FORT MYERS, Fla. -- The rankings say it all about what Marcelo Mayer could end up being.

MLB Pipeline lists him as the No. 9 prospect in baseball and No. 1 for the Red Sox.

The 2021 Draft also said plenty. MLB Pipeline had him ranked as the No. 1 prospect going into the Draft. He went fourth overall, and the Red Sox were all too pleased that three teams passed before it was their turn to pick.

While there can be pressure to live up to all of that, Mayer doesn’t look at it that way. Instead, he uses it as the driving force that keeps him going each day.

“There are a lot of first-rounders who didn’t make it,” Mayer said Monday from Minor League camp at Fenway South. “I don’t think the selection of the pick I was chosen is going to dictate if I make it or not. I think it’s going to be my hard work. I’m just here to keep my head down and keep working.”

• Cora weighs in on Minors camp: 'We’re in a good spot'

Much of that work can already be seen just by looking at the 19-year-old now versus last summer.

“Marcelo, we saw him in Boston [after the Draft], he was tall and skinny, and all of a sudden he’s like, wow,” said Red Sox manager Alex Cora.

A shortstop with huge upside in the field and with his left-handed bat, Mayer has turned into a sturdy physical presence. He was listed at 190 pounds when the Red Sox signed him. He is now 202 pounds.

That process started by lifting weights -- something he never did much in his high school career for Eastlake in Chula Vista, Calif.

“Yeah, for sure, those days [of not lifting] are definitely gone. We lift every day here, keep our bodies in good shape so we’re out there playing for as long as possible,” Mayer said.

And he can feel the benefits of his improved physique in tangible ways.

“It definitely changes a lot. You get stronger, you hit the ball harder, you’re faster,” Mayer said. “All that stuff, just taking care of your body more so now than ever, because I went from playing two or three games a week to playing six games a week, with practice. So all that stuff’s really important.”

All he has ever wanted to do is play professional baseball. Now that Mayer has arrived, it’s only made him hungrier.

“It’s the greatest thing ever,” Mayer said of being a pro. “I’ve been playing this sport my whole life, and it’s been a dream of mine, so I’m just super blessed.”

Mayer got his first taste of professional baseball last summer in the Florida Complex League.

The sounds of silence for those morning games in blazing weather make him eager to feel the difference of what it will be like when he starts this year for a full-season affiliate. Look for Mayer to start at Low-A Salem.

“In the FCL, there’s no fans, and we’re playing at 10 o’clock in the morning, in the heat,” Mayer said. “So being able to go to an affiliate and start my Minor League career is super exciting.”

In that 91 at-bat stint in the FCL, Mayer hit .275/.377/.440 with 25 runs, 25 hits, four doubles, one triple, three homers and seven stolen bases.

Now that he has done the necessary physical work to withstand the rigors of the game, Mayer knows that the mental adjustments will be key this year and beyond.

“The biggest thing for me is from the neck up,” Mayer said. “Being able to spit on the offspeed, and take fastballs, and being able to be present every day. We’re here from 8 a.m. to 4 every day, so it’s just being able to be present and working hard.”

As if Mayer’s five-tool set isn’t already enough to whet the appetite of Red Sox fans, Cora is just as impressed with the intangibles possessed by such a young player.

“That part [on the field], we know how good it is,” Cora said. “In the clubhouse, in the meetings, his willingness to help everybody [stands out]. He is bilingual and helping kids. He doesn’t have to do that. We signed him to get to the big leagues, not to be a translator, but it comes easy to him. He’s a good teammate.

“People gravitate to him which is great. ... To see him, he gets it, he understands.”