# 1978 Boston Red Sox season

The 1978 Boston Red Sox season was the 78th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. After 162 regular-season games, the Red Sox and the New York Yankees finished tied atop the American League East division, with identical 99–63 records. The teams then played a tie-breaker game, which was won by New York, 5–4. Thus, the Red Sox finished their season with a record of 99 wins and 64 losses, one game behind the Yankees, who went on to win the 1978 World Series.

## Offseason

* November 23, 1977: Mike Torrez was signed as a free agent by the Boston Red Sox.
* December 8, 1977: Don Aase and cash were traded by the Red Sox to the California Angels for Jerry Remy.
* December 14, 1977: Ferguson Jenkins was traded by the Red Sox to the Texas Rangers for John Poloni and cash.
* December 27, 1977: Dick Drago was signed as a free agent by the Red Sox.
* March 28, 1978: Denny Doyle was released by the Red Sox.
* March 30, 1978: Rick Wise, Mike Paxton, Ted Cox, and Bo Díaz were traded by the Red Sox to the Cleveland Indians for Dennis Eckersley and Fred Kendall.

## Regular season

Record by month :
| Month | Record | Record | Cumulative | Cumulative | AL East | AL East | Ref. |
| Month | Won | Lost | Won | Lost | Position | GB | Ref. |
| April | 11 | 9 | 11 | 9 | 2nd | 3 | |
| May | 23 | 7 | 34 | 16 | 1st | +3 | |
| June | 18 | 7 | 52 | 23 | 1st | +8 | |
| July | 13 | 15 | 65 | 38 | 1st | +5 | |
| August | 19 | 10 | 84 | 48 | 1st | +6+1⁄2 | |
| September | 14 | 15 | 98 | 63 | 2nd | 1 | |
| October | 1 | 1 | 99 | 64 | 2nd | 1 | |
The Red Sox played 163 games, as a tie-breaker game was needed to determine the winner of the AL East.

### The "Boston Massacre"

For several days in July, the Red Sox were 14 games ahead of the rival New York Yankees; at the end of play on July 19, Boston was 62–28 and New York was in fourth place at 48–42. However, the Yankees worked their way back. At the end of play on September 6, the Yankees had reduced the 14-game deficit to only four games, just in time for a four-game series at Fenway Park in Boston. The Yankees won all four games in the series, by a combined score of 42–9, leaving the teams tied with identical 86–56 records at the end of play on September 10. The series became known as the "Boston Massacre", named after the confrontation with British soldiers on March 5, 1770.

### Tie-breaker game

The Yankees held a one-game lead over the Red Sox before the final day of the regular-season schedule. With a Red Sox win over the Toronto Blue Jays, and a Yankee loss to the Cleveland Indians, the two teams finished the season in a tie for the AL East division title, both with records of 99–63. The next day, in a tie-breaker game played at Fenway Park, the Yankees beat the Red Sox, 5–4, with the help of a memorable home run by Bucky Dent.
The Yankees went on to win the World Series in six games over the Los Angeles Dodgers. Dent went on to become an object of hatred for Red Sox fans. Ironically, 12 years later, in 1990, the Yankees fired Dent as their manager during a series at Fenway Park.

### Season standings

vteAL East :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| New York Yankees | 100 | 63 | .613 | — | 55‍–‍26 | 45‍–‍37 |
| Boston Red Sox | 99 | 64 | .607 | 1 | 59‍–‍23 | 40‍–‍41 |
| Milwaukee Brewers | 93 | 69 | .574 | 6½ | 54‍–‍27 | 39‍–‍42 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 90 | 71 | .559 | 9 | 51‍–‍30 | 39‍–‍41 |
| Detroit Tigers | 86 | 76 | .531 | 13½ | 47‍–‍34 | 39‍–‍42 |
| Cleveland Indians | 69 | 90 | .434 | 29 | 42‍–‍36 | 27‍–‍54 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 59 | 102 | .366 | 40 | 37‍–‍44 | 22‍–‍58 |

