Many fans of the Boston Red Sox have probably already begun binge-watching the new Netflix documentary series in between last night’s loss over the Toronto Blue Jays and tonight’s first pitch at 6:45, and with the watch comes a mix of emotions. Stress after reliving all the rough losses, blown saves, and multitude of errors, but to most, hopefully in turn with that there’s a sense of pride because the front office truly did put in work to make the present day Red Sox like teams of old. They’ve built around key younger players who have started to blossom and grow as they’ve matured in the game, and now, with recent acquisitions from the offseason, this team is looking like a true contender once again.

In the hayday of baseball, there was a set blueprint as to how a team’s lineup was constructed: one of (if not the best) contact hitter with speed batting leadoff, next another strong hitter, not as fast or reliable as your number one, but someone still good who will likely get on base somehow. Third, you have your best, strongest, most capable hitter, this is the person you hope will bring in the first two batters if they get on, or, if not, they can knock a solo shot before the end of your half of the inning is over. Four and five are reserved for your power demons, sixth is a fringe player, but most likely someone strong who can keep an inning alive. Seven and eight are similar to six; these spots should be reserved for some of your hitters who might be better out in the field than at the dish, and ninth would be your pitcher; however, since the rule of having a universal Designated Hitter in place, lineups have now been constructed in just about any and every way that you can imagine. There’s no rhyme or reason as to why players are placed in certain spots in the lineup, managers have turned to setting a lineup more for a specific pitcher than an evergreen starting nine that would be concrete for all 162 games.

Now, as previously mentioned, yes, managers have been working more with variabled interchangeable players who don’t mind being moved around as much as before; however, I firmly believe that if you take a look at the 2025 Red Sox lineup, this team is the perfect example of how the traditional blueprint of a starting lineup morphed with the intracices of modern baseabll can be sewn together to create an elite team, even when they aren’t loaded with “star power.”

While he’s been off to a slow start this season, Jarren Duran is as textbook of a leadoff hitter as Jimmy Rollins or Ichiro was to their respective teams. Duran is fast, he’s a great contact hitter with little bits of pop, but most importantly, he’s a smart player. He knows how to read a given situation and knows how to steal a bag or capitalize on the other team’s defensive mistakes. While he still has something to prove, only just rising to stardom within the last year, he has shown diehards that he is much more than the youngster who missed some routine fly balls out in the Bermuda Triangle that is center field and is more than deserving to be batting first.

Next, on a traditional game day for Red Sox nation, there’s our long-time third baseman turned full-time DH, Rafael Devers. After a slow start to the season when he went 0-21, the Raffy everyone knows and loves is now back, and has been dominant in the two hole since returning home from the opening road trip in Texas and Baltimore. Now, while Raffy isn’t a faster member of the team, his offense has been one that has revolutionized the game of baseball specifically for third basemen. The only player currently on an MLB roster that can compare with him is the Guardians’ José Ramírez, but now that Raffy is solely focusing on hitting and not on defense (where he lacked), he could become one of the most dangerous hitters in the game this season, and what we’ve seen in the Sox’s recent homestand is just the beginning.

When the Red Sox signed Alex Bregman, everyone was in awe, including some members of the front office and players on the team. However, Alex Bregman is one of the best defensive third basemen of the modern age. The only person aside from him whom I think is a better defender is Nolan Arenado, but that was before Bregman played for a team that I cared about. As a member of the Astros, Red Sox fans were so quick to hate on him, and rightfully so. Whether they were playing in Boston or Houston, Breggy has always had the Sox’s number, and now that he’s playing FOR the Red Sox instead of against them, it is stunning to see a true master at work. With only Ted Williams in front of him, this man has one of the best batting stats amongst anyone who has played at Fenway, and the fact that he is now playing for the team that calls Fenway home, it has been a sight to watch. With all the tools that make a hitter successful, he is a star and rightfully deserves to bat either second or third, wherever Cora sees fit.

