FORT MYERS, Fla. — Marcelo Mayer entertained grand visions for this spring training, of playing for Mexico in the World Baseball Classic. Of doing his father, Enrique, proud, and of getting a taste of a playoff-like atmosphere in the middle of March.
But because of his surgically repaired right wrist, which brought his rookie season to a premature end last July, Mayer was deemed ineligible for that tournament.
Instead, he is settling for the next best thing: his first camp as a big leaguer, with plans to prove that he is healthy and strong and worthy of a primary place in the Red Sox’ infield, all of which were less than certain in 2025.
Five years after the Red Sox drafted him fourth overall — and four years after he was first ranked as a consensus top-20 prospect in all of baseball — everything Mayer has worked for is right there for the taking.
“As far as opportunity, that’s all you could ask for,” Mayer, 23, said. “And I have a good one right in front of me.”
His specific positioning in the infield is to be determined. Through the early days of full-squad workouts, Mayer has practiced exclusively at second base, with newcomer Caleb Durbin at third. On Thursday, Durbin will switch to second.
Manager Alex Cora has said on multiple recent occasions that the Sox intend to decide “sooner rather than later” which position those two will play entering the season. But he hasn’t publicly committed either way yet.
Cora intends to allow Mayer and Durbin to settle into one spot, a degree of consistency Mayer would appreciate.
“Obviously, moving around the infield isn’t the most comfortable thing, and I think it’s underappreciated when a player can do it,” Mayer said. “But being able to take reps at second or third base, wherever it is I’m going to play, for a full spring training, is going to help a lot, and I’m super excited for that.”
Wherever he plays, the Red Sox figure they will receive sound, perhaps elite, defense.
What they’re less sure about is his ability at the plate and his ability to stay on the field.
Mayer has never played more than 91 games in a professional season. That career best came in 2022, his first year in the minors. Last season, he totaled 87 in the majors and Triple A.
In shortstop Trevor Story, Mayer sees an example: A string of injuries wrecking several years need not doom a player. Story returned to health last year to match his lifetime high of 157 games — and led the Sox in a bunch of key offensive categories in the process.
To Mayer, his wrist and back issues don’t make him injury-prone.
“The way that I see it, it’s been freak injuries or injuries that have lingered on in the past that I now have taken care of,” Mayer said, referring to the wrist problem that initially popped up in 2022 and was fixed last year. “It’s not something that I’m labeling myself [as someone who gets hurt a lot]. I’m as strong as ever.
“I feel really good. I’m in a good spot. So, I mean, people are going to talk all the time, and they have the right to right now, because I haven’t showed it, obviously. But I feel like I’m in a great spot, and all I can do is just continue to work hard and keep my body in a good position.”
The Sox challenged Mayer entering the offseason to add muscle, which he did, putting on “a lot of good weight,” he said. They figure that should help him withstand the demands of a long season.
If he plays, they can get a better sense of who Mayer is as a hitter. He batted .228 with a .272 on-base and .402 slugging percentage in his first go-around in the majors, swinging and missing too often, at breaking balls in particular.
If Mayer plays second, they may well platoon him with Romy Gonzalez (if healthy) or, say, Andruw Monasterio playing against lefthanders.
But there seems to be an opportunity for Mayer to win more playing time.
“We’ll get there when we get there. I think there’s always a progression,” Cora said. “Hopefully he can take the baton and run and win the position — whatever position it is — and then we’ll decide how many at-bats he gets.”
What can a healthy Marcelo Mayer do as a hitter?
“Everything,” he said. “I know that I’m a really good hitter. So I’m just excited to go out there and perform and do what I know how to do.”
Next week, a dozen of Mayer’s teammates will leave Sox camp for their respective national teams in advance of the WBC. He wanted to be among them.
Maybe next time, especially if this year proves as successful as he expects.
“There will be,” he said, “other chances.”
Tim Healey can be reached at timothy.healey@globe.com. Follow him @timbhealey.