No disrespect to Ron Roenicke, who faced an impossible situation in 2020, but the Boston Red Sox should have a much different (better) vibe in 2021.
The Red Sox essentially were dead on arrival in 2020. The roster wasn't good enough, and Boston clearly didn't handle a different situation as well as other teams in the sport.
But it is a new, full year, and there's reason for guarded optimism. At the very least, it's clear the Sox will have a new mindset under Alex Cora, who is back in the dugout after serving his one-year suspension.
Whereas the Red Sox looked lethargic and borderline apathetic a year ago, the expectation in the manager's office is to see a team with plenty of jump and energy from Day 1.
"One of the things we have control of is how much emotion we can have or how much energy, or how much fun we can have," Cora told reporters Friday prior to his club's season opener against Baltimore.
"Obviously, it's hard to have fun when you don't play well. But at the same time, if you put everything in perspective, everything should be fun when you're here with everything else going on around us. We're the lucky ones that can play a game in the middle of a pandemic and have fun with it. Just see it that way and show up every day and then the results will be there. Control the process and see what happens at the end."
Cora has made it a point this spring to temper expectations. He knows the team is better than it was last season, but he also knows it's not easy to contend in the American League East, which is as deep as it has been in years. It's potentially an uphill battle, but as he mentioned, the Red Sox have to control what they can control (effort, energy, etc.) and hope their talent fills in the rest.
"It's not a given that X team is better than the other one or more powerful," Cora said. "Yeah, there are teams that are good. They've done an amazing job. But at the end of the day, you have to show up and post. I have no doubt this team is going to post on a daily basis."
That all starts with the manager. Cora's energy was undeniable in his first go-round with the Red Sox, especially in the record-setting 2018 season. Given a second lease on his baseball life should have him even more eager to find success.
Whether he can get his team to follow will go a long way in helping Boston reestablish itself among baseball's elite ballclubs.
