Previewing the AL East: Boston Red Sox

The Boston Red Sox were expected by many — their own fans included — to be an also-ran in the American League last season. They turned out to be anything but.

Led by one of baseball’s hardest-hitting lineups, the Red Sox got off to one of the fastest starts in the league to jump to the top of the AL East, and though a late swoon cost them the division, they recovered in October to beat the Yankees in the Wild Card game and then knocked out the East champion Tampa Bay Rays before hitting the wall in the ALCS against the Astros.

There are questions in the pitching staff, but given the balance in the lineup, the Red Sox project to be a contender in the division and perhaps the American League…