The Boston Red Sox prepare to take on the New York Yankees in a one-game Wild Card playoff Tuesday night with a trip to the American League Division Series on the line.
Both teams are no strangers to the postseason, but neither are the favorite to win the World Series this year. It’s understandable given their records and the other teams who also are fighting for a spot in the Fall Classic.
But anything is possible when it comes to playoffs, and MLB.com found one reason why the Red Sox (and every other postseason team) indeed could win it all.
Red Sox: October experience
Between their recent acquisitions and holdovers, the Red Sox have a strong group of players who know what it takes to play deep into October. Chris Sale, Nathan Eovaldi, Eduardo Rodriguez, Matt Barnes, Christian Vázquez, Xander Bogaerts and Rafael Devers remain from the 2018 World Series championship team. Kiké Hernández played for the World Series-winning Dodgers last season while Hunter Renfroe was on the losing side for the Rays. Kyle Schwarber had a huge hit for the Cubs in Game 7 of the 2016 World Series. Though other teams might have more talent, you can be sure the moment won’t get too big for the veteran-laden Red Sox.
That’s a lot of players to understand the pressure that comes with playing under the brightest lights.
Boston, should it win Tuesday, would have an uphill battle in the Rays, on top of the A.L. teams in contention. We can’t predict the future, but the experience certainly is there for a deep run.
