The Red Sox’ year in 2020 was one of the most memorable in club history, and yet, also one fans would rather forget.
So, we’re going to let you revisit at all.
Enough happened for the Red Sox in 2020 that would fill a decade for some teams, let alone one calendar year. Controversy, scandal, a franchise-altering trade, a shortened season due to a pandemic and one of the worst seasons in team history, and that’s not even all of it.
The Red Sox were likely very happy to change their calendars from 2020 to 2021 on Friday, because it couldn’t have gone much worse for the local nine. As we ring in the new year, it’s time to put a bow on the year that was with the 10 key dates that defined the Red Sox in 2020.
1. Jan. 14 — Red Sox part ways with Alex Cora for his involvement in sign-stealing scandal
When the New Year came last January, the Red Sox were just hoping to bounce back from a disappointing 2019 when all their plans went out the window mid-month. Cora was dismissed as Red Sox manager following a damning report from Major League Baseball in its two-month investigation that named him a mastermind behind the Astros’ electronic sign-stealing scandal in 2017, when he was their bench coach.
The decision seemed inevitable after the Astros had fired manager AJ Hinch and general manager Jeff Luhnow the day prior due to the scandal, which resulted in their one-year suspension by MLB, but it was still stunning. MLB had not yet disciplined Cora because it was still investigating similar accusations with his 2018 Red Sox team, but the damage from the Astros’ scandal had been done and was enough. Cora and the Red Sox mutually parted ways solely due to MLB’s Astros report.
“Given the findings and the Commissioner’s ruling, we collectively decided that it would not be possible for Alex to effectively lead the club going forward and we mutually agreed to part ways,” the Red Sox said in a statement.
In April, MLB finally released its report from its investigation into the Red Sox, which found little wrongdoing compared to the Astros. The league suspended J.T. Watkins, the Red Sox’ video replay system operator, through the 2020 postseason and stripped the team of its second-round pick in the 2020 draft. It was then that MLB also suspended Cora through the 2020 postseason, which opened up plenty of speculation for his potential return in 2021.
2. Feb. 11 — Red Sox trade Mookie Betts, David Price to Dodgers
After more than a year of speculation, and a few snags in the process, the Red Sox completed one of the most controversial trades in club history, sending homegrown superstar Mookie Betts and 2018 postseason hero David Price to the Dodgers in exchange for Alex Verdugo, Jeter Downs and Connor Wong. The deal, of course, was met with much vitriol from the fanbase for trading away Betts, the 2018 AL MVP and one of the best talents to come through the farm system, in the prime of his career. The Red Sox failed in repeated attempts over the years to sign Betts to a long-term extension, and with the right fielder set to enter free agency after the 2020 season, decided to trade him instead of losing him for nothing.
The trade itself wasn’t without drama, either. The original trade agreed to was a three-team deal that also involved the Twins, and would have sent young flame-throwing pitcher Brusdar Graterol to the Red Sox. But after reviewing medicals, the Sox weren’t satisfied with Graterol’s reports and reportedly sought out additional compensation before the Twins ultimately backed out of the deal. Instead, Graterol ended up going to the Dodgers, where he had a promising 2020 season.
At least in the short term, the trade didn’t look great for the Red Sox. While Verdugo had a terrific debut season with Boston, Betts was instrumental in helping the Dodgers win the World Series.
3. March 12 — COVID-19 pandemic shuts down spring training, delays regular season
The sports world’s 2020 outlook — and in some ways, the world in general — all changed on the night of March 11, when NBA star Rudy Gobert tested positive for COVID-19, which led to the stunning indefinite suspension of the NBA season. The next day, almost every sports league in the United States followed suit, even if MLB was a little late to the party. The league announced that spring training was suspended indefinitely, and that the regular season, which was originally scheduled to begin March 26, would be delayed at least two weeks.
It turned out it would be delayed a lot longer than that, as the coronavirus surged across the country and threatened the chances of a season even happening. But after tense negotiations, MLB and the MLBPA finally reached an agreement on a 60-game season under intensive safety protocols. The Red Sox eventually returned to Boston for the continuation of spring training, or “summer camp,” at Fenway Park in early July.
4. March 19 — Red Sox announce Chris Sale needs Tommy John surgery
A week after the season went on pause, news got worse for the Red Sox as it was learned their ace needed the dreaded Tommy John surgery. Sale had ended his disappointing 2019 season early due to elbow issues, but the Red Sox avoided Tommy John and had him take platelet-rich plasma injection instead. On March 2, Sale started feeling soreness after a live batting practice, and after shutting down for a 10-day period and then returning and feeling more pain, surgery was inevitable.
