The Boston Red Sox's season hasn't started the way the team or its fans hoped it would — the offense is quiet, the new pitching additions haven't yet delivered, and they've made some confounding decisions on the base paths. But one major prediction is right on target (subscription required).
Wilyer Abreu has carried the Red Sox in the early going. Boston's manager Alex Cora and many reporters and insiders foresaw an offensive breakout for the right fielder and, as it turns out, he's been a main source of offense through the first three series of the season so far.
Abreu has 12 hits, including three doubles and three home runs, in the Red Sox's first eight games. Boston's early results with scoring runners have been troublesome, but not to Abreu, who's plated six runs.
Red Sox fans have seen such production from Abreu before in the early games of last season, when he asserted his dominance over the Texas Rangers. This year, according to Mark DeRosa of MLB Network's "MLB Central," Abreu boasts the second-highest on-base (.406) and slugging percentages (.574) in March and April games since Aaron Judge in 2024.
Wilyer Abreu's March/April production has carried the Red Sox in the last two seasons, and he matches up with Aaron Judge
DeRo is adding these players to his stock portfolio for the month of April! 📈 pic.twitter.com/NVKlyrYAgq
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) March 31, 2026
Despite his status as an arch-rival, any offensive comparisons to Judge should be welcome for Abreu. The New York Yankees' offense has leaned on him for years, and the Red Sox have done the same on Abreu in the first games of the new campaign.
Abreu showed signs of a breakout throughout the offseason. He was one of Team Venezuela's biggest stars in the World Baseball Classic. He posted a .845 OPS in the tournament, which includes two game-changing home runs. In that same vein, Abreu also won a home run derby in his home country, beating out some of MLB's best talent, including Ronald Acuña Jr., Salvador Perez and Jackson Chourio.
Boston didn't sign a true slugger like Kyle Schwarber, Pete Alonso or Eugenio Suárez this offseason because it's banking on power from internal sources, like Abreu and Roman Anthony. Abreu has already shown that he can make good on the team's trust, and Anthony, with his otherworldly talent as a 21-year-old, is sure to follow.
If Abreu can maintain his torrid offensive pace, and his bat matches up with his twice conseucutive Gold Glove Award-winning defense, he could grow into one of the most well-rounded right fielders in MLB, up at the top near Judge.