Roman Anthony, left, and Marcelo Mayer wait to take batting practice on Friday. Anthony, Mayer and Kyle Teel have been called up to Triple-A Worcester. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

To be honest, we expected this to come sooner.

A trio of Red Sox prospects – shortstop Marcelo Mayer, outfielder Roman Anthony and catcher Kyle Teel – was promoted from Double-A Portland to Triple-A Worcester on Sunday, following the Sea Dogs’ 9-8 victory over Altoona at Hadlock Field.

The top three prospects in the Boston organization are now one spot higher on the climb to the big leagues.

We’ve had a number of top prospects come through Portland over the years, especially since the team became the Double-A affiliate of the Red Sox in 2003. The three top prospects at the same time? That was a new one. It’s one Portland fans should appreciate.

Mayer, Anthony and Teel aren’t just regarded as the top three prospects in Boston’s pipeline, they’re among the top prospects in the game. When Keith Law of The Athletic released his midseason rankings of the top prospects in baseball in late July, Boston’s Big Three featured prominently. Mayer, the fourth overall pick in 2021, was ranked No. 2 overall. Teel, Boston’s first-round pick last year, was No. 19, with Anthony, a second-round pick in 2022, was ranked No. 21 overall. Only the Baltimore Orioles had three prospects ranked higher on Law’s list than the Red Sox.

Almost as soon as the Red Sox announced the trio would start the season together in Portland, we started wondering just how long would they be here. We know Portland is a way station, not a destination. No player wants the Sea Dogs to be a career pinnacle. All three had come to Portland at some point during the 2023 season. Mayer made the jump from High-A Greenville on Memorial Day weekend, but missed the end of the season with a shoulder injury. Anthony and Teel joined the Sea Dogs at the end of the season for a short preview, to whet our appetite.

We get them for a short time, and we can say “we saw them when…” forever. That’s the trade-off. Mayer, Anthony and Teel lived up to their end of the deal.

Kyle Teel has been called up to Triple-A Worcester. Derek Davis/Staff Photographer

It’s hard to think of a prospect who arrived in Portland with more expectations than Mayer. None with the Red Sox, anyway. Maybe Josh Beckett, who came through Portland as a can’t-miss pitcher when the Sea Dogs were the Marlins’ Double-A affiliate. Mayer was Boston’s highest draft pick since Ken Brett in 1966. Healthy again this season, minus a recent stint on the IL with a minor lower-back issue, Mayer lived up to his promise and led Double-A with 28 doubles before the call to Worcester.

All Anthony did in his final at-bat with the Sea Dogs was hit a home run in the bottom of the eighth inning to give Portland the lead in a 9-8 win over Altoona. Anthony is barely 20 years old, and every time he does something like hit a baseball 116 mph you have to remind yourself he was playing high school ball just over two years ago.

Similar to Anthony, Teel has enjoyed a quick ascension through the minors. After his selection with the 14th overall pick last summer, Teel bypassed Low-A Salem entirely and played just 14 games in High-A Greenville before his promotion to Portland. He’s embraced the ups and downs and daily grind of baseball as well as anybody on the Sea Dogs roster, and it was apparent in his play.

Even with Mayer, Anthony and Teel moving on, the Sea Dogs still have players worth keeping an eye on. There’s Kristian Campbell, an infielder who on Monday earned his second Eastern League Player of the Week honor of the season. Called up from Greenville on June 4, Campbell has been on a tear since he arrived in Portland, hitting .380 with 16 doubles, seven home runs, 32 RBI, and 17 stolen bases in 49 games. Campbell’s current 26-game on-base streak is the longest in the Eastern League this season.

On the mound, the Sea Dogs have starting pitchers David Sandlin and Connelly Early, both recently promoted from Greenville, as well as Isaac Coffey and Hunter Dobbins, who have quietly anchored the starting rotation all season, combining for a 16-5 record and 191 strikeouts in 180 innings pitched so far.

The Red Sox have a few options in Greenville who could come to Portland to fill the three open roster spots. Outfielders Jhostynxon Nixon and Allan Castro have played well. Infielder Mikey Romero could get the call when he comes off the injured list.

The point is, prospects of the caliber of the Big Three don’t come along all the time, but there are always more prospects coming.