### Record vs. opponents

1978 American League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CAL | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | MIL | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TEX | TOR |
| Baltimore | — | 7–8 | 4–6 | 8–1 | 9–6 | 7–8 | 2–8 | 7–8 | 5–5 | 6–9 | 11–0 | 9–1 | 7–4 | 8–7 |
| Boston | 8–7 | — | 9–2 | 7–3 | 7–8 | 12–3 | 4–6 | 10–5 | 9–2 | 7–9 | 5–5 | 7–3 | 3–7 | 11–4 |
| California | 6–4 | 2–9 | — | 8–7 | 6–4 | 4–7 | 9–6 | 5–5 | 12–3 | 5–5 | 9–6 | 9–6 | 5–10 | 7–3 |
| Chicago | 1–8 | 3–7 | 7–8 | — | 8–2 | 2–9 | 8–7 | 4–7 | 8–7 | 1–9 | 7–8 | 7–8 | 11–4 | 4–6 |
| Cleveland | 6–9 | 8–7 | 4–6 | 2–8 | — | 5–10 | 5–6 | 5–10 | 5–5 | 6–9 | 4–6 | 8–1 | 1–9 | 10–4 |
| Detroit | 8–7 | 3–12 | 7–4 | 9–2 | 10–5 | — | 4–6 | 7–8 | 4–6 | 4–11 | 6–4 | 8–2 | 7–3 | 9–6 |
| Kansas City | 8–2 | 6–4 | 6–9 | 7–8 | 6–5 | 6–4 | — | 6–4 | 7–8 | 6–5 | 10–5 | 12–3 | 7–8 | 5–5 |
| Milwaukee | 8–7 | 5–10 | 5–5 | 7–4 | 10–5 | 8–7 | 4–6 | — | 4–7 | 10–5 | 9–1 | 5–5 | 6–4 | 12–3 |
| Minnesota | 5–5 | 2–9 | 3–12 | 7–8 | 5–5 | 6–4 | 8–7 | 7–4 | — | 3–7 | 9–6 | 6–9 | 6–9 | 6–4 |
| New York | 9–6 | 9–7 | 5–5 | 9–1 | 9–6 | 11–4 | 5–6 | 5–10 | 7–3 | — | 8–2 | 6–5 | 6–4 | 11–4 |
| Oakland | 0–11 | 5–5 | 6–9 | 8–7 | 6–4 | 4–6 | 5–10 | 1–9 | 6–9 | 2–8 | — | 13–2 | 6–9 | 7–4 |
| Seattle | 1–9 | 3–7 | 6–9 | 8–7 | 1–8 | 2–8 | 3–12 | 5–5 | 9–6 | 5–6 | 2–13 | — | 3–12 | 8–2 |
| Texas | 4–7 | 7–3 | 10–5 | 4–11 | 9–1 | 3–7 | 8–7 | 4–6 | 9–6 | 4–6 | 9–6 | 12–3 | — | 4–7 |
| Toronto | 7–8 | 4–11 | 3–7 | 6–4 | 4–10 | 6–9 | 5–5 | 3–12 | 4–6 | 4–11 | 4–7 | 2–8 | 7–4 | — |

### Notable transactions

* May 20, 1978: Bob Ojeda was signed as an amateur free agent by the Red Sox.

### Opening Day lineup

| 2 | Jerry Remy | 2B |
| 7 | Rick Burleson | SS |
| 14 | Jim Rice | DH |
| 8 | Carl Yastrzemski | LF |
| 27 | Carlton Fisk | C |
| 19 | Fred Lynn | CF |
| 15 | George Scott | 1B |
| 24 | Dwight Evans | RF |
| 4 | Butch Hobson | 3B |
| 21 | Mike Torrez | P |
Source:

