The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseballís American League Eastern Division. Founded in 1901 as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since 1912. The "Red Sox" name was chosen by the team owner, John I. Taylor, around 1908, following previous Boston teams that had been known as the "Red Stockings". They played in eleven World Series and won seven World Series.
Boston was a dominant team in the new league, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first World Series in 1903 and winning four more championships by 1918. However, they then went into one of the longest championship droughts in baseball history, called by some the "Curse of the Bambino" after its alleged beginning with the Red Sox's sale of Babe Ruth to the rival Yankees two years after their world championship in 1918, an 86-year wait before the team's sixth World Championship in 2004. However, the team's history during that period was hardly one of futility, but was rather punctuated with some of the most memorable moments in World Series history, including Enos Slaughter's "mad dash" in 1946, the "Impossible Dream" of 1967, Carlton Fisk's home run in 1975, and Bill Buckner's error in 1986. Red Sox history has also been marked by the team's intense rivalry with the New York Yankees, arguably the fiercest and most historic in North American professional sports. Since 2003, the Red Sox have been perennial playoff contenders and have won two World Series, emerging as one of the most successful MLB teams of the last decade.
The Boston Red Sox are owned by Fenway Sports Group who also own Liverpool F.C.. The Red Sox are consistently one of the top MLB teams in average road attendance, while the small capacity of Fenway Park prevents them from leading in overall attendance. Every home game since May 15, 2003 has been sold out ó a MLB record that has spanned almost eight years.
Theo Epstein's first step toward restocking the team for 2007 was to pursue one of the most anticipated acquisitions in baseball history. On November 14, MLB announced that Boston had won the bid for the rights to negotiate a contract with Japanese superstar pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka. Boston placed a bid of $51.1 million and had 30 days to complete a deal. On December 13, Matsuzaka signed a 6-year, $52 million contract.
Fan favorite Trot Nixon filed for free agency and agreed on a deal with the Indians. With an opening in right field, the Red Sox signed J. D. Drew on January 25, 2007 to a 5-year, $70 million contract. Free agent Shortstop ¡lex Gonz·lez was replaced by another free agent, Julio Lugo. Second baseman Mark Loretta also left via free agency for the Houston Astros, opening a spot for rookie Dustin Pedroia.
The Red Sox moved into first place in the AL East by mid-April and never relinquished their division lead. While Ortiz and Ramirez provided their usual offense, it was the hitting of Lowell, Youkilis, and Pedroia that anchored the club through the first few months. While Drew, Lugo, and Coco Crisp struggled to provide offense, Lowell and Youkilis more than made up for it with averages well above .300 and impressive home run and RBI totals. Pedroia started badly, hitting below .200 in April. Manager Terry Francona stuck with him and his patience paid off as Pedroia finished the first half over .300.
On the mound, Josh Beckett emerged as the ace of the staff and was 12ñ2 at the all-star break. His success was needed as Schilling, Matsuzaka, Wakefield and Tavarez all struggled at times. Meanwhile, the Boston bullpen, anchored by Papelbon and Hideki Okajima, was there to pick up the starters often. Papelbon served as the stopper, and the rise of Okajima as a legitimate setup man and occasional closer gave the Red Sox more options late in the game. Okajima posted an ERA of 0.88 through the first half and was selected for the All-Star Game.
By the All-Star break, Boston had the best record in baseball and held their largest lead in the American League East, 10 games over the Blue Jays and Yankees. In the second half, more stars emerged for the Red Sox as they continued to lead the AL East. Beckett continued to shine, reaching 20 wins for the first time in his career. At one point, veteran Tim Wakefield found himself atop the AL in wins and finished with a 17ñ12 record. Minor league call-up Clay Buchholz provided a spark on September 1 by pitching a no-hitter in his second career start. Another call-up, outfielder Jacoby Ellsbury, was thrust into the starting lineup while Manny RamÌrez rested through most of September. Ellsbury played brilliantly during the month, hitting .361 with 3 HR, 17 RBI, and 8 stolen bases. Mike Lowell continued to carry the club, hitting cleanup in September and leading the team with 120 RBI for the season. Eventual 2007 Rookie of the Year Dustin Pedroia finished his outstanding first full season with 165 hits and a .317 average. The Red Sox became the first team to clinch a playoff spot for the 2007 season and the Red Sox captured their first AL East title since 1995.
Victorious Red Sox players being honored at the White House by President George W. Bush.
