Tag: grapefruit league

Has Ryan Fitzgerald been the MVP of spring training so far for the Red Sox?

Has Ryan Fitzgerald been the MVP of spring training so far for the Red Sox?

The left-handed hitting infielder has batted .364/.462/1.182 with a team-leading three home runs, seven RBIs, three runs scored, one stolen base, two walks, and two strikeouts through his first seven games (13 plate appearances) in the Grapefruit League.

Fitzgerald, 27, has the unique distinction of not being drafted out of college or high school. The Creighton University product instead began his pro career by playing one season with the Gary SouthShore RailCats of the independent American Association.

The following spring, Fitzgerald signed with the Red Sox as an undrafted free agent. The Illinois native was assigned to the then-Low-A Greenville Drive out of the gate and really has not looked back since.

In 2019 with the then-High A Salem Red Sox, Fitzgerald posted a .721 OPS across 127 games while making at least one appearance at all four infield positions en route to being named a Carolina League mid- and post-season All-Star. He was also recognized as the organization’s Minor League Defensive Player of the Year that September.

After not being able to do much of anything in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Fitzgerald broke minor-league camp last year with Double-A Portland and proceeded to slash .282/.365/.543 (144 wRC+) with 11 homers and 36 RBIs through his first 70 games with the Sea Dogs. He earned a promotion to Triple-A Worcester on July 29.

In a brief stint with the WooSox that lasted all of 13 games, Fitzgerald hit .262/.340/.571 (138 wRC+) with three home runs and nine RBIs before getting sent back down to Portland on August 17. He closed out his year at a .241/.313/.402 clip leading into the end of September.

Between the Double-A and Triple-A levels, Fitzgerald produced a .270/.350/.512 slash line (131 wRC+) while clubbing a total of 16 home runs, driving in a total of of 58 runs, scoring a total of 55 runs, stealing a total of four bases, drawing a total of 37 walks, and striking out a total of 81 times over 108 games (412 plate appearances) in 2021.

Defensively, the versatile 6-foot, 185 pounder made his pro debut as an outfielder last year, logging 10 innings in left, 79 innings in center, and eight innings in right field with the Sea Dogs and WooSox. He once again saw playing time at all four infield positions between the two affiliates, but none more than shortstop (619 2/3 combined innings).

Fitzgerald, who turns 28 in June, is currently regarded by SoxProspects.com as the No. 38 prospect in Boston’s farm system and is currently participating in his first major-league spring training down in Fort Myers. He appears to be a longshot to make the Sox’ Opening Day roster, but he has been making an intriguing case as a potential bench option these last few weeks.

Based off SoxProspects.com’s roster projections, Fitzgerald is in line to return to Worcester for the start of the 2022 season. That being said, the fact that he can play just about anywhere — as well as major-league rosters expanding from 26 to 28 players through the end of April — certainly works in his favor.

While Fitzgerald still has a little less than two weeks to prove he is worthy of an Opening Day roster spot, the 27-year-old will bat eighth and start at second base for the Red Sox in their Grapefruit League contest against the Orioles on Thursday night.

First pitch from Ed Smith Stadium in Sarasota is scheduled for 6:05 p.m. eastern time on MASN.

(Picture of Ryan Fitzgerald:  Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Red Sox outfield prospect Wil Dalton homers in Grapefruit League debut

Red Sox outfield prospect Wil Dalton homered in his Grapefruit League debut on Tuesday afternoon.

Hours after being added to the Sox’ roster for their contest against the Rays at Charlotte Sports Park, Dalton took over for Rob Refsnyder as a defensive replacement in left field in the middle of the sixth inning. He registered his first and only plate appearance of the day an inning and a half later.

Matched up against Rays reliever Jack Lobosky to lead off the top of the eighth, Dalton worked a 1-1 count before swinging away at the third pitch he saw. The right-handed hitter wound up drilling a solo shot over the left field wall to provide Boston with some much-needed insurance in an eventual 4-2 win over Tampa Bay.

Dalton, 24, was originally selected by the Sox in the eighth round of the 2019 amateur draft out of the University of Florida and signed with the club for $135,000 that summer.

A former junior college product from Tennessee, Dalton made his professional debut for the Lowell Spinners but had his first full season in pro ball wiped away because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Last spring, Dalton broke minor-league camp with Low-A Salem and embarked upon what would turn out to be an eventful 2021 season in which he played at three different levels.

