president of baseball operations Craig Breslow to start making moves to shake up this squad.

Calling up Marcelo Mayer to replace Bregman at third was the right decision. By giving another one of their top prospects plenty of leeway, Breslow and Cora can adjust if he begins to struggle like Campbell currently has. The next step is bringing Anthony to Fenway Park. Baseball's top prospect is ready to go. Can he be the key to turning around a season that began with so much optimism?