Another up-and-coming star who has been struggling to start the season is none other than Red Sox cleanup hitter, Triston Casas. At only 25 years old, he has one of, if not the best eye, for the strike zone, and his pop cannot be matched. When Casas is on, pitchers need to beware. He finished third in Rookie of the Year voting back in 2023 with a fantastic first full year in the big leagues, but after a rib injury that sidelined him for the majority of the 2024 season, he needs this year to go right for him. There were plenty of trade rumors around Triston in the offseason, but with 2024 not truly being a testament to his abilities on the field, the Sox decided to give him, in my opinion, one last opportunity to prove to them that he can live up to the projected thirty plus home run season that many have waited to see of him. He’s another homegrown talent that has growing pains, just like Jarren or Raffy, but will hopefully find his footing soon and show all the naysayers who were hoping he’d be dealt for someone “better” that he is still a top ten first baseman.

Now, the five and six hitters in the Sox lineup are where the biggest interchangeability comes into place, at least for me. Trevor Story has been batting fifth some days with Wilyer Abreu after him, but since Wilyer’s incredibly hot start to the season, he’s seen a bump up in the lineup, and rightfully so. Story is in desperate hopes of a strong 2025 campaign because both fans and now the front office are starting to be wary of the injury-ridden Story, who hasn’t had a healthy season in Boston since moving from Colorado. Known as one of the best defensive shortstops in the game, he has been trying to show the fans of Boston that he can handle a full season and can start playing both offensively and defensively like the Story of years ago, where he was finishing in MVP voting and keeping an otherwise depressing Rockies team afloat. Now, he hasn’t been overly fantastic to start 2025, but he has had some brilliant moments on the field and in the box so far, and with the pop he still has, he easily slides into either five or six, wherever Wilyer isn’t. Abreu, on the other hand, is still maturing as a player, but after earning a Gold Glove in right field last year, and also coming close to winning Rookie of the Year, he seems to be adjusting to the major league lifestyle just fine. I cannot wait to see the career that Wilyer makes for himself because he is one of the best up-and-coming players hoping to make a name for themselves and absolutely could bat right after Casas if Story is struggling or can bat sixth right after Trevor.

The last three guys that make up the starting lineup: Connor Wong, Kristian Campbell, and Ceddanne Rafaela, perfectly round out the bottom of the order, with Wong and Campbell flip-flopping between seven and eight. Wong, now primarily Carlos Narváez, thanks to Wong’s catcher’s interference that resulted in a broken pinky, has been off to a slow start, and with Wong being out for the foreseeable future, he’ll get even colder. Hopefully, when he’s ready, he’ll return and play by the likes of 2024 Connor Wong, who was one of the best offensive catchers in the American League last year. Kristian Campbell is off to a fantastic start to his rookie campaign, and, although it’s early, is projected to be one of the top candidates to win Rookie of the Year. Now that Wong is out, it wouldn’t be shocking for Cora to move Campbell up to the seventh spot and put Narváez down in eighth. The one thing he can’t do is jeopardize moving Ceddanne Rafaela out of this part of the starting lineup, as a quintessential nine-hole hitter with his speed and grit, that determination is what you need in your ninth hitter. He’s the spark plug. If they can get on and get the leadoff man back around, there could be “chaos on the basepaths,” as fans have gotten accustomed to hearing.

While the Red Sox record right now is still giving that of 2024, currently sitting at .500 as the Sox so love to do, they are on an upswing, and truly have what it takes this year to make a postseason berth for the first time in years. The one thing they missed last season was the continuity that veteran presences bring; hwoever, with Story back, Bregman officially here, and younger stars like Duran, Devers, Abreu, and Casas hitting their stride, there is hope for this team as they all regain or gain footing in Boston, which is known to be a tough town for baseball. I cannot wait to see what this season holds, and, if all goes well, we’ll be revving up the duck boats come the end of October.