Entering 2011, expectations for the Boston Red Sox were through the roof. The team was coming off an injury-plagued 2010 season and promptly caught two of the offseason's biggest fish in Adrian Gonzalez and Carl Crawford.
But those expectations didn't exactly turn into wins right away. The Red Sox struggled out of the gate, failing to record a win until their seventh game of the season. They started off 2-10 overall.
Fortunately, manager Terry Francona and his talented team were able to turn things around in a hurry, and the Red Sox now rank among the game's elite — right where Red Sox Nation expected them to be.
The Red Sox followed up an 11-15 April with a 19-10 May, reaching the elusive .500 mark for the first time all season on May 15 in New York.
The Red Sox have gone from cellar dwellers to the top of the mountain in 2011, and they are now battling with the Yankees and Rays for AL East supremacy.
In order to relive some of this season's best moments, we have picked the top 10 Red Sox games of the 2011 season that aired on NESN. We want you to vote for your favorite. The top four vote-getters will be re-aired on NESN during a Red Sox marathon on Wednesday, July 13, from 2 p.m. to 10 p.m.
Here's a look at the nominees.
April 8: 9-6 win over Yankees at Fenway
It took until the seventh game, but the Red Sox finally picked up their first win of 2011, and it came in the team's home opener.
The Red Sox unveiled new Fenway Park scoreboards during the Friday night matchup, while Dustin Pedroia homered in his first at-bat. The Red Sox overcame an early 3-1 deficit in the win.
April 18: 9-1 win over Blue Jays at Fenway
Daisuke Mastuzaka shocked a lot of Red Sox fans with a gem on Patriots' Day. He allowed only one hit and one walk, while striking out three in seven solid innings for the win. He did so on only 89 pitches.
Jed Lowrie powered the Red Sox lineup with a 4-for-5 effort in a game that was played in less than two hours. It was a third consecutive win for the Red Sox, during a series that seemed to turn their luck around.
May 9: 2-1 win over Twins at Fenway in 11 innings
Carl Crawford provided his second walk-off hit of the homestand in a 2-1 victory over the Twins. He delievered a double off the wall that plated pinch-runner Jose Iglesias all the way from first base.
Prior to that, Josh Beckett and Nick Blackburn each pitched very well. Beckett didn't allow a run in seven innings, while Blackburn allowed only one run through 6 1/3 innings. Hideki Okajima, on in relief, threw a career-high 43 pitches.
May 13: 5-4 win over Yankees at Yankee Stadium
In the first of a three-game set in New York, Clay Buchholz pitched seven strong innings to propel the Red Sox to victory. It was the first win of seven in a row for the Red Sox, who reached the .500 mark later in the series.
Kevin Youkilis and Adrian Gonzalez each went deep, and Jonathan Papelbon retired Mark Teixeira to close out the one-run win.
May 20: 15-5 win over Cubs at Fenway
The Cubs made their first visit to Fenway Park since the 1918 World Series, and the Red Sox weren't exactly accommodating hosts. They pounded out 19 hits and scored two or more runs in five separate innings, including four in the fourth and five in the eighth.
Adrian Gonzalez, who had four RBIs, collected four hits, while Kevin Youkilis tallied three. Jon Lester pitched six innings for the win.
May 29: 4-3 win over Tigers at Comerica
The Red Sox picked up a dramatic win in the first game of a doubleheader with the Tigers. David Ortiz didn't start the game, but it didnt' stop him from leaving his mark on it. The Red Sox slugger worked a full count before lifting a Jose Valverde offering into the seats to give the Red Sox a 4-3 lead in the ninth.
The pinch-hit home run was Ortiz's first pinch-hit home run since April 2003 — his first homer with the Red Sox. The win marked Boston's 13th in 15 games.
June 4: 9-8 win over A's at Fenway in 14 innings
The Red Sox pulled out a win in one of the team's strangest contests in awhile. The game featured 495 pitches, 26 position players, 17 runs, 16 pitchers, 14 innings, five hours and two ejections.
The Red Sox entered the ninth inning with a four-run lead, but Jonathan Papelbon was unable to hold down the A's as he and Jason Varitek were ejected for arguing with home-plate umpire Tony Randazzo.
The Red Sox fell behind 8-7 in the 11th inning, but back-to-back hits by Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Jacoby Ellsbury plated a run and kept the game alive. Four innings later, J.D. Drew hit a line drive into the gap in right-center field for the win.
June 9: 8-3 win over Yankees at Yankee Stadium
The Red Sox completed another sweep of the Yankees with the win, which was their sixth straight and 36th overall. To do so, they erased a 2-0 Yankees lead.
The Red Sox scored seven runs on eight hits in the seventh inning. David Ortiz and Adrian Gonzalez each had two hits and drove in a pair, while Jacoby Ellsbury added two hits of his own. Josh Beckett pitched seven innings for the win, outdueling CC Sabathia.
June 11: 16-4 win over Blue Jays at Rogers Centre
The Red Sox dominated the Blue Jays during a three-game weekend series. In the middle game, the Red Sox bats were particularly hot, as the team scored 16 runs on 18 hits for their eighth straight win.
Six Red Sox hitters chipped in at least two hits, while each member of the starting lineup had at least one RBI. Marco Scutaro had four hits and Dustin Pedroia had three.
The main offensive explosion came in the fifth inning, when both David Ortiz and Jason Varitek cracked three-run home runs. The 16 runs marked Boston's best offensive showing of the season.
June 15: 3-0 win over Rays at Tropicana
A lot of Red Sox fans may have missed this game, as the Bruins were locked in a Game 7 Stanley Cup battle with the Vancouver Canucks. But while the Bruins were taking care of business north of the border, Josh Beckett was mowing down the Rays in Tampa.
Beckett pitched a one-hit, complete-game shut-out, outdueling Rays rookie Jeremy Hellickson. All of the night's offense came on one swing of the bat, when Kevin Youkilis hit a three-run home run in the top of the seventh.
Beckett's performance might only be a footnote on a night in which the Bruins brought home Lord Stanley, but it was a dazzling performance, nevertheless.
What has been your favorite Red Sox game from 2011 that has aired on NESN?customer surveys
Voting will run until Thursday, July 7, at 3 p.m., when the top four games (by percentage) will be announced.