Red Sox History: Ranking every squad of the 21st century

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BOSTON, MA – OCTOBER 19: Xander Bogaerts #2 of the Boston Red Sox reacts with Rafael Devers #11 after hitting a go ahead two run home run during the first inning of game four of the 2021 American League Championship Series against the Houston Astros at Fenway Park on October 19, 2021 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo by Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images) /

Ranking every Red Sox squad of the 21st century

From explosive offenses to Cy Young-winning aces to lockdown closers to championship runs, the Boston Red Sox have given us plenty of memories so far this century. Yet which team holds the distinction of being the best Red Sox team of the 2000s?

There were a couple of things I looked at while making this list, the first of which was run differential. Sometimes the win-loss record doesn’t tell the whole story. A team can have an outstanding run differential but under-perform their expected win total by getting unlucky in close games, or over-perform their expected win total by getting fortunate in tight contests. In rankings like these, it’s not just about how many games you win but how dominant you are in winning them.

I also tried to look at the overall talent level. Every Red Sox team this century had a least one or two stars, but which team was truly loaded with talent? Teams that had deep lineups and rotations got added bonuses, while teams that were solely reliant on David Ortiz or Manny Ramirez got penalized.

So let’s get the rankings started, beginning with a recent team that should be thankful their season was only 60 games.

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