With opening day less than one month (wooo!) away, I wanted to highlight some points in the season to pay a little more attention to. Every season has easy stretches, tough road trips, and high leverage situations.

Monday April 12th @ Minnesota
The Red Sox play guests of honor at the home opener of Target Field, the new home of the Minnesota Twins. With no contract yet in sight, story-lines will surround the possibility of Joe Mauer’s final year with the Twins, and the coincidence that a potential suitor rolls into town on the heels of stalled or cancelled negotiations. Also, speculations of Target Field’s park factors will be begin to arise. While rumor has it that Target Field is not going to repeat an opening month full of laughable power as Yankee Stadium did last year, the park’s dimensions should be favorable for Minnesota’s right handed power bats. Keep an eye on Cuddyer in fantasy drafts.

Tuesday April 22nd – Thursday April 24th vs Texas
While the handful of games against the Rangers may not end up being as critical as the 19 against New York, the possibility of facing Neftali Feliz if he wins a starting job out of spring training is quite enticing. Naftali comes with the potential we saw Tim Lincecum cash in on, and the potential we’re also waiting to see if Stephen Strasburg lives up to.

Monday May 17th @ New York Yankees
The first trip back to the Bronx since their league leading 28th championship will server as another reminder that success is fleeting. While the Red Sox currently lead the current century 2-1, last year proved that the power of the Yankee checkbook and famr system still is not something to be trifled with. Even though every game is important, winning that first road game against the chief opponents for the division title is always important for the psyche of the team.

Friday June 18th – Sunday June 20th vs Los Angeles Dodgers
He’s baaaaaaaaaaaack!Manny-Ramirez-drugs-suspended
After steroid allegations, and a hasty and fractured exit from town, Manny Ramirez returns to Fenway. Many former players since 2004 have comes back to Fenway and received positive responses. One of my personal favorites is the first game Orlando Cabrera returned, where his standing ovation brought him to tears.

What does Manny deserve? Recognition for helping the team finally succeed? Jeers for his selfish exit out of town and subsequent embarrassment from his suspension?

Friday June 25th – Sunday June 27th @ San Francisco
Have you ever seen Tim Lincecum pitch in person?

Last year I was on a business trip in Denver and saw him hand the Rockies a crushing defeat at Coors Field. While I’m not quite comparing him to 1999-2001 Pedro Martinez(yet), his utter dominance these past two years have been nothing short of extraordinary. The opportunity for the Nation to get a real glimpse at his talent close up would be great.

The West Coast Road Trip: July 19th to July 28th
Anytime the Red Sox go on a long West Coast road trip, we expect the worst. They’ve struggled lately on the left coast, and when expecting to lose 18 games to the Yankee and Rays (making the assumption we play .500 ball against them), stealing all the wins you can on the road versus the west is a big boost. When this week also coincides with the beginning of the superstitious “Dog Days of August”, the Red Sox could stand to hold onto momentum going into the final two months of the season.

The Final Week: September 24th-October 3rd
The last 10 days of the season could be one of the toughest and most important stretches of the season. Six of the last ten games are played against the Yankees, wrapping up with the final three games at home after not seeing New York come to Boston since May. The White Sox, built by Kenny Williams’ perennial “85 wins and hope for some luck” mantra could be jockeying for a playoff spot in the central as well, turning every single game into a must win situation.