After a mediocre start to the 2022 season, the Boston Red Sox have fallen on ESPN's Major League Baseball power ranking.
The Red Sox, who were two wins away from reaching the 2021 World Series, were tabbed by the Worldwide Leader as the 11th-best team in the big leagues days before the start of the campaign. But after losing a road series to the New York Yankees and barely taking two of three from the Tigers in Detroit, Boston now sits 13th on ESPN's list.
"Boston narrowly avoided a season-opening sweep in the Bronx by beating the Yankees on Sunday, aided by a strong performance from the bullpen," Joon Lee wrote. "The weekend series provided a preview of how the American League East might shake up this season: a lot of really competitive teams leaving each other very little breathing room."
Making a significant climb up ESPN's power ranking in the near future won't be easy for the Red Sox, as 10 of their next 14 games are against either the Blue Jays or the Rays. As of early Thursday evening, Toronto and Tampa Bay both are among the five teams with the shortest odds at DraftKings Sportsbook to claim the American League pennant this season.
But prior to those divisional matchups, the Red Sox will welcome the Minnesota Twins to Boston for a four-game set. The series kicks off Friday afternoon, and NESN will have full coverage of the Red Sox's home opener beginning at noon ET.