### Game log

1978 Boston Red Sox Season Game Log: 99–64 (Home: 59–23; Away: 40–41) :
April: 11–9 (Home: 8–2; Away: 3–7)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
1April 7@ White Sox5–6LaGrow (1–0)Drago (0–1)Comiskey Park50,7540–1
2April 8@ White Sox5–6Torrealba (1–0)Campbell (0–1)LaGrow (1)Comiskey Park11,8320–2
3April 9@ White Sox5–0Lee (1–0)Wood (0–1)Comiskey Park30,7941–2
4April 10@ Indians4–5Kern (1–0)Cleveland (0–1)Cleveland Stadium4,1771–3
5April 12@ Indians6–3Torrez (1–0)Garland (1–1)Drago (1)Cleveland Stadium6,2342–3
6April 14Rangers5–4 (10)Drago (1–1)Barker (0–1)Fenway Park34,7473–3
7April 15Rangers12–4Lee (2–0)D. Ellis (1–1)Fenway Park18,6244–3
8April 16Rangers8–6Stanley (1–0)Umbarger (0–1)Burgmeier (1)Fenway Park22,1685–3
9April 17Brewers9–2Torrez (2–0)Stein (0–1)Fenway Park26,0756–3
10April 18Brewers7–6Tiant (1–0)Rodríguez (0–1)Fenway Park18,9287–3
—April 20BrewersPostponed (rain); Makeup: August 12
11April 20Brewers10–4Lee (3–0)Haas (2–2)Fenway Park16,2388–3
12April 21Indians9–7Drago (2–1)Kern (1–1)Fenway Park25,4019–3
13April 22Indians4–13Wise (1–2)Ripley (0–1)Fenway Park36,0059–4
14April 23Indians6–3Campbell (1–1)Kinney (0–1)Fenway Park–10–4
15April 23Indians7–10 (11)Kern (2–1)Stanley (1–1)Kinney (1)Fenway Park36,24610–5
16April 25@ Brewers4–3Lee (4–0)Augustine (3–2)Drago (2)County Stadium9,05111–5
17April 26@ Brewers4–6Caldwell (1–0)Torrez (2–1)McClure (2)County Stadium8,72411–6
18April 28@ Rangers4–5 (11)Cleveland (1–2)Campbell (1–2)Arlington Stadium29,73111–7
19April 29@ Rangers1–4D. Ellis (2–1)Eckersley (0–1)Arlington Stadium34,10111–8
20April 30@ Rangers1–2Jenkins (1–2)Campbell (1–3)Arlington Stadium22,55411–9 :
May: 23–7 (Home: 14–2; Away: 9–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
21May 1Orioles9–6Torrez (3–1)Briles (1–2)Stanley (1)Fenway Park18,71012–9
22May 2Orioles1–3D. Martínez (3–1)Ripley (0–2)Fenway Park19,93012–10
23May 3Twins11–9Burgmeier (1–0)D. Johnson (0–2)Stanley (2)Fenway Park16,40313–10
24May 4Twins8–1Eckersley (1–1)Thormodsgard (1–3)Fenway Park15,78414–10
—May 5White SoxPostponed (rain); Makeup: May 6
25May 6White Sox6–4 (10)Stanley (2–1)Willoughby (0–2)Fenway Park–15–10
26May 6White Sox3–0Wright (1–0)Barrios (0–2)Fenway Park32,23816–10
27May 7White Sox5–0Torrez (4–1)Torrealba (1–4)Fenway Park30,92117–10
28May 8Royals8–4Stanley (3–1)Leonard (3–5)Fenway Park25,89118–10
29May 9Royals4–3Eckersley (2–1)Colborn (1–2)Fenway Park22,36919–10
30May 10@ Orioles2–3Flanagan (3–3)Burgmeier (1–1)Memorial Stadium10,02319–11
31May 11@ Orioles5–4Lee (5–0)D. Martínez (3–2)Drago (3)Memorial Stadium14,95020–11
—May 12@ TwinsPostponed (rain); Makeup: July 24
32May 13@ Twins4–2Torrez (5–1)Zahn (2–2)Burgmeier (2)Metropolitan Stadium7,91421–11
33May 14@ Twins6–2Eckersley (3–1)Thormodsgard (1–5)Burgmeier (3)Metropolitan Stadium7,00822–11
34May 15@ Royals1–3Gale (3–0)Ripley (0–3)Royals Stadium34,16622–12
35May 16@ Royals3–2Lee (6–0)Splittorff (4–3)Royals Stadium23,47423–12
36May 19@ Tigers5–7Sykes (3–0)Torrez (5–2)Hiller (4)Tiger Stadium48,81723–13
