Sox unite amid urgency: 'A good start is really important'

FORT MYERS, Fla. -- Given the notable additions (Masataka Yoshida, Justin Turner, Kenley Jansen, Adam Duvall, Corey Kluber, Chris Martin, et al) and subtractions (Xander Bogaerts, J.D. Martinez, Nathan Eovaldi, etc.), the Red Sox had a recalibration of sorts on Monday, which was the day they took the field as a full squad for the first time.

The Sox continued their unique tradition they’ve had in the two-plus decades of the John Henry ownership regime, holding a company-wide staff meeting just prior to the full-squad workout.

Gathered in one room were members of ownership, the front office, other support staff, the coaching staff and every player in Major League camp.

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Monday’s speakers included club president/CEO Sam Kennedy, chief baseball officer Chaim Bloom, manager Alex Cora, Hall of Fame pitcher Pedro Martinez and senior vice president of community, alumni and player relations Pam Kenn.

“We talked about how this is a new chapter of the Red Sox,” said Cora. “We talked about [our players] with rings and Cy Young Awards and quality individuals -- Roberto Clemente Award winners. We do feel like as an organization, we’re in a good spot. Obviously, the baseball part of it, we’ve got to get better. But it was kind of like an all-around message of what we’re trying to accomplish as an organization besides the baseball part of it, so it was a refreshing [meeting].”

One of the most impassioned speeches came from Kenn, who explained what being with the tradition-rich Red Sox is all about, both on and off the field.

“The star of the meeting was Pam Kenn. She crushed it,” Kennedy said. “She just talked about what different members of the alumni community, player community, ownership community have done in the community and how … at the end of the day, the most important thing for these players is realizing they have an opportunity to be good people and the opportunity to give back. It was really powerful.”

Over the years, the most memorable Red Sox teams are the ones that have been able to be equally impactful on and off the field.

The on-field part of the equation has lagged of late, with the club finishing in last place in the highly competitive American League East in two of the past three seasons, including a 78-84 finish last season.

“A good start is really important,” Kennedy said. “And that's really been Alex's message this first week of camp. It's about just getting better each day and not talking about what's going to happen at the end of the season. Let's get better in in Spring Training and in March and in April, and see a path to postseason, which is the goal. But, yeah, we need to get off to a good start, for sure.”

Some of the prominent public projection systems (such as ZiPS and PECOTA) are lukewarm on the Red Sox, who, aside from signing star slugger Rafael Devers to a 10-year extension, didn’t make many glamorous moves over the winter.

The Red Sox are hoping that grit will win over glamour. And that improved health from the likes of Chris Sale and James Paxton -- and eventually Trevor Story -- will make a difference.

“You have to look at the projections, but as long as I've been around, they're usually wrong,” Kennedy said. “So we don't put a lot of stock in them.”

Cora is spending this camp preaching incremental progress.

“We're really excited about this club,” Kennedy said. “We have some veteran guys coming in who have just gotten it done at the highest level. So we'll let the players do a lot of the talking during the year and won’t make any projections on our own, because we'll be wrong if we do.”

There will be pressure to perform, as there always is in Boston. The leaders at the meeting Monday told the players to embrace it.

“Yeah, pressure is definitely on the 2023 Red Sox. You know, it's always on in Boston,” Kennedy said. “Expectations for our fan base are high, and they should be high. We have no excuses. We have all the resources. We have the best fan base in baseball that allows us to put a team out there that should be built to compete. So, yeah, we feel the pressure.”

Is the roster talented enough to handle that pressure?

“I think if we're healthy, we [can]. We need health this year,” Kennedy said. “I hate to fall back on that and make an excuse, but give us a healthy team and I like our chances.”