Digital Sports Desk

Online Destination for the Best in Boston Sports

MLB

Yoshida Delivers Walk-Off Single for Win

by

By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief

BOSTON – The Boston Red Sox game was being televised by Apple TV and the NBA Playoffs were on Amazon Prime. Just what’s a sports fan without a Smart TV to do?

Pro lacrosse on ESPNU? College lacrosse on the Big Ten Network? Women’s pro ice hockey on NESN, not NESN+ or some other outlet to make room for the Red Sox. College baseball is on the ACC Network and the Big Ten Network, too.

Embed from Getty Images

Then, there’s always WEEI-Radio, 93.7 on your FM dial. All you would’ve heard is silence, as in three-up, three-down.

The fact of the matter is that you could’ve gone nine full innings and witnessed a grand total of seven hits, three by the Tigers and four by the Sox.

Many a baseball eye might’ve thought it was a classic pitcher’s dual, but neither lefty Ranger Suarez of the Sox, nor righty Casey Mize of Detroit looked particularly sharp. But they were both quite efficient.

What could be said is that both teams played a strong defensive game, including Boston’s Ceddanne Rafaela gunning down Detroit DH Jahmai Jones with a perfect throw to second to nip Jones’ effort to stretch a base hit to a double in thje top of the first inning. Or, a nifty 6-4-3 double-play by the Tigers in the home half of the fourth inning, cutting down Boston’s Trevor Story and the heart of the Sox line-up just before they could place a rally cap on Sox guest legend Jonny Gomes who was in the ballpark to soak up some suds and some cheers.

With two gone and one on (Jarren Duran infield hit), Mize, the Tigers’ starter, gave way to reliever Kyle Finnegan who retired the side on a ground ball to third (Hao-Yu Lee) and a major league scoop by first baseman Spencer Torkelson to keep the goose eggs fresh on the old school Monster scoreboard.

Mize departed with 6.2 IP, allowing three hits, no runs, while walking one batter and striking out seven. He threw 94 pitches (58 strikes) in the game.

Suarez, the Sox starter, went 8.0 IP, allowing only two hits and no runs while walking one and striking out four Detroit batters. Suarez threw 93 pitches with 55 for strikes before giving way to Sox closer Aroldis Chapman who entered the game in the top of the ninth with the score still blank.

Finnegan kept us awake long enough to give way to lefty Brant Hurter in the bottom of the eighth with two out and one on base (Conner Wong walk), and Hurter retired Roman Anthony on a drive to left center. No score through eight full innings.

Chapman held his own, although he did face clean-up hitter in catcher Dillon Dingler with men on second and third and two out. Chapman struck out Dingler to retire the side and turn the game over to the Red Sox offense in the bottom of the ninth to no avail.

Free baseball placed the phantom runner (Dingler) on second base, and he tagged-up on a fly ball to right by pinch hitter Riley Greene, but the Tigers bats stalled and reliever Garrett Whitlock retired three straight batters to send it to the home 10th with the Sox phantom runner, the speedy Jarren Duran, on second base and Rafaela at bat.

With a 2-2 count, Duran advanced to third base on a wild pitch by reliever Will Vest, giving the Red Sox the golden opportunity to win the game.

Rafaela struck out.

Embed from Getty Images

Sox second baseman Marcelo Mayer, facing the Tigers’ infield of five players, drew a walk, and Boston manager sent pinch hitter Masataka Yoshida to the plate, first and third with only one out. The Tigers kept five infielder close and two outfielders stationed in left center and right center field.

Yoshida slapped a base hit over the first baseman’s head and it rolled slowly towards the right field wall, a walk-off single and game-winning RBI to score Duran.

Boston took the first game of the four game series, 1-0.

 

Red Sox Face Tigers in 4-Game Set

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – It is not about how you start, right? The Boston Red Sox are hoping that is the case for the first month of the long and winding Major League Baseball season.

Following Wednesday’s series-closing win at the Minnesota Twins, Boston kicks off a challenging seven-game homestand against the surging Detroit Tigers on Friday night. The four-game set extends through Monday’s traditional 11:05 a.m. start on the Patriots’ Day holiday in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

Embed from Getty Images

“We’re (three) weeks into the season, and we feel like we haven’t played anywhere close to our best baseball. And it could be way worse,” shortstop Trevor Story said. “Once we get rolling and once we get to doing the things that we know we can do on a consistent basis, we’re excited about that.”