37May 20@ Tigers6–5Campbell (2–3)Foucault (1–4)Tiger Stadium30,85624–13
38May 21@ Tigers1–2Wilcox (3–1)Lee (6–1)Tiger Stadium–24–14
39May 21@ Tigers9–3Tiant (2–0)Rozema (2–2)Tiger Stadium52,36825–14
40May 22@ Blue Jays5–4Ripley (1–3)Clancy (2–4)Stanley (3)Exhibition Stadium25,05426–14
41May 23@ Blue Jays1–2 (12)Jefferson (3–5)Campbell (2–4)Exhibition Stadium14,57826–15
42May 24@ Blue Jays8–2Torrez (6–2)Lemanczyk (1–8)Exhibition Stadium28,82527–15
43May 25@ Blue Jays9–5Eckersley (4–1)Underwood (1–5)Drago (4)Exhibition Stadium17,19728–15
44May 26Tigers6–3Lee (7–1)Wilcox (3–2)Fenway Park33,43129–15
45May 27Tigers1–0Tiant (3–0)Morris (0–1)Fenway Park33,33530–15
46May 28Tigers4–3 (10)Stanley (4–1)Hiller (4–3)Fenway Park–31–15
47May 28Tigers4–3Wright (2–0)Slaton (4–2)Drago (5)Fenway Park34,67232–15
48May 29Blue Jays5–4Torrez (7–2)Underwood (1–6)Fenway Park25,93533–15
49May 30Blue Jays4–0Eckersley (5–1)Garvin (2–4)Fenway Park25,85334–15
50May 31Blue Jays2–6Clancy (4–4)Lee (7–2)Fenway Park27,94534–16 :
June: 18–7 (Home: 11–2; Away: 7–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
51June 2@ Angels6–1Tiant (4–0)Ryan (3–5)Drago (6)Anaheim Stadium31,32435–16
52June 3@ Angels5–4Torrez (8–2)Hartzell (1–4)Campbell (1)Anaheim Stadium34,22836–16
53June 4@ Angels2–4Tanana (9–2)Eckersley (5–2)LaRoche (7)Anaheim Stadium29,91136–17
54June 5@ Athletics7–9Broberg (6–4)Ripley (1–4)Sosa (8)Oakland Coliseum36,46336–18
55June 6@ Athletics1–7Renko (1–1)Lee (7–3)Oakland Coliseum7,91436–19
56June 9@ Mariners3–2Tiant (5–0)Mitchell (2–6)Kingdome11,67737–19
57June 10@ Mariners13–1Torrez (9–2)Pole (4–7)Kingdome15,91038–19
58June 11@ Mariners5–3Eckersley (6–2)McLaughlin (0–2)Campbell (2)Kingdome18,62639–19
59June 12Angels10–9Campbell (3–4)LaRoche (5–3)Fenway Park31,65240–19
60June 13Angels5–0Wright (3–0)Knapp (6–5)Fenway Park26,53941–19
61June 14Athletics9–0Tiant (6–0)Broberg (6–6)Fenway Park29,69042–19
62June 15Athletics7–3Torrez (10–2)Lacey (5–3)Fenway Park32,28143–19
63June 16Mariners6–3Campbell (4–4)Pole (4–8)Fenway Park31,51944–19
64June 17Mariners5–4Stanley (5–1)Montague (0–3)Fenway Park32,55145–19
65June 18Mariners2–3Abbott (2–4)Wright (3–1)Fenway Park28,96145–20
66June 19Yankees10–4Burgmeier (2–1)Gossage (3–7)Fenway Park33,16346–20
67June 20Yankees4–10Gullett (2–0)Torrez (10–3)Fenway Park32,64346–21
68June 21Yankees9–2Eckersley (7–2)Beattie (2–3)Fenway Park32,45947–21
69June 23Orioles5–2Lee (8–3)Palmer (10–5)Fenway Park34,58248–21
70June 24Orioles8–3Tiant (7–0)McGregor (8–5)Fenway Park32,21349–21
71June 25Orioles4–1Torrez (11–3)D. Martínez (6–5)Fenway Park33,52650–21
72June 26@ Yankees4–1Eckersley (8–2)Messersmith (0–2)Campbell (3)Yankee Stadium52,12451–21
73June 27@ Yankees4–6 (14)Lyle (6–1)Drago (2–2)Yankee Stadium55,13251–22
74June 29@ Orioles4–3Ripley (2–4)D. Martínez (6–6)Memorial Stadium28,89952–22
75June 30@ Orioles2–3 (11)Stanhouse (2–5)Tiant (7–1)Memorial Stadium33,03452–23 :
July: 13–15 (Home: 7–4; Away: 6–11)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
76July 1@ Orioles2–3 (11)Briles (2–4)Torrez (11–4)Memorial Stadium38,54252–24
