Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston.

Contents [hide]

1 Profile

2 Introduction

3 Broke the Curse of Bambino

4 BOSTON STRONG!: Winning the World Series in the home after 95 years

5 Rivalries

5.1 With New York Yankees

5.1.1 Red Sox-Yankees rivalry outside the pitch

6 See Also

Profile

Affiliation	American League
Ballpark	Fenway Park
World Series Titles	9
AL Pennants	14
Owner	Fenway Sports Group

Introduction

Founded in 1901 as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox' home ballpark has been Fenway Park since 1912. The "Red Sox" name was chosen by the team owner, John I. Taylor, c. 1908, following the lead of previous teams that had been known as the "Boston Red Stockings," including the Boston Braves (now the Atlanta Braves). The team has won nine World Series championships, tied for the third-most of any MLB team, and has played in 13 World Series. Their most recent World Series appearance and win was in 2018. In addition, they won the 1904 American League pennant, but were not able to defend their 1903 World Series championship when the New York Giants refused to participate in the 1904 World Series.

The Red Sox were a dominant team in the new league, defeating the Pittsburgh Pirates in the first World Series in 1903 and winning four more championships by 1918. However, they then went into one of the longest championship droughts in baseball history, dubbed the "Curse of the Bambino" after its alleged inception due to the Red Sox' sale of star player Babe Ruth to the rival New York Yankees two years after their World Championship in 1918. The Sox endured an 86-year wait before the team's sixth World Championship in 2004. The team's history during that period was punctuated with some of the most memorable moments in World Series history, including Enos Slaughter's "mad dash" in 1946, the "Impossible Dream" of 1967, Carlton Fisk's home run in 1975, and Bill Buckner's error in 1986. Following their victory in the 2018 World Series, they became the first team to win four World Series trophies in the 21st century, with championships in 2004, 2007, 2013 and 2018. The team's history has also been marked by the team's intense rivalry with the New York Yankees, arguably the fiercest and most historic in North American professional sports.

The Red Sox are owned by Fenway Sports Group, which also owns Liverpool F.C. of the Premier League in England, the Pittsburgh Penguins of National Hockey League, and partially owns RFK Racing of the NASCAR Cup Series. They are consistently one of the top MLB teams in average road attendance, while the small capacity of Fenway Park prevents them from leading in overall attendance. From May 15, 2003, to April 10, 2013, the Red Sox sold out every home game—a total of 820 games (794 regular season) for a major professional sports record. Both Neil Diamond's "Sweet Caroline" and The Standells' "Dirty Water" have become anthems for the Red Sox.

As of the end of the 2022 season, the franchise's all-time regular-season record is 9,796–9,098 (.518).

Broke the Curse of Bambino

During the 2003–04 offseason, the Red Sox acquired another ace pitcher, Curt Schilling, and a closer, Keith Foulke. Due to some midseason struggles with injuries, management shook up the team at the July 31 trading deadline as part of a four-team trade. The Red Sox traded the team's popular, yet oft-injured, shortstop Nomar Garciaparra and outfielder Matt Murton to the Chicago Cubs, and received first baseman Doug Mientkiewicz from the Minnesota Twins, and shortstop Orlando Cabrera from the Montreal Expos. In a separate transaction, the Red Sox acquired center fielder Dave Roberts from the Los Angeles Dodgers. Following the trades, the club won 22 out of 25 games and qualified for the playoffs as the AL Wild Card. Players and fans affectionately referred to the players as "the Idiots", a term coined by Damon and Millar during the playoff push to describe the team's eclectic roster and devil-may-care attitude toward their supposed "curse."