The Red Sox were on the verge of being swept in Minnesota, falling down 1-0 in the first inning before scoring the next nine runs on the way to the 9-5 victory. Story hit a three-run home run and drove in five, while Andruw Monasterio went 3-for-5.

Connelly Early backed it all up with six innings of one-run pitching, and now Boston will turn the ball to left-hander Ranger Suarez (1-1, 5.02 ERA) for Friday’s start.

Suarez looks to build off his best performance in a Red Sox uniform last Saturday at St. Louis, as he allowed just three hits and struck out six while shutting out the Cardinals through six innings.

“He moved the ball around,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “It seems like his arm was a lot quicker than the first two (starts). It tells me he feels better.”

Suarez made starts for the Philadelphia Phillies against Detroit in each of the last two seasons. He went 0-1 with a 3.46 ERA across a combined 13 innings.

Meanwhile, Detroit hopes to bottle up its recent success as winners of six straight games, including a 10-9 comeback victory over the visiting Kansas City Royals on Thursday. An up-and-down season has seen the Tigers go from 4-4 to 4-9 and back above the .500 mark to 10-9.

Riley Greene’s two-out, two-run double tied the score and Colt Keith’s walk-off single capped a three-run rally in the ninth inning to seal their third straight one-run win.

“Part of our DNA is our willingness to do anything, but the other part that comes with that is we’re going to play ‘til the end. We’ve had to do that,” Tigers manager A.J. Hinch said. “These are funky wins with one run, or coming up late. … Our guys play all 27 outs.”

The Tigers, who banged out a season-high 14 hits, held a 6-1 lead after five innings before the Royals posted a six-run seventh. The game also included nearly two hours of rain delays.

Dillon Dingler hit a two-run homer — his team-leading fourth of the season — in the fifth, while Greene’s heroic swing capped a 3-for-4 day.

“We’re being clutch on both sides, with our pitching and hitting, but we’re playing really clean, good baseball right now,” Keith said. “We’re showing it on the scorecard. We’re winning.”

Like Suarez, Detroit starter Casey Mize (1-1, 3.94) is also coming off his first win of the season after throwing 5 2/3 innings of one-run ball to beat the Miami Marlins last Saturday. He struck out five.

Mize is 0-1 with a 3.95 ERA in five career starts against the Red Sox. He struck out eight in a 6 1/3-inning road no-decision on Sept. 26 of last season.

Detroit has won the last two season series.

–Field Level Media

 

Red Sox Score Early, Often

by

MINNEAPOLIS – Trevor Story hit a three-run home run and drove in five runs to help the visiting Boston Red Sox avoid a three-game sweep by defeating the Minnesota Twins, 9-5, Wednesday afternoon. After he homered against Minnesota starting pitcher Simeon Woods Richardson in the third inning, Story added a two-run double in the sixth. Story’s home run was his second of the season.

Embed from Getty Images

Andruw Monasterio collected three hits for the Red Sox. Monasterio was playing in place of Willson Contreras, who removed himself from Tuesday’s game with back stiffness. Roman Anthony and Isiah Kiner-Falefa each had two hits in the win.

Boston starter Connelly Early (1-0) earned the win for holding the Twins to one run on two hits in six innings. He struck out five and walked two. Woods Richardson (0-3) allowed seven runs (six earned) on 10 hits in five innings.

Austin Martin and Ryan Kreidler homered for Minnesota, which outscored Boston 19-6 in the first two games of the series.

The Twins entered Wednesday’s game with a six -game home winning streak.

After Martin’s solo home run opened the scoring in the bottom of the first, the Red Sox scored five runs in the third. Boston took the lead by scoring twice when second baseman Luke Keaschall committed two errors (one fielding, one throwing) on Masataka Yoshida’s grounder with the bases loaded. Story followed with his three-run home run that scored Ceddanne Rafaela and Yoshida to make it 5-1.

Boston extended its lead to 7-1 by pushing two runs across the plate in the fifth. Jarren Duran reached on a fielder’s choice and scored on Monasterio’s double to make it 6-1, and Monasterio added the seventh run by scoring from third on Connor Wong’s sacrifice bunt.