Sale’s surgery was tricky given that elective surgeries in many hospitals across the country had been suspended due to the pandemic, but on March 30, Dr. Neal ElAttrache completed the lefty’s surgery in Los Angeles, beginning his long road back. Sale is currently rehabbing in Fort Myers and is expected to return at some point in the 2021 season.
5. July 24 — Opening Day finally arrives as Red Sox blast Orioles
At long last, baseball returned to Fenway Park for the first time in almost 10 months, as the Red Sox began their 60-game sprint against the Orioles, eerily in front of no fans. Behind three-hit performances from J.D. Martinez, Kevin Pillar and Jackie Bradley Jr., and six strong innings from Nathan Eovaldi, the Red Sox romped over the O’s, 13-2. But Opening Day served as one of the lone bright spots of the season, as the Sox lost two out of three in that opening series against the O’s, which set the tone for their dreadful 60-game season.
6. Aug. 1 — Eduardo Rodriguez shut down due to myocarditis
Rodriguez was one of three Red Sox players to test positive for COVID-19 at the beginning of summer camp, but he and the team were optimistic about his return during the season. However, the left-hander, who would have likely been the Opening Day starter, was diagnosed with myocarditis, an inflammation of the heart muscle, which stemmed from COVID. The Red Sox shut him down for the rest of the season, another big blow to their starting rotation but more importantly a reality check demonstrating the seriousness of the virus.
The Red Sox have handled Rodriguez’s recovery with extreme caution, and it wasn’t until late September that he was cleared to walk again. Rodriguez has recently posted videos of him pitching on flat ground as he continues to rehab at home in Florida, and he’s expecting to be ready to go whenever the season begins in 2021.
7. Aug. 11 — Andrew Benintendi injures rib, misses rest of season
The hits kept coming for the struggling Red Sox, who lost their left fielder after he strained his right rib cage while running the bases in a loss against the Rays. The timing was even more cruel because Benintendi, who had just two hits all season entering that night, was 2-for-3 in the game before the injury.
The Red Sox were hopeful Benintendi could return, but he never recovered enough in time before the shortened season ran out.
8. Aug. 27 — Red Sox postpone game vs. Blue Jays to raise awareness for racial injustice
Games across American sports were postponed to protest police brutality and bring awareness to racial injustice in the wake of the shooting of Jacob Blake, a Black man, by police officers in Wisconsin, and the Red Sox took a stand by deciding to postpone their game against the Blue Jays. An emotional team meeting unfolded in Buffalo, the site of the game, as the Red Sox put their full support behind Jackie Bradley Jr., the only African-American player on the team, who had already decided to sit out the game.
The Blue Jays wanted to still play, but they respected the Red Sox’ decision. In a joint statement, the two clubs said they respected the players’ decision “to bring further awareness to the systemic racism that contributes to police violence against Black, Indigenous and people of color in our communities.”
9. Sept. 27 — Red Sox announce Ron Roenicke won’t return in 2021
The Red Sox didn’t want to wait until after the season ended to decide that Roenicke, who served as manager in place of Alex Cora, wouldn’t be coming back in 2021, making the announcement before their season finale against the Braves. It wasn’t shocking given the Red Sox’ last-place finish in the AL East, but disappointing for the manager who was handed a no-win, uphill battle with a non-competitive roster and managing under difficult circumstances during the pandemic.
On the field, the Red Sox actually won their final game, but finished with a dismal 24-36 record, sealing one of the worst seasons by winning percentage in team history.
10. Nov. 10 — Alex Cora returns as manager
It made too much sense and seemed almost inevitable. After serving his season-long suspension, the Red Sox deemed Cora had paid the price for his mistakes enough to give him a second chance as manager. Cora was reintroduced during a press conference at Fenway Park, where he was remorseful for his actions with the Astros and vowed he had learned his lessons, ready to lead the Red Sox again to hopefully brighter days in 2021.
“I know there are a lot of people that I disappointed and for that I’m sorry,” Cora said. “And also, telling those people that, hey, I’m still Alex. I made a mistake. I still love the game. I love what I do. I promise you that from now on, I’m going to use this experience the right way. I’m not proud of it. I’m not happy about it. But we have to move on. I’m happy to be back home. This is the place I enjoy to work.”
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January 03, 2021 at 05:42PM
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Red Sox retrospective: 10 key dates that defined 2020 - Boston Herald
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