The Red Sox swept the Angels in the ALDS. Facing the Indians in the ALCS, Josh Beckett won Game 1 but the Red Sox stumbled, losing the next three games. Facing a 3ñ1 deficit and a must-win situation, Beckett pitched eight innings while surrendering only one run and striking out 11 in a masterful Game 5 win. The Red Sox captured their twelfth American League pennant by outscoring the Indians 30ñ5 over the final three games, winning the final two games at Fenway Park.
The Red Sox faced the Colorado Rockies in the 2007 World Series. Beckett set the tone in game 1, pitching seven strong innings as the offense provided more than enough in a 13ñ1 victory. In Game 2, Schilling, Okajima, and Papelbon held the Rockies to one run again in a 2ñ1 game. Moving to Colorado, the Red Sox offense made the difference again in a 10ñ5 win. Finally, in Game 4, Jon Lester took Wakefield's spot in the rotation and gave the Red Sox an impressive start, pitching 5? shutout innings. The Rockies threatened, but thanks to World Series MVP Mike Lowell and aided by a home run by Bobby Kielty, Papelbon registered another save as the Red Sox swept the Rockies in four games, capturing their second title in four years.
Following their World Series victory, the Red Sox were forced to address a few personnel questions in the hopes of repeating as champion. The team re-signed free agents Mike Lowell, Curt Schilling, Tim Wakefield and Mike Timlin. The Red Sox also added veteran first baseman Sean Casey to back up Kevin Youkilis.
Injuries to Schilling, Timlin, and Josh Beckett landed each pitcher on the disabled list before the season began, putting added pressure on young starters Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz. The Red Sox began their season by participating in the third opening day game in MLB history to be played in Japan, where they defeated the Oakland A's in the Tokyo Dome. Boston played well to start the season, settling into a top position in the AL East. However, the surprise Tampa Bay Rays took over the top of the division with a sweep over the Red Sox in early July. From May 17ñ22, the Sox had a winning streak of seven games, their longest of the season.On May 19, Lester threw the 18th no-hitter in team history, beating the Kansas City Royals 7ñ0. During the season, Lester emerged as an anchor in the Red Sox rotation, leading the team in starts and innings pitched while compiling a 16ñ6 record and a 3.21 ERA. Buchholz meanwhile struggled mightily in 2008 to a 2ñ9 record, ending up back in the minors. Injuries would take a toll on the Red Sox offense during the season. David Ortiz missed 45 games with an injured wrist, Mike Lowell missed weeks with a torn hip labrum, and after a blistering performance in June, J. D. Drew aggravated a back injury that shelved him for much of the second half of the season. Down the stretch, outfielder Manny Ramirez ó playing in the final year of his eight year contract ó became a distraction to the team. His disruptive behavior included public incidents with fellow players in the dugout (shoving Kevin Youkilis), team employees (pushing the team's 64 year old traveling secretary to the ground), criticizing ownership, and not playing due to laziness and nonexistent injuries. The front office decided to move the disgrunted outfielder at the July 31 trade deadline, shipping him to the Dodgers in a three-way deal with the Pirates that landed them Jason Bay to replace him in left field.
With Ramirez gone, and Bay providing a new spark in the lineup, the Red Sox found new life. Kevin Youkilis had career highs in home runs (29) and RBIs (115). Closer Jonathan Papelbon set a career high in saves with 41. Daisuke Matsuzaka improved on his 2007 performance and led the team in wins, finishing with an 18ñ3 record. However, it was Dustin Pedroia who emerged as not only a team leader, but an American League MVP candidate. Pedroia hit over .340 in the second half, finishing the year at or near the top in the AL in batting average, hits, runs, and doubles. Despite Boston's 34ñ19 record following the trading deadline, the Rays held onto the AL East lead and captured their first division title in franchise history.
Boston still made the playoffs as the AL Wild Card. Behind the strong pitching of Jon Lester (two games started and no earned runs allowed), the Red Sox defeated the Angels in the ALDS three games to one. The Red Sox then took on their AL East rivals the Tampa Bay Rays in the ALCS. Down three games to one in the 5th game of the ALCS, Boston mounted the greatest single game comeback in ALCS history. Trailing 7ñ0 in the 7th inning with elimination pending, the Red Sox came back to win the game 8ñ7. They tied the series at 3 games apiece before losing Game 7, 3ñ1, thus becoming the eighth team in a row since 2000 not to repeat as world champions. The Red Sox led the American League last season in shutouts with 16, but only two were complete games by the starter.
The Red Sox's opening game was delayed by a day due to rain. However, Ted Kennedy made the first pitch the next game. The Red Sox got into a rough start, but then won eleven games in a row. This winning streak was highlighted by Jacoby Ellsbury's steal of home during a Yankees game on April 26. During the first half of the season, star-slugger David Ortiz had a very bad slump with a .185 average and one sole home run.