It was 9-1 after Story’s double in the sixth drove in Anthony and Rafaela.

Minnesota scored four times in the ninth. A Brooks Lee single drove in Tristan Gray to make it 9-2 before Kreidler hit a three-run home run that finalized the scoring.

–Field Level Media

BoSox: Two Wins in a Row

by

BOSTON – Boston’s starting pitcher Sonny Gray pitched 6.1 innings of scoreless baseball and allowed only three hits while the Red Sox scored three runs in the third inning to spot him a 3-0 lead, early, en route to Boston’s 5-0 victory over the visiting Milwaukee Brewers. The win gave the Sox their first series win of 2026, after a paltry 2-8 start.

Embed from Getty Images

In the third, Boston loaded the bases, then scored on a base on balls earned by first baseman Willson Contreras. Rightfielder Bobby Abreu delivered an infield hit to score the second run and designated hitter Trevor Story hit a sacrifice fly ball to right, scoring reserve shortstop Andruw Monasterio as the Sox scored three runs but left three men on base.

Boston scored two insurance runs in the seventh inning and relief pitchers Greg Weissert, rookie Tyler Samaniego and Ryan Watson closed it out for Boston, now 4-8 on the year. The loss by Milwaukee dropped their record to 8-4.

Monasterio drew three walks on the day to go with two fly outs to right. Centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela was 2-for-2 with a walk.

Gray (2-0) was credited with the win, while Brewers starter Shane Drohan (0-1) took the loss. There was no save. Gray threw 90 pitches on the day with 53 being strikes.

Rookie reliever Tyler Samaniego (1.0 IP, one walk, three strike-outs) made his MLB debut for the Red Sox. He pitched a hitless 8th inning, striking out three of his four batters faced. and joins Fred Wenz who on 6/4/68 vs. DET-G2 (1.0 IP, 2 BB, 3 SO) was the only other Red Sox relieverr ever to allow no runs in their debut and record three strike-outs in their first inning of work. The feat was witnessed by 28,660 fans at Fenway Park on a cool (43-degrees) but sunny afternoon.

The Brewers have an off day on Thursday and head home for a three-game set with the visiting Washington Nationals. Boston completed their six game home stand, going (3-3). They’ll have a travel day on Thursday and play three games at St. Louis before flying to Minnesota for another three-game set.

Red Sox Put One in the “W” Column

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox will turn to veteran right-hander Sonny Gray while the visiting Milwaukee Brewers will counter with left-hander Shane Drohan in the rubber match of a three-game series on Wednesday afternoon.

Drohan will make his major league debut against his former organization after being acquired in an offseason trade with Boston.

Embed from Getty Images

Gray (1-0, 4.50 ERA), who totaled 27 wins over the previous two seasons with St. Louis, notched his first victory with the Red Sox in his most recent start.

Boston snapped a three-game skid on Tuesday night and evened the series with a 3-2 victory despite managing just three hits. The Red Sox, who are only 3-8 this season, converted three consecutive walks for three runs in the sixth inning off hard-throwing Jacob Misiorowski for a 3-0 lead, keyed by Trevor Story’s two-run, bases-loaded double.

Milwaukee answered with two runs in the seventh off starter Garrett Crochet but stranded runners on second and third.

“A night like tonight, you know who’s on the other side and you kind of know that you’ve got to be on your A -game,” Crochet said afterward about Misiorowski, who struck out 10 in 5 1/3 innings.

Gray picked up the victory his last time out, allowing two runs on four hits in six innings in a 5-2 win over San Diego on Friday.

“It’s a team effort, for sure,” Gray said afterward. “But I do think it’s the starting pitcher’s job to come out and attack, put zeros on the board and give your team a chance. That’s just kind of what my mindset was today — to just attack early, get back to being you. And we had a good game plan going in.”

Gray is 5-6 with a 4.55 ERA in 20 career starts vs. Milwaukee.

Drohan was called up Monday from Triple-A Nashville after reliever Jared Koenig was placed on the 15-day injured list. Drohan was acquired in February from Boston with pitcher Kyle Harrison and infielder David Hamilton for infielders Caleb Durbin, Andruw Monasterio and Anthony Seigler.