From May 4 through June 16, Dalton posted for Salem regularly and batted a solid .265/.354/.449 (118 wRC+) with four home runs, 17 RBIs, 14 runs scored, and four stolen bases over 31 games spanning 113 plate appearances.

On June 17, Dalton was promoted to High-A Greenville. He proceeded to struggle to the tune of a .631 OPS in 33 games with the Drive but was added to Double-A Portland’s roster (presumably for depth-related reasons) in late July.

Dalton made his Double-A debut on July 30 and remained with the Sea Dogs for the next two weeks. He slashed .240/.296/.400 (90 wRC+) to go along with four doubles, three RBIs, and three runs scored over eight games (27 plate appearances) for Portland before getting sent back down to Greenville on August 11.

The transition from Double-A back to Low-A was not a smooth one for Dalton, who limped to the finish line and managed just a .573 OPS in his final 27 games to close out the year.

All told, Dalton appeared in a total of 99 games between Salem, Greenville, and Portland last year. Over that 99-game sample, he hit a collective .211/.293/.377 (82 wRC+) with 21 doubles, one triple, 11 home runs, 49 RBIs, 47 runs scored, five stolen bases, 36 walks, and 101 strikeouts across 380 trips to the plate.

Defensively, the 6-foot, 182 pound saw playing time at all three outfield positions in his travels last season. The former Gator logged 261 innings in left, 273 1/3 innings in center and 280 1/3 in right while recording eight outfield assists.

According to FanGraphs, 137 different Red Sox minor-leaguers registered at least one plate appearance over the course of the 2021 season. Among that group, Dalton was one of just three who played with three or more affiliates. The other two who did so were Danny Santana and Ricardo Cubillan.

Dalton, who turns 25 in August, is not regarded by any major publication as one of the top prospects in the Red Sox’ farm system. He will need to improve against more advanced pitching, but the power he possesses from the right side of the plate is certainly intriguing.

On that note, Dalton is projected to return to Portland for the start of the 2022 season, which — for the Sea Dogs — begins on April 8.

Rich Hill returns and Bobby Dalbec stays hot as Red Sox top Rays, 4-2, to improve to 6-0 this spring

The Red Sox are nearly a week into their Grapefruit League schedule and have yet to lose a game. They improved to 6-0 this spring with a 4-2 victory over the Rays at Charlotte Sports Park on Tuesday afternoon.

Rich Hill made his 2022 debut against one of his former teams on Tuesday. Vying for a spot in Boston’s Opening Day starting rotation, the veteran left-hander scattered two hits and one walk to go along with two strikeouts over two scoreless innings of work.

Shortly after Hill retired each of the final three batters he faced, the Sox jumped out to an early 2-0 lead over the Rays in the third inning when a red-hot Bobby Dalbec scored Jonathan Arauz and Christian Arroyo on a two-run double to left field off reliever Adrian De Horta.

That paved the way for Garrett Whitlock to come on in relief of Hill beginning in the bottom of the third. Also making his first appearance of the spring, the righty escaped a bases-loaded jam in his first inning of work before stranding two more base runners in a scoreless bottom of the fourth.

Matt Barnes continued the trend of Red Sox pitchers making their 2022 debuts on Tuesday. Looking to re-establish himself as Boston’s closer, the hard-throwing righty sat down Curtis Mead, Yandy Diaz, and Ji-Man Choi in order in the fifth inning.

Non-roster invitee Taylor Cole followed suit by working around a bases-loaded jam of his own in the bottom of the sixth, while his catcher — Ronaldo Hernandez — drove in Christian Koss on an RBI single in the top of the seventh to give his side a 3-0 lead.

Geoff Hartlieb gave two of those runs back immediately when he served up a two-run home run to Ruben Cardenas a half-inning later, but outfielder Wil Dalton provided some insurance by leading things off in the eighth with a solo blast off Jack Labosky.

That sequence made it a 4-2 game for Austin Davis, who entered out of the Boston bullpen in the eighth inning and closed things out to record the save and secure a two-run win for the Red Sox.

All told, it was another decent day for Boston pitching. Despite allowing 10 hits and issuing five walks as a team, six different Sox pitchers (Hill, Whitlock, Barnes, Cole, Hartlieb, and Davis) combined to surrender just two runs while striking out 12.

Dalbec, meanwhile, is batting .444/.500/1.222 with one double, two home runs, seven RBIs, and two runs scored through his first four games (10 plate appearances) of the spring.

