This wasn’t the plan.
The 2020 Major League Baseball season was supposed to begin Thursday, before the coronavirus outbreak threw a wrench into everything and forced sweeping changes to the sports calendar. It’s now unclear when the regular season will begin or how many games the schedule will consist of in wake of the delay.
The Red Sox were scheduled to face the Blue Jays in Toronto on Opening Day, which typically represents a fresh start for every franchise across the league. Few teams could use a clean slate more than Boston, which is coming off a disappointing 2019 after winning the World Series in 2018.
The Red Sox’s quest to return to the top of the mountain seemingly took a hit this offseason. They traded Mookie Betts and David Price to the Los Angeles Dodgers last month, and then learned last week that Chris Sale would need to undergo Tommy John surgery, sidelining the ace for all of 2020.
But hey, you just never know. And that’s the beauty of Opening Day, which unfortunately will come late this season but nevertheless remains a much-anticipated time for all baseball enthusiasts.
Since we now don’t have an actual game to sink our teeth into Thursday, let’s look back on how Boston began each of its four most recent World Series runs (2004, 2007, 2013 and 2018).
While Opening Day hardly is the be-all and end-all in the context of a lengthy MLB season, it’s still interesting to see what exactly precipitated the eventual champion’s road to success.
More Red Sox: Relive Dwight Evans’ Opening Day Leadoff Home Run In 1986
2004
Orioles 7, Red Sox 2 (Sunday, April 4, Camden Yards)
W: Sidney Ponson
L: Pedro Martinez
S: B.J. Ryan
Boston was tasked with bouncing back from a heartbreaking end to 2003, when Aaron Boone took Tim Wakefield deep in the 11th inning of Game 7 of the ALCS to send the Yankees to another World Series and the Red Sox home without a title yet again. Most of Boston’s core remained intact — with a couple of key additions in Curt Schilling and Keith Foulke — and the Red Sox entered 2004 with a new manager in Terry Francona after firing Grady Little.
Pedro Martinez, of course, faltered late in that fateful Game 7 in 2003, and the longtime Red Sox ace wasn’t his usual dominant self to begin 2004, allowing three runs (two earned) on seven hits over six innings while striking out five and walking one on Opening Day. The right-hander surrendered a leadoff home run to Javy Lopez as part of a three-run second inning for Baltimore.
The O’s tacked on three more runs in the seventh inning against Mike Timlin, another holdover from the ’03 squad. Boston matched Baltimore’s hit total (11), with Bill Mueller and Gabe Kapler contributing three hits apiece, but the Red Sox went just 1-for-8 with runners in scoring position while suffering a loss.
2007
Royals 7, Red Sox 1 (Monday, April 2, Kauffman Stadium)
W: Gil Meche
L: Curt Schilling
Boston’s identity began to change a bit between 2005 and 2007, with fresh faces arriving via free agency, trades and the team’s loaded farm system. The Red Sox signed Daisuke Matsuzaka, inserting him into a rotation that featured the likes of Schilling and Josh Beckett, and brought in outfielder J.D. Drew to fill the void created by the departures of Trot Nixon and Gabe Kapler.
The Red Sox, who finished in third place in the AL East in 2006 with an 86-76 record, began 2007 with a loss, as Gil Meche spun an Opening Day gem for the Royals in his first start after signing a five-year, $55 million contract with Kansas City.
Meche allowed only one run on six hits over 7 1/3 innings while striking out six and walking one. The Red Sox opened the scoring with an RBI double by David Ortiz in the first inning, but they couldn’t land any more punches after that. Schilling completed just four innings for Boston in which he allowed five runs on eight hits.
Fortunately for the Red Sox, this hardly was a sign of things to come, as Boston basically dominated from wire to wire in 2007 en route to its second title in four years.
2013
Red Sox 8, Yankees 2 (Monday, April 1, Yankee Stadium)
W: Jon Lester
L: CC Sabathia
The Red Sox only could go up from 2012, when they stumbled to a 69-93 finish in Bobby Valentine’s lone season as Boston’s skipper. But no one could have predicted the success they’d achieve with new manager John Farrell guiding a revamped roster that welcomed Koji Uehara, Mike Napoli, Shane Victorino, Jonny Gomes and David Ross, among others.
Usually, it’s hard to discern too much from Opening Day — just look at 2004 and 2007, both of which began with defeats — but 2013 was a totally different story, as one could argue the Red Sox set the tempo for their entire season with a hard-fought victory in the Bronx. They showed energy, grit and a relentless mentality that ultimately became the team’s hallmark.
The Red Sox scored four runs in the second inning, but the game’s signature moment came in the ninth inning with Boston leading 5-2. Jacoby Ellsbury beat out an infield single that scored both Jarrod Saltalamacchia and Gomes, who never stopped motoring from second base on the play.
Ellsbury and Jose Iglesias each produced three hits, while Victorino, Gomes and Dustin Pedroia had two apiece. Jackie Bradley Jr. also made his major league debut in the contest after a terrific spring training forced him into Boston’s Opening Day plans.
2018
Rays 6, Red Sox 4 (Thursday, March 29, Tropicana Field)
W: Austin Pruitt
L: Carson Smith
S: Alex Colome
You really couldn’t script a worse start to the season. Which makes it all the more amazing that Boston rebounded to win 108 regular-season games en route to its fourth title in 15 years.
The Red Sox, equipped with a new manager in Alex Cora after parting ways with Farrell, entered the eighth inning with a 4-0 lead. Sale spun six shutout innings in which he surrendered one hit, issued three walks and struck out nine. Eduardo Nunez led Boston’s offense with a two-run inside-the-park home run in the second inning.
That’s when everything unraveled. Joe Kelly allowed three walks and a double before handing the keys to Carson Smith, who didn’t fare much better. Smith issued a free pass that plated Tampa Bay’s second run, and the Rays then pulled ahead 5-4 when Denard Span delivered a bases-clearing triple. Adeiny Hechavarria tacked on one more run for good measure.
