Red Sox: A mea culpa for my articles during the 2017 season

The panic button was firmly pushed in this article as the Red Sox were still in first place, but the edges were getting rather ragged.  Injuries were mounting and the offense was in a deep slumber. The next issue was not the Red Sox, but their opponents.

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Tampa Bay and the dreaded New York Yankees appeared primed for a palace coup with the Red Sox being on the throne. This was starting to shape up as another addition to the litany of Red Sox failures, chokes and flops that are such an integral part of the team history. Always expect the worst is a tradition among the fans.

That was mid-August when Boston regrouped and finished with an excellent 18-9 record for the month and kept the pedal down with a 17-10 September and a very close capturing on the division on the last day of September.

Next: Red Sox Report Cards: Hanley Ramirez

Where it certainly does get tender is the playoffs where the Red Sox once again succumbed in the first round, but at least it was not three and done as in 2016. Still – more was certainly expected, but a collapse didn’t happen and a world of credit goes to the manager who kept them focused despite injuries and distractions. John Farrell was rewarded by being fired.