| 2018 Boston Red Sox | ||
|---|---|---|
| World Series Champions American League Champions American League East Champions | ||
 | ||
| League | American League | |
| Division | East | |
| Ballpark | Fenway Park | |
| City | Boston | |
| Record | 108–54 (.667) | |
| Divisional place | 1st | |
| Owners | John W. Henry (Fenway Sports Group) | |
| President | Sam Kennedy | |
| President of baseball operations | Dave Dombrowski | |
| General manager | none (de facto by President of Baseball Operations) | |
| Manager | Alex Cora | |
| Television | NESN (Dave O'Brien, Jerry Remy, Dennis Eckersley, Steve Lyons, Tom Caron) | |
| Radio | WEEI-FM Boston Red Sox Radio Network (Joe Castiglione, Tim Neverett, Lou Merloni) | |
| Stats | ESPN.com Baseball Reference | |
| ||
The 2018 Boston Red Sox season was the 118th season in the team's history, and their 107th season at Fenway Park. Under first year manager Alex Cora, the team finished with a 108–54 record, winning the American League East division title for the third consecutive season, and finished eight games ahead of the second-place New York Yankees. The Red Sox were the first MLB team to post 100 wins during the 2018 season, reaching that milestone for the first time since 1946; they were also the first team to clinch a berth in the 2018 postseason.
The team set a new franchise record for wins in a season by surpassing the prior mark of 105 that had been set in 1912; they also won the most games by any MLB team since the 2001 Seattle Mariners won 116. Mookie Betts finished the season with the Major League batting title, hitting .346, while J. D. Martinez finished second in the majors with .330. Betts also won a Gold Glove and the Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award. Closer Craig Kimbrel became the fastest player in history to reach 300 career saves, finishing the season with 333.
The Red Sox entered the postseason as the top seed in the American League, and defeated the Yankees in four games in the Division Series. They then defeated the defending champion Houston Astros in five games in the Championship Series, advancing to the World Series where they defeated the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games.
The team was later accused of electronic sign stealing. An investigation into the allegation stated that the sign stealing was "limited in scope and impact," but nonetheless resulted in the suspension of a team video replay operator and the loss of a second-round draft pick in the 2020 draft for the organization.[1] Regardless, the team has been considered the best MLB team of the 2010s, one of the best Red Sox teams ever, and one of the best baseball teams since the 1998 New York Yankees.[2][3][4][5]
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
mlb22aprilwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Paine, Neil (December 31, 2019). "The Best – And Worst – Of Pro Sports in the 2010s". FiveThirtyEight. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ Greenberg, Neil (October 25, 2018). "A World Series win would place 2018 Red Sox among MLB's best teams ever". The Washington Post. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ Schoenfield, David (August 3, 2018). "This just might be the best Red Sox team ... ever". ESPN.com. Retrieved January 1, 2020.
- ^ Sharkey-Gotlieb, Simon (October 30, 2018). "Where do the 2018 Red Sox rank among the greatest teams ever?". theScore. Retrieved January 1, 2020.