Drohan made one start this season at Triple-A Nashville, allowing two runs on three hits in 3 1/3 innings without a decision. He was 5-1 with a 2.27 ERA last season in 12 games, including 11 starts, for Worcester, Boston’s Triple-A affiliate.

Drohan was 1-2 with a 4.26 ERA in four spring training outings with Milwaukee, allowing seven runs (six earned) in 12 2/3 innings. He struck out 15 and walked four.

The Brewers, already without injured starters Jackson Chourio and Andrew Vaughn, were without second baseman Brice Turang on Tuesday night. Turang, hitting .270 with seven RBIs, has been dealing with a foot or ankle injury, although he probably is not slated for the injured list, Brewers manager Pat Murphy said Tuesday.

“Turang’s playing on one leg, and he hasn’t got great numbers on this road trip, but he’s helped us win,” Murphy told MLB.com. “He’s been on base, he’s played defense. He’s a threat when he’s taking his walks, which is crucial for what he needs to do.”

–Field Level Media

A Lousy 2-8 Skidoo …

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox will try to end a three-game losing streak and avoid dropping their fourth straight series when they host the Milwaukee Brewers tonight. Milwaukee opened the three-game set by overcoming a three-run deficit en route to an 8-6 victory on Monday.

Christian Yelich recorded three of the Brewers’ 11 hits, plus an RBI.

Embed from Getty Images

“Our offense … it doesn’t matter what the score is, we can grind out at-bats, get guys on and make things happen for sure,” said starting pitcher Brandon Woodruff, who gave up three runs and seven hits over 5 2/3 innings.

“Early in the year when it’s cold like this, you’re just trying to give your team a chance to win. Yeah, it would be great to throw up zeros, but the way the  game was transpiring, I was just trying to give us a chance. Getting into the sixth was big. It was huge for the guys down in the (bullpen) because we were short. I knew I needed to do that.”

After starting the season by losing two of three games in Cincinnati, Boston was swept by Houston and then lost two of three against San Diego.

“It was a great win,” Yelich said Monday. “It was a toughness win from the guys. We got down. It was cold out there (low 40s at game time). We got a short ‘pen, and we found a way to win. We’re willing to grind with anybody. Just proud of the guys for finding a way there.”

Boston committed two errors during Monday’s loss and has 11 in 10 games. The boos may have been the loudest after Roman Anthony committed a throwing error in the eighth inning that allowed a run to score and give Milwaukee a 7-5 lead.

“It wasn’t a good throw,” Boston manager Alex Cora said. “(Pitcher Garrett Whitlock) didn’t back up. We’re just watching the play. When the ball is hit we got to go somewhere. The only people that can watch is the people in the stands, and obviously they’re not too happy.

“That’s why we love it here because their expectations are up there with us. And right now we deserve whatever they’re thinking. We’re not playing good baseball and we know it.”

Willson Contreras was a bright spot for the Red Sox, hitting a solo home run and reaching base a career-high five times.

It will be a battle of aces on Tuesday when Boston left-hander Garrett Crochet (1-1, 3.27 ERA) is scheduled to start opposite right-hander Jacob Misiorowski (1-0, 2.45).

Crochet took the loss in his last start after allowing five runs (four earned) on six hits in five innings of a 6-4 defeat to Houston on Wednesday. He is 0-1 with a 2.13 ERA in two career appearances against Milwaukee, with 19 strikeouts in 12 2/3 innings.

“Like I said a few days ago, we have to pitch to get to .500 and go where we want to go,” Cora said. “We have to pitch, that’s the bottom line. We walked eight (on Monday). They had 18 at-bats with men in scoring position. It’s very hard to win that way. Very hard.”

Misiorowski will make his first career appearance against the Red Sox. He has thrown 20 pitches this season clocked at 100 mph or higher. In his most recent outing, he gave two runs and four hits over six innings in a no-decision vs. Tampa Bay on Wednesday. Misiorowski struck out seven and walked two in his team’s 8-2 victory.

