At the tender age of 18, Jason Groome has already reached a conclusion that bodes well for him and the Boston Red Sox.

Nobody and nothing will stop him from realizing his dream of having a Hall of Fame career.

He has gotten this far in 18 years. He’s not going to let the next 18 go to waste.

It’s more than his low- to mid-90s fastball and knee-buckling curveball, each of which he feels he has “pretty much mastered,” and a silky smooth delivery that his 6-foot-5 frame carries off almost effortlessly that is going to carry him all the way.

You see a glimpse of his boldness in the southpaw’s decision to post on Instagram and Twitter a shot of himself next to his 2017 Mercedes C63 sports sedan with the caption: “I love being me. It pisses off all the right people,” followed by a “100” and cash emojis.

More importantly, you hear it and feel it when Groome taps his fingers forcefully on the top of the bench he’s sitting on outside JetBlue Park to emphasize what really matters.

Look beyond the razzle-dazzle and the moxie. That’s part of the Groome package. These days, it’s refreshing when any ballplayer has a personality. Groome, a New Jersey kid, oozes it. But if you believe that Groome’s sizzle comes without the steak, that’s your problem.

“It’s cool to put a cool caption out there, but I credit myself because I’ve overcome a lot of adversity in the last two years,” Groome said of his boastful posts. “I just like to show people I made it. I guess it goes along with proving myself. But the difference is, I’m not saying I’m doing it, I’m actually going to do it. I’m going to prove you wrong. That’s how my mind works. Even with a car, I’ll go, ‘I’m going to go buy that car.’ Like, no, I worked for that car sitting in the parking lot, I worked for every little thing in my house, even my dog that I bought, even every chain, every piece of jewelry I buy – I’ve worked for that and nobody can take that away from me.

“All that never changes me, never changes my ultimate goal at all.”

The adversity Groome referenced is almost old news now, issues that centered around his time at the IMG Academy in Bradenton, Florida, and his subsequent transfer back to Barnegat High in New Jersey, which raised questions about his maturity and whispers of off-field issues at IMG.

If not for those concerns, Groome likely would have been drafted higher than the No. 12 overall spot last June. It’s fair to say the $3.65 million signing bonus the Red Sox gave him states clearly they believe he has put his past behind him.

Believers in Groome will see their faith rewarded, he says.

“My biggest thing, and I’ve never really said this in any interviews because I’ve always kept it to myself, but it’s not what you imagine when the most hatred you’re getting is from jealous people,” Groome said. “I can see if I went out there and didn’t do what I always do and go out there and pitch great and I bragged about how good I was being, but I never got why so many people hate on the people that actually get the job done, that actually put in the work and actually say what they’re going to do and actually do it, then coming from a Joe Shmoe from anyone’s hometown.”

Being motivated by doubters, blessed by talent and motivated by greatness is a potent combination for anyone. In Groome, it allows for rationalizing how his tendency to dream big and live large can coexist with his self-professed modesty.

“I was always a little humble,” Groome said. “Now that I’m here, I like to have a little chip on my shoulder, but it never overrides the humble side of me. I never let it get in the way of me playing too much, I just play. I play for fun, I play to win, I always go out there and try to put my team in the best spot possible to get a win.”

When the Red Sox traded away Michael Kopech, their top homegrown starter, along with infielder Yoan Moncada in December for star pitcher Chris Sale, they did so in part knowing full well that Groome has a high ceiling, too.

Groome brushed aside the significance of being the most highly regarded starter left in the Red Sox system.

“I’ve always been really humble, never really paid attention to stats,” Groome said. “Yeah, I was ranked No. 1 prospect in the draft but I never let it get to me. You see it all the time. Kids get that No. 1 ranking, then they have a bad game, and it’s like, all hell breaks loose and they’re never the same after that. I’ll give a lot of credit to my parents, they always taught me to stay humble. I just keep doing that.”

Groome is soaking in as much of the Red Sox experience as he can. He was in Florida all winter working out, and got a chance then to meet Sale. Since then, he’s gotten to know starter Rick Porcello, center fielder Jackie Bradley Jr. and third baseman Pablo Sandoval. Pretty heady stuff for a teenager.

“They’re not what you expect them to be,” Groome said. “You grow up watching them on TV, thinking, ‘This guy won’t even talk to me,’ but no, they come right over, shake my hand and go, ‘What’s up, Groomie?’ ”

As for his in-game approach, it should come as little surprise by now to hear that Groome carries a chip on his shoulder.

“It’s me getting on the mound and saying, ‘This is mine, this is my time – you stepped into my box, you’re not getting on base, you’re getting out,’ ” he said. “That’s how I go about it.”

Right now, Groome is trying to harness his changeup. He’s going to whip it into shape. That’s a given, just as he’s done with his other pitches.

“I’m really just focusing on throwing (the changeup) like my curveball and fastball – same arm speed, same everything, and hopefully it will click,” Groome said. “I’ve pretty much mastered my fastball, mastered my curveball. Now the changeup’s a work in progress.”

By the way, Groome also has a knuckleball. It’s something he messes around with now and then, as when he’s tossing balls back into the bucket while shagging.

Sasquatch has been sighted more often than Groome has thrown the knuckleball in a game, but when he has, it has created a similar stir.

“I threw it one time last year in high school in my second or third start,” said Groome, a wide grin spreading across his face. “I think the count was 0-2 – and I bounced it in the dirt. I had a tryout for an Area Code (Baseball) team one time as a sophomore, and I threw everything, I told the catcher three more. And I threw a knuckleball. All the scouts dropped what they were doing and said, ‘Throw it again.’ I did and they were like, ‘What?'”

Groome gets a kick out of retelling the story.

When he’s asked if he’s shown his pitch to the two knuckleballers in camp, Tim Wakefield and Steven Wright, Groome laughed.

“It ain’t that good.”

Well, maybe not yet.

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