On March 27, the Boston Red Sox began their season on Major League Baseball opening day in Arlington, Texas as they faced off against the Texas Rangers. The Sox defeated the Rangers in the first game by a margin of 5-2 before proceeding to drop the next three games to the Rangers. They then traveled to Baltimore, Maryland where they took two out of three games from the Baltimore Orioles. All of this, however, felt like a buildup to the much anticipated home opener at Fenway Park.

On April 4, the Red Sox welcomed the St. Louis Cardinals to Boston for another three-game series. Opening day at Fenway is always a must-see spectacle, with a palpable buzz surrounding the stadium, an enthusiastic crowd, a military jet flyover and an electric game of baseball.

Boston Latin School student-athlete Jadon Berkson (I), who attended the home opener, comments, “It felt like old Fenway; you could feel the spirit of the entire city.” Thriving off of the energy, the Sox got their bats going, beating the Cardinals 13-9 in a high scoring affair.

The past few seasons for the Red Sox have been entirely underwhelming, especially considering the championship pedigree that the organization has and the constant success that is expected by sports fans in Boston. Last year, they finished the season with an even 81-81 wins and losses record — good enough for third place in the American League East division, but far from a coveted playoff spot.

Regarding last season’s disappointment, sports fan Chris Crawford (II) comments, “They had the tools to go and be a playoff team, but every single time, they weren’t getting it done.” The team has been boring, with a lot of criticism falling on general manager Chaim Bloom for not taking more initiative to turn the ball club around. This past offseason, though, the Red Sox began listening to their critics, as they had one of the most active free agent windows in the entire league.

This year, the Red Sox spent millions to bring big names to the franchise. They signed Gold Glove winner and All-Star third baseman Alex Bregman in free agency, who has been not only an asset due to his remarkable defense, but also has given the team a much needed boost in offense. After their major third baseman signing, they decided to recruit three players for their bullpen, which was one of the worst in the American League last year. They signed multiple-time All-Star Walker Buehler, who fits in nicely to their starting pitching rotation.

After that, they signed a new ace from the Chicago White Sox, starting pitcher Garrett Crochet. Finally, the club signed Aroldis Chapman, a closing pitcher renowned across the league for his high velocity and low-earned run average.

Boys’ varsity baseball captain Amos Bergen (I) makes the bold prediction that “they can win the division, […] especially this year; the Yankees are not as good as they were last year and our offense is so good this year because of the additions to the roster.” With this revamped lineup, fans all around Boston are excited to watch the Red Sox back at its best, with hopes that the team has what it takes to make a deep playoff run.