The Red Sox faltered after the All-Star break, losing five of six on the road to the Toronto Blue Jays and Texas Rangers and batting just .192 and scoring 13 runs. In response to the poor offensive performance and to make room for Jed Lowrie's return from injury Julio Lugo was traded to the St. Louis Cardinals for cash and two minor-league players were traded to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Adam LaRoche on July 22, and on July 25, Mark Kotsay was designated for assignment. The Red Sox made a big move at the trade deadline, July 31, to acquire catcher Victor Martinez from the Cleveland Indians for pitchers Justin Masterson, Nick Hagadone, and Bryan Price. They also traded Adam LaRoche to the Atlanta Braves for Casey Kotchman.
The Red Sox lost its last six games to place it second in the AL East, with the Yankees (who would later win the World Series). The Red Sox entered the play-off via the Wild Card. In the playoffs, the Red Sox would meet the Angels for the 3rd straigt year. This time it would be the Angels sweeping the Sox 3 games.
The Red Sox's 2010 season was highlighted by its many injuries to its players despite new additions to the team such as John Lackey, Mike Cameron and Marco Scutaro. Matsuzaka ended the season early to recover his health. Victor Martinez; Mike Lowell; Josh Beckett; Jed Lowrie; and Mike Cameron faced small injuries that limited their playing time. Dustin Pedroia and Kevin Youkilis ended their season from injuries late in the season. Jacoby Ellsbury would bounce back from the disabled list before he would end his season too. The Red Sox missed the play-offs for the first time since 2006, finishing third place in the AL East.
The 2011 season started with Mike Lowell deciding to retire. The Red Sox acquired superstar Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford to help the team after a horrible year. The Red Sox struggled early, falling to an 0-6 start for the first time since 1945. However, they gradually made their way into playoff contention by July, thanks to a potent offense which made up for a decimated pitching staff. Daisuke Matsuzaka and Clay Buchholz ended their season with injuries, while Josh Beckett, John Lackey and newly-added setup man Bobby Jenks had stints in the disabled list, paving the way for new additions such as Andrew Miller, Alfredo Aceves and seldom-used setup man Daniel Bard to prove their worth. After rookie pitcher Kyle Weiland proved ineffective, the Red Sox made a three way trade, giving up some prospects for …rik BÈdard. On July 16, 2011, Jed Lowrie turned a triple play against Sean Rodriguez of the Tampa Bay Rays, the first triple play played by the Red Sox since 1994. When Kevin Youkilis; Josh Beckett; …rik BÈdard; David Ortiz; and Adrian Gonzalez all had a brief stint to the disabled list in September, the Red Sox lost 11 out of 14 in that month. The Red Sox at one point held the AL East lead midway through the season. In the end however the Red Sox blew up their postseason aspirations on September 28, losing to the Orioles 4ñ3 while the Tampa Bay Rays clinched the American League Wild Card with a win over the Yankees on the same night. The Red Sox missed the playoffs in consecutive seasons for the first time since missing three straight postseasons from 2000-2002. Because of this, and many other problems, Terry Francona decided not to manage the 2012 season.
In the end of the season, Terry Francona admitted that the clubhouse didn't have his definition of "leadership." Terry Francona also told of days where the starting pitchers John Lackey, ace Josh Beckett, and Jon Lester spent time in the dugout drinking when they should have paid attention. This caused a large shock to the Red Sox Nation. Jon Lester and the rest of the responsible pitchers stresses that they were only drinking when they had the day off pitching. Theo Epstein is now in the process of moving to the Chicago Cubs, also leaving the General Manager spot open.
The Boston Red Sox won their first World Series in 1903 and continued on to win three more championship titles in 1912, 1915 and 1916. 1918 saw the Boston Red Sox win their fifth World Series, but after having such tremendous success in the early years, the Sox could only manage moderate performance for next 85 years as there was not a championship title. However, in 1946, the Sox did make it to the World Series only to lose to the St. Louis Cardinals in seven games. The fifties were just as bleak for the Boston Red Sox, but they showed improvement when the sixties rolled around. The Sox eventually took the pennant in 1975 and 1986; claimed three divisional championships, and played in four wild-card competitions.
By 2004, their eight decades of dearth ended when the Sox beat the Yankees in the American League Series; and then went on to beat the St. Louis Cardinals to become the World Champions of Baseball. The Sox recaptured the title finally in 2005. And though they could not repeat their winning performance, they did get the Wild Card and finished the 2006 season with a 95-67 record.
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