Boston began the postseason by sweeping the AL West champion Anaheim Angels in the ALDS. In the third game of the series, David Ortiz hit a walk-off two-run homer in the 10th inning to win the game and the series to advance to a rematch of the previous year's ALCS in the ALCS against the Yankees. The ALCS started very poorly for the Red Sox, as they lost the first three games (including a crushing 19–8 home loss in game 3). In Game 4, the Red Sox found themselves facing elimination, trailing 4–3 in the ninth with Mariano Rivera in to close for the Yankees. After Rivera issued a walk to Millar, Roberts came on to pinch run and promptly stole second base. He then scored on an RBI single by Bill Mueller, sending the game into extra innings. The Red Sox went on to win the game 6–4 on a two-run home run by Ortiz in the 12th inning. The odds were still very much against the Sox in the series, but Ortiz also made the walk-off hit in the 14th inning of Game 5. The comeback continued with a victory from an injured Schilling in Game 6. Three sutures being used to stabilize the tendon in Schilling's right ankle bled throughout the game, famously making his sock appear bloody red. With it, Boston became the first team in MLB history to force a series-deciding Game 7 after trailing 3–0 in games. The Red Sox completed their historic comeback in Game 7 with a 10–3 victory over the Yankees. Ortiz began the scoring with a two-run homer. Along with his game-winning runs batted in during games 4 and 5, he was named ALCS Most Valuable Player. The Red Sox joined the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs and the 1975 New York Islanders as the only North American professional sports teams in history at the time to win a best-of-seven games series after being down 3–0. (The 2010 Philadelphia Flyers and the 2014 Los Angeles Kings would later accomplish the feat).

BACK TO FOULKE! Red Sox fans are long heard it!

The Boston Red Sox are World Champions!

The Red Sox swept the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2004 World Series. The Red Sox never trailed throughout the series; Mark Bellhorn hit a game-winning home run off Pesky's Pole in game 1, and Schilling pitched another bloodied-sock victory in game 2, followed by similarly masterful pitching performances by Martinez and Derek Lowe. It was the Red Sox' first championship in 86 years. Manny Ramírez was named World Series MVP. To add a final, surreal touch to Boston's championship season, on the night of Game 4 a total lunar eclipse colored the moon red over Busch Stadium. The Red Sox earned many accolades from the sports media and throughout the nation for their season, such as in December, when Sports Illustrated named the Boston Red Sox the 2004 Sportsmen of the Year.

BOSTON STRONG!: Winning the World Series in the home after 95 years

Boston, which finished last in the American League East with a 69–93 record in 2012 (26 games behind the Yankees), became the 11th team in major league history to go from worst in the division to first the next season when it clinched the A.L. East division title on September 20, 2013. Many credit the team's turnaround with the hiring of manager John Farrell, the former Red Sox pitching coach under Terry Francona from 2007 to 2010. As a former member of the staff, he had the respect of influential players such as Lester, Pedroia, and Ortiz. But there were other moves made in the offseason by general manager Ben Cherington who targeted "character" players to fill the team's needs. These acquisitions included veteran catcher David Ross, Jonny Gomes, Mike Napoli, and Shane Victorino. While some questioned these players as "re-treads", it was clear that Cherington was trying to move past 2011–2012 by bringing in "clubhouse players". Essential to the turnaround, however, was the pitching staff. With ace veteran John Lackey coming off Tommy John surgery and both Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz returning to their prior form, this allowed the team to rely less on their bullpen. Everything seemed in danger of collapsing, however, when both closers, Joel Hanrahan and Andrew Bailey, went down early with season-ending injuries. Farrell gave the closing job to Koji Uehara on June 21 who delivered with a 1.09 ERA and an MLB record 0.565 WHIP. On September 11, the 37-year-old right-hander set a new Red Sox record when he retired 33 straight batters. Other reasons include the trade deadline acquisition of pitcher Jake Peavy when the Red Sox were in second place in the AL East, the depth of the bench with players such as Mike Carp and rookies Jackie Bradley Jr. and Xander Bogaerts, and the re-emergence of players such as Will Middlebrooks and Daniel Nava. On September 28, 2013, the team secured home field advantage throughout the American League playoffs when their closest competition, the Oakland Athletics, lost. The next day, the team finished the season going 97–65, the best record in the American League and tied with the St. Louis Cardinals for the best record in baseball.

