Takeaway
A lot can happen in a 162 game season. Maybe the Red Sox will fall apart; stranger things have happened. But barring a shocking turn of events, the Red Sox seem like a pretty safe bet to win more than the 93 games they won last season. They haven’t lost any of the core components of last year’s team, almost everyone in the lineup underperformed in 2017, and they will be adding J.D. Martinez and a full season of Rafael Devers to the mix. How much better they are though is very much up in the air.
The three players listed above, however, can push the needle for the 2018 Red Sox more than anyone else. If Price, Ramirez, and Bogaerts all revert to form the Red Sox could very well coast to a 100 win season.
Even two out of three could set the Red Sox up for a strong run at a three-peat in the AL East. But without these three performing to their capabilities, the lineup starts to look a lot thinner and the rotation loses a lot of its teeth.
Next: Devers showing talent beyond his age
The Yankees look like some fierce competition, and if the Red Sox aren’t legitimately dominant the AL East will be a dogfight. If these players fail to bounce back, the Red Sox will have a tough time staving off New York.