As they improve to 6-0 this spring, the Red Sox have outscored their opponents 34-11 in Grapefruit League play thus far.

Next up: Winder vs. Eovaldi

The Red Sox will take on the Twins in the third installment of the Chairman’s Cup. Boston currently leads Minnesota two games-to-none heading into Wednesday’s contest at JetBlue Park.

Nathan Eovaldi will make his second start of the spring for the Sox, and he will be opposed by fellow right-hander Josh Winder for the Twins. First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised on NESN.

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec: Billie Weiss/Boston Red Sox/Getty Images)

Michael Wacha hurls 3 scoreless innings in 2022 debut as Red Sox roll on with 5-0 win over Braves

The Red Sox’ quest for a perfect spring continued at JetBlue Park on Monday afternoon as they improved to 5-0 in Grapefruit League play with a 5-0 victory over the Braves.

Looking to make his case for a spot in the Sox’ Opening Day starting rotation, Michael Wacha made a strong first impression in his 2022 debut. The veteran right-hander, who signed a one-year, $7 million deal with Boston in November, scattered four hits and one walk with one strikeout in his three innings of work against Atlanta.

Wacha received an early offensive boost from his catcher in Christian Vazquez, who drove in the Red Sox’ first run of the day on an RBI double off Touki Toussaint with two outs in the bottom of the first inning. Vazquez’s two-base hit scored Xander Bogaerts from second to make it a 1-0 game in favor of Boston.

After retiring each of the last three batters he faced to escape a jam in the third inning, Wacha made way for the Sox bullpen beginning in the fourth. Darwinzon Hernandez received the first call from manager Alex Cora and proceeded to strike out the side in his spring debut.

Following a scoreless top of the fifth from Michael Feliz, fellow non-roster invitee Rob Refsnyder doubled his side’s advantage by plating Jarren Duran on a run-scoring double to left field. Rafael Devers then scored Yolmer Sanchez with an RBI single to give the Red Sox a 3-0 lead heading into the sixth.

From there, John Schreiber fanned a total of four over his two innings of relief before Jonathan Arauz scored on a throwing error by Braves catcher Hendrik Clementina in the bottom of the seventh.

In the eighth, Silvino Bracho twirled a perfect frame in the top half while Ryan Fitzgerald crushed his second home run of the spring to lead off the bottom half. That sequence paved the way for Kaleb Ort to strand one runner and punch out a pair in a scoreless ninth inning to secure a five-run win for the Sox.

All told, it was another impressive performance from Red Sox pitching on Monday. Six different Boston hurlers (Wacha, Hernandez, Feliz, Schreiber, Bracho, and Ort) combined to keep the Braves off the scoreboard while limiting them to six hits and three walks to go along with 11 strikeouts.

Next up: Hill vs. Patino

Rich Hill will take the mound in a Red Sox uniform for the first time since 2015 when Boston travels to Port Charlotte on Tuesday to take on the Rays at Charlotte Sports Park. The seasoned southpaw will be opposed in young right-hander Luis Patino for Tampa Bay.

First pitch Tuesday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be televised, but only on Bally Sports Sun.

(Picture of Michael Wacha: Barry Chin/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)

Tanner Houck makes 2022 debut as Red Sox improve to 4-0 this spring with 3-2 win over Orioles

The Red Sox remained perfect in Grapefruit League play with a 3-2 victory over the Orioles at JetBlue Park on Sunday afternoon. They are now 4-0 this spring and have won all but one of their games by exactly one run.

Tanner Houck made his 2022 debut for Boston to close out the second weekend of spring training. The right-hander surrendered one earned run on one hit and three walks to go along with two strikeouts over 2 2/3 innings of work.

The lone run Houck gave up came right away in the top half of the first, when he yielded a solo homer to the second batter he faced in Ramon Urias. All three of the 25-year-old’s walks were issued in the second, but he got through the frame without giving anything up when Robert Neustrom lined out to Jackie Bradley Jr. and Bradley Jr. gunned down Kelvin Gutierrez at home for the final out.

Houck recorded the first two outs of the third rather simply before making way for Geoff Hartlieb, who sat down the only man he faced in Anthony Santander.

On the other side of things, the Boston bats collected all three of their runs in their half of the third. With old friend Denyi Reyes on the mound for Baltimore, Kevin Plawecki and Franchy Cordero ignited the rally with back-to-back one out singles.