–Field Level Media

Padres Come From Behind, Beat Sox 8-6

by

By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief

BOSTON – San Diego closer Mason Miller entered the game in the bottom of the ninth inning to much fanfare. Fenway Park’s welcome was actually a rallying cry to the home Boston Red Sox and they came to the plate with the heart of the order scheduled to bat. Miller struck out Boston shortstop Trevor Story on three pitches, then got No. 3 hitter Jarren Duran with only four pitches.

Lastly, Miller earned his fourth save of the season by mowing down Willson Contreras with a 89 mph slider to strike out the side and secure an 8-6 victory for the visiting Padres (4-5). The Red Sox fell to (2-7) and will limp into a three-game set vs. Milwaukee on Monday night at Fenway..

After a paltry 1-5 start to the 2026 Major League Baseball season, the Boston Red Sox needed two big games. One came on their home opening day, on Friday, when the Sox defeated the San Diego Padres 5-2 before a festive sellout crowd at Fenway Park, but the other fell short Sunday, when the Sox faced those same Padres in the rubber-game of their three-game series and dropped it.

Embed from Getty Images

Boston tallied first, scoring four runs in the bottom half of the third inning. The inning began with two base-on-balls issued to catcher Carlos Narvaez and designated hitter Roman Anthony, respectively. After Boston Story moved the runners up a base with a ground-out to first, centerfielder Jarren Duran laced a double down the right field side, scoring both Narvaez and Anthony.

Later in the inning, Boston’s rightfielder Wilyer Abreu cracked a drive to the wall in right for a stand-up triple. Left fielder Masataka Yoshida followed with a double to right, scoring Abreu and giving Boston a 4-0 lead. With that, San Diego yanked starter Walker Buehler in the third as his line was a horrid, 2.2 IP, three hots, four runs, all earned  with three walks and four strike-outs. Buehler threw 61 pitches in his 2.2 IP with 33 strikes.

San Diego followed a half-inning later, tallying three runs on four hits and an error. Fernando Tatis Jr. started the rally wqith a double ripped to the left-center field gap. Centerfielder Jackson Merrill knocked in Tatis with a base hit to right and Manny Machado followed immediately afterward with a single. The two runners advanced on an errant throw by Boston’s backstop, Narvaez, and newly acquired first baseman Nick Castellanos knocked in the pair of runners with a single to cut the Red Sox lead to 4-3. . Castellanos was batting .154 when the game started.

San Diego scored another three runs in the 5th inning. Catcher Luis Campusano and Merrill each singled to set the table for Padres third baseman and All-Star Manny Machado’s 365-foot, three-run homer to left field which gave the Padres a 6-4 lead in the middle of the 5th.

Manager Alex Cora had yanked starter Ranger Suarez after the Campusano single, so reliever Greg Weissert was left holding two of those three runs on his resume. Weissert was replaced by rookie  right-hander Tyler Uberstine in the sixth inning.

Boston tied the game in the bottom of the 7th inning when Story singled, first baseman Contreras traded the base paths on a field’s choice but Abreu laced a double to put runners on 2nd and 3rd base. Yoshida came through in the clutch with a two-out double to right-center field, scoring both Contreras and Abreu.

With the score knotted at 6-6, Merrill led-off the 8th inning with a 384-foot home run to right field, hitting a 2-2 pitch off Uberstine – his first homer to be let up at Fenway. The Padres scored an insurance run in the top of the 9th. Tatis ripped a long sacrifice fly ball to center and pinch hitter Gavin Sheets scored after he had hit a double to lead-off the inning.

Jeremiah Estrada was credited with the victory. He is (1-0), while the rookie, Uberstine, took the loss. He is (0-1).

The Padres will fly to Pittsburgh to face the National League Pirates in their next series.

 

 

Chapman Blows the Close

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Ramon Laureano’s two-out RBI single in the top of the ninth inning propelled the visiting San Diego Padres to a 3-2 win over the Boston Red Sox in the second of a three-game series on Saturday.

The Padres found two-out magic against Boston closer Aroldis Chapman (0-1) to take the lead for good, as Fernando Tatis Jr. ripped a double over Ceddanne Rafaela’s head in center field to set the stage for Laureano’s heroic knock into left.

Embed from Getty Images

Miguel Andujar also had a big day for San Diego, going 3-for-5 with a double and a run scored.

