BOSTON – Wouldn’t it be nice if Opening Day were somewhat close to Opening Day? Wouldn’t it be better if the Boston Red Sox were performing in front of their fans and some bunting with a 0-0 record, instead of 1-5? Wouldn’t it be nice to have that feeling of a new year, a new season and the hope that goes along with it every spring? It’s a great feeling inside, especially at such a wonderful ballpark as Fenway.
Opening Day usually brings with it knowledge that Spring is in the air. It’s been such a long, cold, nasty winter in New England. Baseball fans deserve a 60-degree day with some sunshine. That’s what we’ll have, dodging a 37-degree bitter cold, raw Thursday when it felt like it was 29 degrees.
We want baseball gloves, not real gloves.
We want to hear the crack of the bat, and not be cooped-up huddling behind the bleachers, warming our hands and standing in line for hot chocolate.
“Give me a Sam Adams or give me death,” said a member of the Henry family who was not Patrick.
In a fade-to-black flashback to the “real” Opening Day which came one day after the “really, real” Opening Night on Prime, the Red Sox and Garrett Crochet dealt the hometown Cincinnati Reds a 3-0 shutout, sending the parade groggy Reds fans home with an 0-1 mark. Two days later, the records were even at 1-1 when the Reds defeated the Sox, 6-5, in 11 innings. On March 29, the skid was real as the Red Sox dropped the rubber game of the set to Cincinnati, 3-2, when Eugenio Suarez reminded young Connelly Early of the cruelties of Major League Baseball when the Sox’ left-hander departed the game with a 2-0 lead only to have reliever Greg Weissert blow the game by serving up a 93 mph four seam fastball across the middle. Suarez knew best.
The slide went south from there, to Houston, Texas, where the Red Sox were swept in a three-game series by the Astros.
Spare you there details?
Okay, but suffice to know a homer-hittin’ bat-flippin’ Carlos Correa took Crochet downtown for the pivotal game win.
That brings us to Opening Day at Fenway.
The Red Sox organization is honoring the ’86 American League champion Sox, but let’s hope Boston doesn’t get 86’d by the visiting San Diego Padres, a club who went 2-4 on their season opening home stand (vs. the Detroit Tigers and San Francisco Giants).
Nearly 25 team members of that ’86 team are set to return for the anniversary celebration, including, Tony Armas, Marty Barrett, Wade Boggs, Oil Can Boyd, Mike Brown, Steve Crawford, Pat Dodson, Dwight Evans, Rich Gedman, Bruce Hurst, Rene Lachemann, Tim Lollar, Spike Owen, Jim Rice, Ed Romero, Joe Sambito, Dave Sax, Calvin Schiraldi, Jeff Sellers, Bob Stanley, Mike Stenhouse, Marc Sullivan, Mike Trujillo, and Rob Woodward.
It’ll also be welcome “home” Xander Bogaerts, too, although it seems as though the 10-year Red Sox shortstop played in ’86 rather than 2013-2022.
It’ll be Michael King on the mound for San Diego, facing Boston’s newly acquired Sonny Gray.
Gray went four innings and let up four runs (three earned) while walking one batter and striking out five.
The Fenway Faithful will say “No King” to King, who went five innings, striking out six against Detroit, but did not figure in his club’s 5-2 loss.
Besides the normal Opening Day jitters, Boston will be under the pressure of a sold-out crowd expecting much more than a 1-5 team. Rightfully so, as Spring Training and its early indicators made the Northerners think AL East title, rather than being four games behind divisional leader, New York.
When you put it all together, Friday will mark the 126th home season, the 115th at Fenway Park for the Red Sox.
First pitch at 2:10pm, but the fans will be in their seats by 1:30pm for the festivities.