Christian Arroyo then plated Plawecki on an RBI double to center field. Arroyo advanced to third when Franchy Cordero was thrown out at home on a grounder off the bat of Rafael Devers.

A fly-ball double to left field courtesy of Xander Bogaerts drove in Arroyo while J.D. Martinez scored Devers on an RBI single of his own to make it a 3-1 in favor of the Sox.

From there, Kutter Crawford struck out a pair looking in a perfect fourth, Josh Winckowski gave up two hits in a scoreless fifth, Taylor Cole plunked one batter in an otherwise clean sixth, and Tyler Danish fanned two in a 1-2-3 seventh inning.

In the eighth, however, righty reliever Durbin Feltman served up a leadoff home run to Orioles outfield prospect Yusniel Diaz, cutting Boston’s lead down to one run at 3-2.

Feltman managed to get through the rest of the eighth unscathed before making way for Eduard Bazardo, who recorded the save while stranding the potential tying run at second base.

All told, eight different Red Sox pitchers (Houck, Hartlieb, Crawford, Winckowski, Cole, Danish, Feltman, and Bazardo) combined to allow just two earned runs on five hits, three walks, one hit batsman, and 11 strikeouts over nine innings.

Next up: Toussaint vs. Wacha

Michael Wacha will make his Red Sox debut in a Grapefruit League bout against the Braves at JetBlue Park on Monday afternoon. The veteran right-hander will be opposed by fellow righty Touki Toussaint of Atlanta.

First pitch Monday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will not be televised.

(Picture of Tanner Houck: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Ryan Fitzgerald lifts Red Sox to 1-0 win over Twins as Boston remains perfect in Grapefruit League play

The Red Sox continued their winning ways on Saturday afternoon by improving to 3-0 in Grapefruit League play. They defeated the Twins by a final score of 1-0 at Hammond Stadium.

Nick Pivetta made his first start of the spring for Boston. The right-hander did not allow a single hit, walk, or run while striking out five in his three perfect innings of work. Of the 38 pitches he threw, 28 went for strikes. He also induced four total swings-and-misses and averaged 93.5 mph with his four-seam fastball.

In relief of Pivetta, Austin Davis got the first call out of the Sox bullpen beginning in the middle of the fourth inning. The left-hander gave up back-to-back singles to begin the frame but escaped the jam before making way for Phillips Valdez, who stranded one runner in an otherwise clean bottom of the fifth.

From there, Zack Kelly found himself in immediate trouble when he yielded a leadoff single to Derek Fisher. Connor Wong, however, negated that almost instantly by gunning Fisher at second down on a failed stolen base attempt, ultimately allowing Kelly to get through the bottom of the sixth unscathed.

To that point in the contest, the Red Sox lineup had been held in check by three different Twins pitchers. With one out in the top of the seventh, Ryan Fitzgerald changed that by crushing a one-out solo shot off Minnesota reliever Cody Stashak.

Fitzgerald’s first home run of the spring provided Boston with their first lead of the day at 1-0. Darin Gillies kept it that way in the latter half of the seventh, while Thomas Pannone did so in the eighth.

Pannone came back out for the ninth looking to preserve the shutout, but instead loaded the bases with two outs. The former Blue Jays lefty did manage to get old friend Cole Sturgeon to pop out to center field for the final out of the ninth, though, thus preserving a 1-0 victory for the Red Sox.

All told, Boston pitchers (Pivetta, Davis, Valdez, Kelly, Gillies, and Pannone) combined to allow just six hits and two walks while punching out 13 in the combined shutout bid.

On the injury front, Jonathan Arauz originally started Saturday’s contest at second base. The 23-year-old was forced to leave in the bottom of the fifth inning after colliding with Twins shortstop Nick Gordon and was replaced by Christian Koss.

Next up: Houck vs. Reyes

Tanner Houck is next in line to make his 2022 debut for the Red Sox as he gets the start against the Orioles on Sunday. The right-hander will be opposed by fellow righty Denyi Reyes, who spent the first seven years of his professional career with Boston before signing a minor-league deal with Baltimore last November.

First pitch from JetBlue Park is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be broadcasted on NESN.

(Picture of Ryan Fitzgerald: Brace Hemmelgarn/Getty Images)

Christian Koss crushes two home runs as Red Sox walk off Rays, 7-6

The Red Sox improved to 2-0 in Grapefruit League play on Friday afternoon following a 7-6 walk-off victory over the Rays at JetBlue Park.

