The 2025 Crimson Sox season formally begins Wednesday in Fort Myers.
Pitchers and catchers report back to Fenway South.
You get a free subscription to all of the books in your native library in the event you can identify all of the pitchers and catchers invited to camp.
The Crimson Sox have change into the maestros of mediocrity.
81-81 in 2024.
359-360 (.499) total since 2020, together with the postseason.
Completely common.
No one likes “average.”
Give us a dynasty or a catastrophe.
Excellence or Ugh-cellence.
We’ll take 2011 over 2022 any time.
The present Crimson Sox have been by a pandemic of fan apathy.
A Fandemic, if you’ll.
This Fandemic comes at a time when most people’s consideration span rivals that of a yellow lab with ADHD.
The Crimson Sox want a vaccine, and energy on the fitting facet of the plate. We’re unsure Alex Bregman can keep off this Fandemic with no few boosters. One of the best vaccine for apathy, after all, is successful. Or a minimum of attempting to win.
There’s no higher option to vampire the spirit of the fan base by taking part in Fantasy Baseball for Juan Soto solely to finish up spending much less cash in free company than the Sacramento Athletics or Arizona Diamondbacks.
The parents at Fenway Sports Group might by no means need to say this publicly, however they have to be as grateful as DraftKings for legalized sports activities betting within the Bay State.
As we had been reminded throughout the Tremendous Bowl, even a blowout can preserve you glued to the display screen. Ask the thousands and thousands who unsuccessfully wagered on Saquon Barkley or Travis Kelce scoring a landing.
The Crimson Sox, like each different MLB staff, profit from each the income and eyeballs generated by legalized wagering. Nonetheless, you don’t want to look at the sport to wager on it.
For each fan who has one eyeball on NESN and the second on the standing of their same-game parlay, there are two extra who now binge “Gilmore Girls,” stay stream “League of Legends” or go-all-in on “Candy Crush.”
Visiting followers swarm Fenway Park every summer time like Visigoths. “America’s Favorite Ballpark” doubles as John Henry’s favourite money cow. Win or lose. It’s change into a vacationer lure with pole seats.
All is just not woe. This season marks the fiftieth anniversary of the 1975 Crimson Sox. I used to be 10 that spring, summer time and traditional fall. The 1975 Crimson Sox have occupied the Oval Workplace in my baseball soul ever since.
Tony C. (and Hank Aaron) on Opening Day. Fred Lynn’s magical night in Detroit. Tiant out-dueling Jim Palmer at Fenway on a September evening in 133 minutes. Bernie Carbo’s residence run. Dewey’s catch. Fisk’s residence run. Yaz’s lollipop to heart that ended Recreation 7.
I barely missed a pitch. In shade. In black and white. Or on WHDH-AM 850.
A season-long celebration of the 1975 American League champions will assist alleviate a number of “Fandemic” signs this 12 months.
However with every 1975 celebration comes the hazard of comparability to a staff that included three Corridor of Famers (and that’s NOT together with Dwight Evans and Luis Tiant).
The El Tiante tribute on Opening Day will set off extra tears than a nuclear bomb constituted of onions. We’ll most likely get a primary pitch from Carlton Fisk, Dwight Evans, Jim Rice, Fred Lynn, Invoice Lee and Yaz. Amongst others. And Yaz will probably be residence earlier than the underside of the second.
The shared presence of Lynn, Evans and Rice will probably be a reminder of the perfect Crimson Sox outfield of my – or some other – lifetime. Particularly whenever you transfer Yaz to left after Rice’s late-season harm.
The specialists undertaking a Crimson Sox beginning lineup filled with familiar-yet-mostly-underachieving names from 2024. Second base stays a three-way coin toss. (Vaughn Grissom seems to be the early chief). The 2024 Crimson Sox used 9 gamers at second base who began greater than two video games. The 1975 Crimson Sox had three: Doug Griffin, Denny Doyle and Bobby Heise.
In 1975, the Rooster crowed every day. Rick Burleson performed an MLB-best 158 video games and began 157 at brief. Final 12 months, 5 completely different Crimson Sox gamers began a minimum of two video games at that place.
There’s no higher instance of decreasing of requirements on Jersey Road and the entire transformation of expertise over the previous half-century than the next:
In 1975, Crimson Sox followers on the “Nice” record bought an LP file for Christmas entitled “SUPER SOX ‘75” that detailed the highlights of the season narrated by Ned Martin. The 54-minute, two-sided tale ends with Fisk’s residence run on the finish of Recreation 6. Recreation 7 by no means occurs.
The Crimson Sox memorialized their 2024 season – the one which completed 81-81 in third place of the AL East, 13 video games out of first – with a multi-episode Netflix docuseries. The place’s Channel 38’s Holy Trinity of “Hogan’s Heroes,” “The Movie Loft” and “The Three Stooges” whenever you want it?
Fingers crossed; we might solely want the Crimson Sox to maintain us occupied from the Celtics Banner 19 parade till Drake Maye’s first full apply in pads.
Followers are already assured an improve over 2024, regardless of Henry’s finest effort to focus his assets and passions on all the pieces however baseball.
At worst, we’ll get a wondrous trip down our private Memorial Drive again to the low-def summer time of 1975.
At finest, the 2025 Crimson Sox flirt with the ultimate wild-card and preserve New England watching till leaf-peeping season returns.
Something to finish this Fandemic.
(Invoice Speros (@RealOBF and @BillSperos on X) may be reached at bsperos1@gmail.com)