San Diego had recorded just two hits between the fourth and seventh innings, allowing the Boston offense to scratch a tying run. Adrian Morejon (1-0) earned the win despite blowing a potential save, which Mason Miller wound up earning after striking out the side in the ninth.

Rafaela and Roman Anthony each had two hits for the Red Sox; Anthony hit a triple in the fifth.

In the eighth, Rafaela and Anthony started the Red Sox with back-to-back singles before pinch hitter Andruw Monasterio put together a nine-pitch at-bat and earned an RBI fielder’s choice. The Padres looked to turn an inning-ending 1-4-3 double play, but Jake Cronenworth fumbled Morejon’s throw to second.

After Boston starter Connelly Early worked out of a two-on, two-out jam to start the game, San Diego took a 1-0 lead on Bryce Johnson’s RBI grounder in the second. Freddy Fermin scored after drawing a leadoff walk and moved first-to-third on Ty France’s wall-ball single.

The bottom of the inning saw the hosts respond with a game-tying run, as Willson Contreras knocked a leadoff single to left and scored on Marcelo Mayer’s sacrifice fly.

A pair of doubles in the third helped the Padres take a 2-1 lead. Andujar knocked one into the left-field corner with one out to spark the inning, and Manny Machado kept the line moving with a walk. Two batters later, Fermin flipped the score again with a two-out liner past the dive of Boston third baseman Caleb Durbin.

Both teams’ bats were quieted for several innings thereafter, though the Red Sox had opportunities to re-tie the game with four hits across the fourth and fifth.

San Diego starter Randy Vasquez worked around three singles in the first of those frames, striking out Mayer with two on to end the threat. An inning later, Anthony’s two-out triple to deep right went by the board.

Vasquez completed six innings of one-run ball with three strikeouts.

Early threw 88 pitches in just four innings, allowing two runs on three hits and four walks while fanning four.

–Field Level Media

HOME COOKIN’

by

BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Willson Contreras and Marcelo Mayer both homered in the sixth inning, propelling the Red Sox to a 5-2, home-opening win over the San Diego Padres at Fenway Park on Friday afternoon.

Mayer highlighted his 2-for-2 day with a two-out, two-run homer to cap Boston’s three-run frame. He also hit a leadoff double and scored the opening run in the third.

Embed from Getty Images

Boston banged out nine hits and received a solid six-inning start from Sonny Gray (1-0) en route to breaking a five-game losing skid.

Gray allowed just two runs on four hits while striking out three in his first home start at Fenway Park. Greg Weissert, Justin Slaten and Aroldis Chapman each pitched scoreless innings in relief, with the latter passing Jonathan Papelbon for 11th on MLB’s all-time saves list (369).

Gavin Sheets went 2-for-3 with an RBI and run scored for San Diego.

Boston College grad Michael King (0-1) allowed four runs in a 5 2/3-inning start.

The Red Sox scored in back-to-back innings to break the game’s scoreless deadlock, taking the initial lead when Ceddanne Rafaela lined a one-out single into center in the third. Mayer set the table with a wall-ball double to start the inning.

Two-out offense in Boston’s fourth made it a 2-0 game. After Jarren Duran shot a leadoff double past a diving first baseman Sheets, back-to-back strikeouts had King on the verge of ending the inning, but Caleb Durbin broke his 0-for-19 start with an RBI single up the middle.

Gray allowed just a single baserunner through his first 4 1/3 innings, but the visitors quickly tied the game on three hits in the fifth.

Miguel Andujar cranked a leadoff triple over Rafaela in deep center to begin the fifth, and Sheets halved the San Diego deficit thanks to his RBI knock to right. Two batters later, Luis Campusano hit a game-tying RBI single off the Green Monster.

After Gray completed his sixth and final inning, Boston jumped back in front, ended King’s day and greeted the bullpen rudely in a three-run bottom of the frame. Contreras cleared the center field wall for his first solo shot as a Red Sox, flipping the score at 3-2.

Wilyer Abreu followed with a base hit, and after King followed with his fifth strikeout to end his start, Wandy Peralta served up a two-run homer to Mayer that landed in the right-center field bullpen — but not without a leaping effort from right fielder Fernando Tatis at the wall.

–Field Level Media

It’s Opening Day at Fenway Park

by

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.

Embed from Getty Images

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.