Nathan Eovaldi, who was recently named the Sox’ Opening Day starter for a third consecutive year, made his 2022 debut for Boston. The veteran right-hander allowed two runs (both earned) on three hits and no walks to go along with three strikeouts over three innings of work.

After retiring each of the first six batters he faced, Eovaldi ran into some trouble in the top half of the third. The 32-year-old issued a leadoff double to Miles Mastrobuoni before yielding a pair of run-scoring hits to Esteban Quiroz and Josh Lowe.

That put Boston in early 2-0 hole, though Eovaldi was able to get through three full frames on 42 frames. His next start should come against the Twins in Fort Myers next Wednesday.

In relief of Eovaldi, Kaleb Ort got the first call out of the Red Sox bullpen in the fourth inning and allowed one run on two hits that made it a 3-0 contest in favor of the Rays.

A half-inning later, though, the Sox got all three of those runs back on one swing of the bat. Following back-to-back singles from Christian Arroyo and Rafael Devers, Bobby Dalbec stayed hot and greeted reliever Zack Erwin by demolishing his second home run of the spring over the Fenway South green monster.

Dalbec’s three-run blast knotted things up at three runs a piece going into the fifth, when Durbin Feltman twirled a 1-2-3 frame before 2021 Rule 5 draftee Brian Keller did the very same in the sixth.

Ceddanne Rafaela and Christian Koss led off the bottom of the sixth with a pair of singles off Rays reliever David McKay and both base runners advanced an additional 90 feet on a groundout off the bat of Hudson Potts. Rafaela then scored when Tyler Esplin reached base on a fielder’s choice.

That sequence put the Red Sox up 4-3, although their newfound lead did not last long when Keller served a go-ahead, three-run home run to Ford Proctor that gave the Rays a 6-4 edge. Joan Martinez came on for Keller and recorded the final out of the seventh.

From there, non-roster invitee Silvino Bracho took over for Martinez and maneuvered his way around a two-out single in an otherwise clean inning of work.

To lead off the bottom half of the eighth, the Sox cut into the Rays’ lead when Koss cranked his first home run of the spring to left field off Adrian De Horta. Izzy Wilson followed with a two-out single before Tyreque Reed came through with a game-tying single off former Red Sox farmhand Seth Blair.

Right-handed pitching prospect Victor Santos came on in the top of the ninth and put up one final zero for Boston to pave the way for some late-game heroics in the bottom half.

With two outs and the bases empty, Koss obliterated his second home run of the day. This one was another solo shot and came off Rays reliever Joel Peguero, thus ensuring a 7-6 walk-off victory for the Red Sox.

Next up: Pivetta makes spring debut against Twins

Nick Pivetta will make his 2022 debut for the Red Sox on Saturday as they face off against the Twins — who have yet to name a starter — at Hammond Stadium.

First pitch is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be broadcasted on NESN.

(Picture of Christian Koss: Mary DeCicco/MLB Photos via Getty Images)

Bobby Dalbec homers as Red Sox blow out Twins, 14-1, in Grapefruit League opener

The Red Sox kicked off Grapefruit League play with a one-sided 14-1 victory over the Twins at JetBlue Park on Thursday afternoon.

Jarren Duran set the tone right away, leading off the bottom of the first inning with an infield single. Bobby Dalbec immediately followed suit, taking Twins starter Cole Sands deep to left field for his first home run of the spring.

Dalbec’s two-run blast gave the Sox an early 2-0 lead. Non-roster invitee Ryan Fitzgerald doubled Boston’s advantage later in the inning when he drove in Franchy Cordero and Jeter Downs on a two-run single of his own.

After right-handers Michael Feliz (Thursday’s starter) and Taylor Cole provided a scoreless frame each out of the gate, left-handed pitching prospect Chris Murphy surrendered his side’s first run when he issued a bases-loaded walk to Miguel Sano in the top half of the third.

Andrew Politi came on to get out of the jam Murphy had created by retiring Gary Sanchez, then sat down the side in order an inning later. Zack Kelly, another non-roster invitee, took over for Politi in the fifth and put up another zero. In the latter half of the frame, Downs scored on a double steal before Yolmer Sanchez crossed home plate on a sacrifice fly off the bat of Roldani Baldwin.

