Kristian Campbell is in good spirits as he works to improve upon a tumultuous rookie season.
Campbell spoke with NESN's Tom Caron and Lou Merloni while the Boston Red Sox played the Northeastern Huskies on Friday. The 23-year-old has worked to revamp his swing and conditioning after a rocky 2025 campaign.
"I feel good," Campbell said. "We've had some lives and stuff, and everything is going well with mechanics. My swing feels good and everything. I feel good defensively. Body feels good; I've gained some weight in the offseason, and I'm carrying it well. So I'm really excited of how I'm doing so far."
.@TomCaron & @LouMerloni caught up with Kristian Campbell mid game 🎙️ 👀
— NESN (@NESN) February 20, 2026
"The big thing for me, is just having a routine everyday that works... my swing feels good... body feels good, gained some weight in the offseason and I'm carrying it well..." ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/wIV5dfGiXs
A top prospect last spring, Campbell signed an eight-year, $60 million extension in early April and finished the month with a .902 OPS. However, his fortunes rapidly turned when he batted .159 over the next 38 games.
The Red Sox demoted Campbell in June, and he spent the rest of the season in Triple-A Worcester. He began taking reps in the outfield after struggling at second base in the majors.
Campbell is happy to devote most of his attention to the outfield this spring after bouncing around defensive positions last year.
"It's good to focus on a specific area," he said. "I do the outfield with the guys, and then I do infield stuff with (infield instructor José Flores) individually. So it's a plan, for sure."
Campbell also begins his second season with a better idea of what it will take to prepare for big-league success.
"I've learned a lot when it comes to on-the-field and off-the-field stuff. But the big thing for me is just having a routine every day that works for you and coming in with a plan."
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