The 2008 Boston Red Sox season was the 108th season in the franchise's

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

history. The

Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) East Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight ch ...

, as the defending World Series champions, finished in second place in the

American League East The American League East is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. MLB consists of an East, Central, and West division for each of its two 15-team leagues, the American League (AL) and National League (baseball), National League (NL). T ...

with a record of 95–67, two

games behind In some North American sports, the phrase games behind or games back (often abbreviated GB) refers to a common way to reflect the gap between a leading team and another team in a sports league, conference, or division. Example In the standings ...

the

Tampa Bay Rays The Tampa Bay Rays are an American professional baseball team based in the Tampa Bay area. The Rays compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. They are one of two major ...

. The Red Sox qualified for the postseason as the AL wild card and defeated the

American League West The American League West is one of Major League Baseball's six divisions. The division has five teams as of the 2013 season, but had four teams from 1994 to 2012, and had as many as seven teams before the 1994 realignment. Although its teams cu ...

champion

Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim The Los Angeles Angels are an American professional baseball team based in the Greater Los Angeles area. The Angels compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) West Division. Since 1966, the team has pl ...

in the ALDS. The Red Sox then lost to the Rays in the ALCS in seven games. This was the franchise's fourth appearance in the ALCS in six seasons. In late March, the team started the regular season playing in

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

against the

Oakland Athletics The Oakland Athletics (frequently referred to as the Oakland A's) were an American Major League Baseball (MLB) team based in Oakland, California from 1968 to 2024. The Athletics were a member club of the American League (AL) American League We ...

for MLB Japan Opening Day 2008. In July, seven Red Sox players were selected for the AL

All-Star An all-star team is a group of people all having a high level of performance in their field. Originating in sports, it has since drifted into vernacular and has been borrowed heavily by the entertainment industry. Sports "All-star" as a sport ...

team, with outfielder J. D. Drew being named the game's

MVP MVP most commonly refers to: * Most valuable player, an award, typically for the best performing player in a sport or competition * Minimum viable product, a concept for feature estimating used in business and engineering MVP may also refer to: ...

. On July 31, the Red Sox traded long-time star player

Manny Ramirez Manuel Arístides Ramírez Onelcida (born May 30, 1972) is a Dominican Americans (Dominican Republic), Dominican-American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for parts of 19 seasons. He played wit ...

to the Dodgers in a three-way blockbuster (which also included the Pirates) for

Jason Bay Jason Raymond Bay (born September 20, 1978) is a Canadian-American former professional baseball left fielder who played 11 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB). Initially drafted by the Montreal Expos, he played for the San Diego Padres, Pitts ...

and minor leaguer Josh Wilson. In September, the team officially retired uniform number 6 in honor of Johnny Pesky.

Regular season

Prior to the season, three large

Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a cola soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. In 2013, Coke products were sold in over 200 countries and territories worldwide, with consumers drinking more than 1.8 billion company beverage servings ...

bottles, which had been placed on the left light tower above the

Green Monster The Green Monster is a popular nickname for the left field wall at Fenway Park, home to the Boston Red Sox of Major League Baseball. The wall is from home plate at the left-field Foul line (baseball), foul line, making it a popular target f ...

prior to the 1997 season as an advertisement, were removed.

Opening Day lineup

Season standings

Notable transactions

* May 22, 2008: Julián Tavárez was released by the Red Sox. * July 12, 2008: Bobby Kielty was released by the Red Sox. * July 31, 2008: As part of a three-team trade, star outfielder

was acquired by the Red Sox from the

Pirates Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence by ship or boat-borne attackers upon another ship or a coastal area, typically with the goal of stealing cargo and valuable goods, or taking hostages. Those who conduct acts of piracy are call ...

for pitcher Craig Hansen and outfielder/first baseman Brandon Moss. Also in exchange, the Red Sox sent star outfielder

to the Dodgers. * August 12, 2008: Paul Byrd was acquired by the Red Sox from the Indians in exchange for a player to be named later. * August 22, 2008: David Ross signed as a free agent with the Red Sox. * August 27, 2008: Mark Kotsay was acquired by the Red Sox from the Braves in exchange for minor leaguer Luis Sumoza.

Roster

Record vs. opponents

Game log

Player stats

Batters

''Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; 2B = Doubles; 3B = Triples; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; AVG = Batting average; SB = Stolen bases; Bold Indicates team leader in category.''

Pitchers

''Note: W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; G = Games pitched; GS = Games started; SV = Saves; IP = Innings pitched; R = Runs allowed; ER = Earned runs allowed; BB = Walks allowed; K = Strikeouts'' * indicates player led their respectable league in that certain category ** indicates player led all of baseball in that certain category Led team in starters

ERA An era is a span of time. Era or ERA may also refer to: * Era (geology), a subdivision of geologic time * Calendar era Education * Academy of European Law (German: '), an international law school * ERA School, in Melbourne, Australia * E ...

Led in team

Allowed fewest runs as a starter for the Red Sox Led team in runs allowed. Led team in walks allowed. Led starters in walks allowed.

Awards and honors

* J. D. Drew – AL Player of the Month (June) *

Jon Lester Jonathan Tyler Lester (born January 7, 1984) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox, Oakland Athletics, Chicago Cubs, Washington Nationals, and St. Louis Cardinals. L ...

– Hutch Award, AL Pitcher of the Month (July, September), AL Player of the Week (May 19–25) *

Dustin Pedroia Any addition of 2018 will be reverted. Only players who were on a winning team's active roster during a World Series are listed as "World Series champions" in this context. Note that this is the same criterion as is used by Baseball-reference.com ...

–

American League MVP The Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award (MVP) is an annual Major League Baseball (MLB) award given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. The award has been presented by the Baseball Writers' ...

Silver Slugger Award The Silver Slugger Award has been awarded annually since 1980 to the best Batting (baseball), offensive player at each Baseball positions, position in both the American League (AL) and the National League (baseball), National League (NL), as determ ...

(2B),

Gold Glove Award The Rawlings Gold Glove Award, usually referred to as simply the Gold Glove, is the award given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players judged to have exhibited superior individual Fielding (baseball), fielding performances. It is awar ...

(2B) *

– AL Player of the Week (April 14–April 20) * Kevin Youkilis –

Hank Aaron Award The Hank Aaron Award is given annually to the Major League Baseball (MLB) players selected as the top hitter in each league, as voted on by baseball fans and members of the media. It was introduced in 1999 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of Han ...

, AL Player of the Week (May 5–April 11) ;

All-Star Game An all-star game is an exhibition game that showcases the best players (the "stars") of a sports league. The exhibition is between two teams organized solely for the event, usually representing the league's teams based on region or division, bu ...

Farm system

Source:

References

External links

2008 Boston Red Sox season
at ''Baseball Almanac''
2008 Boston Red Sox
at ''Baseball Reference''
2008 Boston Red Sox Draft Selections
{{Boston Red Sox Boston Red Sox seasons

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

American League Wild Card winner seasons