IT HASN'T HAPPEN AT FENWAY PARK. FOR THE 95 YEARS!

THE RED SOX ARE WORLD CHAMPION!

They proceeded to defeat the St. Louis Cardinals in the 2013 World Series, four games to two. The Red Sox became the first team since the 1991 Minnesota Twins to win the World Series a year after finishing in last place, and the second overall. The 2012 Red Sox's .426 winning percentage was the lowest for a team in a season prior to a World Series championship.

Rivalries

With New York Yankees

The Yankees–Red Sox rivalry is often considered one of the oldest, most famous, and fiercest rivalries in professional sports. For over 100 years, the Red Sox and New York Yankees have been rivals.

In 1919, Red Sox owner Harry Frazee sold star player Babe Ruth to the Yankees, which was followed by an 86-year period in which the Red Sox did not win a World Series. This led to the popularization of a superstition known as the "Curse of the Bambino," which was one of the most well-known aspects of the rivalry.

The rivalry is often a heated subject of conversation in the Northeastern United States. Since the 1995 inception of the wild card team and an added Division Series, every postseason except for 2014 has featured one or both of the American League East rivals. The two teams have squared off in the American League Championship Series (ALCS) three times, with the Yankees winning in 1999 and 2003 and the Sox winning in 2004. The teams have faced off in one American League Division Series (ALDS); 2018, won by the Red Sox in four games. The teams have played one American League Wild Card Game on October 5, 2021, which the Red Sox won as well.

The teams have twice met in the last regular-season series to decide the league title, in 1904 (which the Red Sox won) and 1949 (which the Yankees won). The teams also finished tied for first in 1978, when the Yankees won a high-profile one-game playoff for the division title. The 1978 division race is memorable for the Red Sox having held a 14-game lead over the Yankees more than halfway through the season. In 2003, The Red Sox lost in Game 7 of the ALCS on Aaron Boone's walk-off home run. Similarly, the 2004 ALCS is notable for the Yankees leading 3 games to 0 and ultimately losing the best-of-seven series. The Red Sox comeback was the first time in major league history that a team came back from an 0–3 deficit to win a series.

The rivalry is often termed "the best" and "greatest rivalry in all of sports." Games between the two teams often generate a great deal of interest and get extensive media coverage, including being broadcast on national television.

Red Sox-Yankees rivalry outside the pitch

Don Mattingly had appeared in public service announcements airing on the Spike TV network advocating fathers to spend time with their children as part of the "True Dads" campaign to encourage men to take an active role in their children's lives. Mattingly jokes at the end of the commercial about the impatience of one of the characters in the commercial by calling him a Red Sox fan.

On April 13, 2008, rumors of a construction worker burying a Red Sox jersey in the concrete of the new Yankee Stadium were verified. The worker, identified as Gino Castignoli, buried a David Ortiz jersey in what would become a service corridor in the hopes of cursing the new stadium. After extracting the jersey from underneath two feet of concrete, Yankees' President Randy Levine indicated that the shirt would be donated to the Jimmy Fund to be auctioned for the charity long associated with the Red Sox. Whatever curse was intended failed to bear fruit with the Yankees winning the World Series in their first year at the new stadium.

In 2002, when the NFL's New England Patriots held their victory celebration after winning their first Super Bowl; linebacker Larry Izzo fired up the crowd, chanting "Yankees suck!" The chant would become a fixture of Patriots Super Bowl victory rallies following their victories in Super Bowls XXXVIII in 2004 and XXXIX in 2005, which were sandwiched around the Red Sox 2004 World Series win. Dan Shaughnessy wrote about the chant: "Can you imagine a Giants or a Jets celebration in New York City in which a New York player would take the time to chant, 'Red Sox suck?'" Shaughnessy opined that should such a thing occur, it would be more likely at a Jets celebration, as a Giants celebration, like those of the Mets and the Rangers, would be more likely to feature such chants made in reference to the Philadelphia teams, as one of the Giants' primary rivalries is with the Philadelphia Eagles.