—July 2@ OriolesPostponed (rain); Makeup: September 6
77July 3Yankees9–5Eckersley (9–2)Figueroa (7–6)Fenway Park34,72253–24
—July 4YankeesPostponed (rain); Makeup: September 7
78July 5@ White Sox9–2Lee (9–3)Stone (6–6)Stanley (4)Comiskey Park26,43454–24
79July 6@ White Sox7–6 (10)Campbell (5–4)Willoughby (1–6)Comiskey Park29,33055–24
80July 7@ Indians9–10Spillner (2–0)Campbell (5–5)Cleveland Stadium19,54355–25
81July 8@ Indians12–5Eckersley (10–2)Paxton (6–5)Cleveland Stadium–56–25
82July 8@ Indians3–2Wright (4–1)Clyde (4–5)Stanley (5)Cleveland Stadium41,85957–25
83July 9@ Indians1–7Wise (7–11)Ripley (2–5)Cleveland Stadium41,39457–26
ASGJuly 11All-Star GameAL 3–7 NLSutter (1–0)Gossage (0–1)San Diego Stadium51,549
84July 13Rangers7–12D. Ellis (8–4)Tiant (7–2)Fenway Park33,99557–27
85July 14Rangers3–4Jenkins (9–4)Torrez (11–5)Cleveland (9)Fenway Park32,89957–28
86July 15Twins5–4Lee (10–3)Jackson (2–2)Stanley (6)Fenway Park32,86158–28
87July 16Twins5–3Eckersley (11–2)Harrison (0–1)Campbell (4)Fenway Park–59–28
88July 16Twins3–2Wright (5–1)Erickson (9–6)Stanley (7)Fenway Park35,58960–28
89July 17Twins3–2 (10)Campbell (6–5)Marshall (4–7)Fenway Park33,23361–28
90July 19@ Brewers8–2Torrez (12–5)Sorensen (12–6)County Stadium45,33262–28
91July 20@ Brewers6–8Rodríguez (2–3)Lee (10–4)McClure (5)County Stadium35,04462–29
92July 21@ Royals0–9Splittorff (11–8)Eckersley (11–3)Royals Stadium39,84162–30
93July 22@ Royals5–6 (10)Hrabosky (4–3)Drago (2–3)Royals Stadium37,53862–31
94July 23@ Royals3–7Pattin (2–2)Wright (5–2)Royals Stadium39,42562–32
95July 24@ Twins4–5Jackson (3–3)Drago (2–4)Marshall (12)Metropolitan Stadium–62–33
96July 24@ Twins4–2Hassler (2–4)Zahn (8–9)Stanley (8)Metropolitan Stadium21,58063–33
97July 25@ Twins2–5Erickson (10–6)Lee (10–5)Marshall (13)Metropolitan Stadium18,60863–34
98July 26@ Rangers0–2Medich (5–5)Eckersley (11–4)Arlington Stadium21,67163–35
99July 27@ Rangers1–3Matlack (8–8)Tiant (7–3)Arlington Stadium29,68463–36
100July 28Royals0–4Gale (12–3)Torrez (12–6)Fenway Park35,34863–37
101July 29Royals1–0Wright (6–2)Leonard (12–12)Fenway Park35,09864–37
102July 30Royals1–2Splittorff (12–9)Lee (10–6)Hrabosky (14)Fenway Park34,62664–38
103July 31White Sox9–2Eckersley (12–4)Kravec (7–10)Fenway Park28,85865–38 :
August: 19–10 (Home: 11–5; Away: 8–5)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
104August 1White Sox2–5Proly (2–0)Tiant (7–4)Fenway Park30,02065–39
105August 2@ Yankees7–5 (17)Stanley (6–1)Clay (2–4)Yankee Stadium52,70166–39
106August 3@ Yankees8–1 (7)Torrez (13–6)Beattie (2–6)Yankee Stadium53,37967–39
107August 4@ Brewers2–6Sorensen (13–8)Lee (10–7)County Stadium52,56267–40
108August 5@ Brewers8–1Eckersley (13–4)Rodríguez (2–5)County Stadium52,96868–40
109August 6@ Brewers4–0Tiant (8–4)Travers (7–6)County Stadium48,44469–40
110August 8Indians9–7Stanley (7–1)Freisleben (1–3)Fenway Park34,48570–40
111August 9Indians1–5Wise (9–14)Lee (10–8)Kern (9)Fenway Park33,28570–41
112August 10Indians6–5 (13)Stanley (8–1)Spillner (2–1)Fenway Park33,54171–41
113August 11Brewers5–10Rodríguez (3–5)Tiant (8–5)Fenway Park35,14271–42