Heading into the sixth inning in possession of a 6-1 lead, Red Sox manager Alex Cora handed things over to John Schreiber out of the bullpen. Schreiber worked his way around a two-out walk in the sixth before fanning one in a clean seventh inning of work.

A half-inning later, the Red Sox continued to pad their lead when the power-hitting Tyreque Reed laced a ground-rule, two-run double off Twins reliever Kody Funderburk.

In the eighth, recently-signed righty Tyler Danish kept Minnesota off the scoreboard once more before the Boston bats pushed across six more runs in their half of the inning. Elih Marrero ripped a bases-clearing, three-run double off Melvi Acosta while Reed collected one more RBI and Nick Sogard drove in two of his own.

That sequence put the Red Sox up 14-1, going into the ninth. Geoff Hartlieb closed things out in 1-2-3 fashion to preserve the blowout win in Boston’s Grapefruit League opener.

All told, the Sox tallied 14 runs on 14 hits and are now 1-0 this spring with 18 exhibition games remaining before Opening Day.

Next up: Eovaldi vs. Mazza

The Red Sox return to JetBlue Park on Friday afternoon to take on the Rays. Opening Day starter Nathan Eovaldi is slated to get the ball for Boston. He will be opposed by former teammate and fellow right-hander Chris Mazza.

First pitch Friday is scheduled for 1:05 p.m. eastern time. The game will be broadcasted on NESN.

(Picture of Bobby Dalbec: Boston Red Sox)

Red Sox spring training: 3 more Grapefruit League games cancelled due to lockout

Exactly one week after cancelling spring training games through March 4, Major League Baseball announced on Friday that games on March 5, 6, and 7 have been cancelled as well due to the ongoing lockout.

For the Red Sox, who were supposed to host Northeastern at JetBlue Park on Friday afternoon, this means that three additional spring training games have been cleared from their Grapefruit League schedule.

After previously losing exhibition games against the Braves, Yankees, Phillies, Pirates, Astros, Orioles, Braves, and Rays, the Sox will no longer be taking on the Twins, Blue Jays, or Yankees in Grapefruit League play.

Instead, the earliest teams can open their spring schedule is March 8 (Boston is slated to host Pittsburgh in Fort Myers that Tuesday afternoon). Of course, whether games are actually played on March 8 is dependent on ongoing negotiations between Major League Baseball and the players association.

The two sides met for a fifth straight day in Jupiter, Fla. on Friday but have yet to reach an agreement that would end the work stoppage, which is now in its 86th day. MLB owners originally locked out the players on December 2, when the previous collective bargaining agreement expired.

If a new CBA is not finalized by this coming Monday (February 28), the league has already said that the regular season would not start on time. As noted by The Athletic’s Evan Drellich, this outcome would lead to cancelled games not being made up and a decrease in players’ pay as a result.

As of now, the Red Sox are scheduled to host the Rays at Fenway Park on Opening Day — March 31. Every team’s 2022 regular season schedule consists of 162 games, though that number could change in the coming days.

(Picture of JetBlue Park: Joel Auerbach/Getty Images)

Red Sox spring training: Games through March 4 cancelled due to ongoing lockout

Major League Baseball announced on Friday that spring training games through March 4 have been cancelled as a result of the ongoing lockout. This means that spring training games will start no earlier than March 5.

The Red Sox were originally scheduled to host Northeastern at JetBlue Park on February 25 and open Grapefruit League play against the Atlanta Braves in North Port the following day.

Because of the lockout, however, the earliest the Sox can begin their spring training schedule is March 5, when they are slated to host the Minnesota Twins in Fort Myers.

Fans who purchased tickets for spring training games that have already been cancelled are eligible for full refunds.

In a statement released earlier Friday afternoon, MLB says it is “committed to reaching an agreement that is fair to each side. On Monday, members of the owners’ bargaining committee will join an in-person meeting with the Players Association and remain every day next week to negotiate and work hard towards starting the season on time.”

Here is how the MLB Players Association responded:

MLB owners locked out the players when the previous collective bargaining agreement expired on December 2. The work stoppage — and ongoing feud between the league and players association — is now in its 79th day.

If neither side is able to reach an agreement by the end of February, there is a real chance regular season games will wind up getting cancelled as well.

Opening Day for the Red Sox is scheduled for March 31 at Fenway Park, where they are supposed to host the Tampa Bay Rays to kick off the 2022 season.

(Picture of JetBlue Park: Mark Brown/Getty Images)