The rivalry was played out during Super Bowl XLII in February 2008, as it was a showdown between football teams from each metropolitan area, the New York Giants and the New England Patriots. The Giants defeated the Patriots in what was considered one of the greatest upsets in Super Bowl history. After the game Giants fans chanted "18 and 1! 18 and 1!", reminiscent of the infamous "1918" chant, towards Patriots fans as they left the stadium. (Had they won the game, the Patriots would have become the first NFL team to ever finish with a 19–0 record, and only the second NFL team since the 1972 Miami Dolphins to have a perfect season.) Giants fans called this revenge for the Red Sox comeback in 2004. The Giants and Patriots faced off again in Super Bowl XLVI; with the Giants once again defeating the Patriots. Dan Shaughnessy's piece in The Boston Globe on the Giants victory over the Patriots was headlined, "History Repeats."

During the 2008 NBA Finals between the Boston Celtics and the Los Angeles Lakers, movie director Spike Lee, a season ticket holder of the New York Knicks, wore a Yankees jersey and cap at Game 3 of the Finals in Los Angeles. Lee sat behind the Boston bench while loudly cheering for the Lakers, though he has a friendship with Ray Allen of the Celtics.

For the 2010 NHL Winter Classic outdoor ice hockey game held at Fenway Park, Boston Bruins then-backup goaltender Tuukka Rask had artwork on his "special event" goalie mask's upper front area depicting a roaring bear with a ripped New York Yankees home "pinstripe" jersey falling from its lower jaw.

In 2011, NBA star LeBron James worked a deal with Red Sox owner John Henry to take partial ownership of Henry's soccer subsidiary Liverpool Football Club of the Premier League. James was criticized in the New York media for spurning New York due to his being a purported Yankees fan.

On June 27, 2011, the Yankees/Red Sox feud spilled into the world of professional wrestling when CM Punk was cutting a promo against Boston native John Cena. CM Punk went on to call John Cena a hypocrite for reasons that were unfolding in their respective storyline and said that John Cena had become the very thing he had despised in the wrestling business. He concluded this promo by calling Cena the "New York Yankees". Cena then punched Punk for comparing him to his home team's famed rivals. [Punk:] "What you've lost sight of is what you are, and what you are is what you hate. You're the 10-time WWE Champion! You're the man! You, like the Red Sox, like Boston, are no longer the underdog! You're a dynasty. You are what you hate. You have become the New York Yankees!" John Cena immediately punches Punk, who scoots out of the ring, grabs the contract, and goes up the ramp. Points respectively to Vince McMahon and John Cena "You're Steinbrenner, and you might as well be Jeter! Mr. 3000, I'm the underdog!"

As the owners of the Yankees are involved with Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, owner of Manchester City F.C. through City Football Group, as being joint owners of Major League Soccer franchise New York City FC, and the Red Sox being sisters of Liverpool F.C. through their Fenway Sports Group ownership, the 2014 International Champions Cup soccer game between English clubs Manchester City and Liverpool at Yankee Stadium carried a new angle of the Yankees and Red Sox rivalry. Liverpool defeated Manchester City on the day in a penalty shoot-out, after tying 0–0. Both teams have since developed their own rivalry in their home country, which also stems from the inter-city rivalry between Manchester and Liverpool that originated in the 19th century through the Industrial Revolution.

Rivalries between other New York sports teams and other Boston sports teams have been attributed to the Yankees–Red Sox rivalry. For example, some have pointed out the connections between this rivalry and those of the New York Jets and the New England Patriots in the NFL and the New York Knicks and the Boston Celtics in the NBA.