John Henry must be a pretty happy man at the moment.
His two sports teams are both performing exceptionally well. While Liverpool are looking forward to a Champions League semi-final first leg against Roma at Anfield next Tuesday and are closing in on a top 3 finish in the Premier League back in Boston the season has started way above expectations.
Given that it’s early days in the baseball season the schedule has been very favourable with half the games against basement dwellers Tampa Bay and Miami and trends at this time of year are often very misleading the start Boston has made is exceptional.
As they enter this evenings opener in Anaheim, a genuine real test against play-off contenders they lead the American League 13-2 record (Anaheim are second with a 13-3 record) which is better than any National League team. The record ranks 4th best all time in terms of winning percentage – mind you they need to win the next 13 to move up to 3rd all time!
The fact that the Red Sox have started so strong is more remarkable when you consider they lost on opening day and have played home series against Tampa Bay, New York and Baltimore in pretty dreadful conditions which generally act as a leveller.
The only downside in Boston so far has been yesterday’s Patriots Day game being postponed due to the weather. Patriots Day, celebrated in New England in memory of the “Midnight Ride of Paul Revere, is the only regular season major league game which starts before midday. It is also the day of the Boston marathon. Traditionally Red Sox fans head out of Fenway after the game to cheer on the runners heading past toward the finish.
