The Red Sox Show First Glimpse of 2026 Potential
The first weekend of Spring Training ended with a bang, as the Red Sox narrowly bested the Blue Jays in an 11-10 thriller. The Sox move to 2-0, and the Jays fall to 1-1 in the Grapefruit League. Perhaps to some, “thriller” is extreme. Spring Training is, of course, not a reliable predictor of regular-season success. Teams are experimenting with lineups and offering inexperienced players opportunities to prove themselves. That being said, a high-scoring performance against the reigning American League champions certainly doesn’t feel bad. The perfect Spring Training is a sampler of what’s to come. It can be an appetizer before the 162-game feast. Today, true to the metaphor, the Boston bats ate well.
A Diverse Array of Runs
In a game where 18 Sox players saw at-bats, the team delivered in myriad ways. Nine different hitters managed to cross home plate and tally another run onto the total. Cedanne Rafaela picked up where he left off last year, as his first-inning two-run double lit up the fans gathered at JetBlue Park. Jarren Duran, a doubles machine in previous seasons, managed another two during the afternoon. Singles and doubles put into play all over the field drove the day’s success. This does feel indicative of the season to come. The 2026 squad seems to follow in the small-ball footsteps of 2025. That is, in many ways, promising, but another reading of it is concerning.
The Power Concerns Linger
To be fair, it is as silly to panic over Spring Training as it is to celebrate. The lack of power hitting in the Boston lineup, though, has been a point of discussion all offseason, and Sunday’s performance didn’t do much to quiet that piece of discourse. According to FanGraphs projections, not a single man on the roster is expected to hit over 20 home runs all year. Though this is a bold prediction, bordering on ludicrous, the fact that not a single ball was hit over the outfield wall makes it harder to ignore.
Brayan Bello Has a Lot to Prove
Brayan Bello took the mound for the first time since a rough outing in the 2025 Wild Card Series against the Yankees. Bello has been streaky over his seasons in Boston, showing both flashes of brilliance and real struggles. Against Toronto, he allowed four runs over just 1.1 innings. Despite the lack of ramifications for a Fort Myers game in February, fans were undoubtedly hit with flashbacks to his poor performance in the Bronx just over four months ago. His past certainly demonstrates competence at the big league level, but his performance in Spring Training will dictate his role in a crowded rotation with some of the best arms in baseball.
