By early Thursday evening, Andrew Benintendi will dig into the batter’s box, Chris Sale will saunter out to the mound and all will be right the world again – at least for a few hours.
Baseball is officially back.
The defending champion Boston Red Sox are ready to embark on a brand new season, one that begins Thursday night in Seattle as part of an 11-game West Coast swing to kick off the year. With many of the same faces back in the clubhouse, Boston has its eyes on becoming the first team since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees to repeat.
So as “play ball” is shouted across 15 MLB stadiums around the country for Opening Day, here’s everything you need to know about these Sox before first pitch:
The Red Sox scored 876 times last season, 25 more runs than the next closest team in all of baseball. They led the league in total bases, RBI, doubles and batting average and the lineup isn’t expected to look much different this year.
While reigning American League MVP Mookie Betts and right-handed-hitting masher J.D. Martinez garner most of the attention, and deservedly so, Boston’s success last season stemmed from a lineup capable of dealing damage from top to bottom.
The Red Sox are so much more than Mookie and Martinez.
Benintendi and Xander Bogaerts, a pair of players on the cusp of stardom, are in line for breakout seasons if they remain healthy. Benintendi, just 24 years old, is coming off a year in which he hit .290 with 16 homers and 87 RBI – and Alex Cora is bumping the young outfielder up to the leadoff spot in the lineup.
Bogaerts has had his ups and downs since arriving in Boston late in 2013, but finally put together a complete season, avoiding his usual second-half slump last year to post career highs in home runs (23) and RBI (103).
Playing on the final year of his contract is just an added incentive for Bogaerts to produce like an All-Star for the second straight season.
Mix in the likes of Steve Pearce, Mitch Moreland, Jackie Bradley Jr., Eduardo Nunez and Rafael Devers and Boston’s offense should have no problem surpassing 800 runs again this year.
The Red Sox will carry eight relief pitchers into the opener against the Mariners and none of them is Craig Kimbrel.
Matt Barnes, Ryan Brasier, Heath Hembree, Tyler Thornburg, Brian Johnson, Brandon Workman, Hector Velazquez and Colten Brewer are the names to officially make the cut, but don’t be surprised if this list changes after the first month.
While Barnes and Brasier are expected to fill in for Kimbrel, who’s still a free agent, the rest of the bullpen arms may not be in Boston for long.
Thornburg, Workman and Hembree are all out of minor league options, meaning if they perform poorly and Boston needs to make a move, the only option is to place them on waivers where another team can claim them.
The bullpen that fans see in Seattle for the first four games of the season will be a much different one than the Red Sox are sporting in July.
The injuries for Boston across the 25-man roster are few and far between.
Dustin Pedroia is certainly the biggest name to watch as the second baseman and former MVP attempts to make his way back from knee surgery.
While he won’t join the rest of the club in Seattle, Pedroia could be ready for the home opener on April 9. Regardless of when he returns, Boston has been adamant that after last year’s blunder, one in which Pedroia was rushed back and appeared in just three games, he won’t come back until he’s completely healthy.
The only other injury to monitor is that of World Series MVP Steve Pearce.
Replaced by Sam Travis on the Opening Day roster, Pearce was sent to the injured list with a strained left calf earlier this week. Luckily, the injury is not all that serious and the move for Pearce off the roster was more of a precaution.
What was once a barren farm system is now bubbling with major league talent.
Infielder Michael Chavis, Boston’s preseason top-ranked prospect, hit a team-high four homers and drove in 10 runs this spring. Knocking on the door of the majors before a PED suspension last season, Chavis could be the first called up if Pedroia can’t shake his injury.
And then there’s also Durbin Feltman and Darwinzon Hernandez, a pair of highly regarded pitching prospects who could help fix Boston’s bullpen, as well as powerful corner infielder Bobby Dalbec, who mashed 32 homers in 129 minor league games a season ago.
■April 9 – World Series ring ceremony and the home opener at Fenway Park against the Toronto Blue Jays.
■April 16-17 – First series against AL East rival New York Yankees.
■June 29-30 – The Red Sox and Yankees head to London for a two-game series.
■July 12 – In the first game back from the All-Star break, the Red Sox host the Los Angeles Dodgers in a rematch of the World Series.
(Jay McAree can be reached at 369-3371, jmcaree@cmonitor.com or on Twitter @JayMcAree.)