114August 12Brewers3–1Wright (7–2)Travers (7–7)Fenway Park33,09272–42
115August 12Brewers11–4Stanley (9–1)Caldwell (14–7)Fenway Park27,03073–42
116August 13Brewers4–3 (10)Torrez (14–6)Castro (3–4)Fenway Park34,46074–42
117August 14Brewers3–4Sorensen (14–8)Lee (10–9)McClure (7)Fenway Park33,76674–43
118August 15@ Angels2–5Tanana (16–7)Eckersley (13–5)Anaheim Stadium41,14474–44
119August 16@ Angels4–2Tiant (9–5)Ryan (6–11)Anaheim Stadium37,53575–44
120August 17@ Angels8–6Stanley (10–1)Griffin (2–4)Anaheim Stadium30,48676–44
121August 18@ Athletics6–3Torrez (15–6)Renko (6–8)Drago (7)Oakland Coliseum12,73077–44
122August 19@ Athletics4–8Johnson (10–6)Lee (10–10)Lacey (5)Oakland Coliseum11,80677–45
123August 20@ Athletics4–2Eckersley (14–5)Keough (7–11)Oakland Coliseum13,41178–45
124August 22@ Mariners2–5Abbott (6–10)Tiant (9–6)Kingdome21,48678–46
125August 23@ Mariners3–5McLaughlin (2–4)Torrez (15–7)Romo (10)Kingdome22,71878–47
126August 25Angels6–0Eckersley (15–5)Aase (8–8)Fenway Park33,58379–47
127August 26Angels7–1Wright (8–2)Hartzell (5–8)Fenway Park33,53180–47
128August 27Angels4–3 (12)Stanley (11–1)D. Miller (4–1)Fenway Park34,21681–47
129August 28Mariners10–9Stanley (12–1)Romo (10–6)Fenway Park24,30182–47
130August 29Mariners10–5Drago (3–1)McLaughlin (2–5)Burgmeier (4)Fenway Park32,39383–47
131August 30Blue Jays2–1Eckersley (16–5)Kirkwood (3–2)Fenway Park–84–47
132August 30Blue Jays6–7Cruz (6–1)Stanley (12–2)Fenway Park32,82584–48 :
September: 14–15 (Home: 7–7; Away: 7–8)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
133September 1Athletics1–5Keough (8–11)Tiant (9–7)Fenway Park30,15684–49
134September 2Athletics3–4Langford (7–10)Torrez (15–8)Heaverlo (10)Fenway Park33,05184–50
135September 3Athletics11–6Stanley (13–2)Broberg (9–11)Fenway Park29,02985–50
136September 4@ Orioles3–5McGregor (13–12)Eckersley (16–6)Stanhouse (20)Memorial Stadium17,96785–51
137September 5@ Orioles1–4Palmer (18–12)Sprowl (0–1)Stanhouse (21)Memorial Stadium15,64485–52
138September 6@ Orioles2–0Tiant (10–7)D. Martínez (12–11)Memorial Stadium11,25186–52
139September 7Yankees3–15Clay (3–4)Torrez (15–9)Fenway Park34,11986–53
140September 8Yankees2–13Beattie (4–7)Wright (8–3)Fenway Park33,13486–54
141September 9Yankees0–7Guidry (21–2)Eckersley (16–7)Fenway Park33,61186–55
142September 10Yankees4–7Figueroa (16–9)Sprowl (0–2)Gossage (23)Fenway Park32,78686–56
143September 11Orioles5–4Stanley (14–2)Kerrigan (3–1)Fenway Park28,57587–56
144September 12Orioles2–3D. Martínez (13–11)Torrez (15–10)Fenway Park28,92487–57
145September 13@ Indians1–2Clyde (7–10)Eckersley (16–8)Kern (12)Cleveland Stadium5,56887–58
146September 14@ Indians3–4Paxton (11–9)Wright (8–4)Kern (13)Cleveland Stadium4,47987–59
147September 15@ Yankees0–4Guidry (22–2)Tiant (10–8)Yankee Stadium54,90187–60
148September 16@ Yankees2–3Hunter (10–5)Torrez (15–11)Yankee Stadium55,09187–61
149September 17@ Yankees7–3Eckersley (17–8)Beattie (5–8)Stanley (9)Yankee Stadium55,08888–61
150September 18@ Tigers5–4 (11)Hassler (3–4)Baker (1–3)Tiger Stadium13,84989–61
151September 19@ Tigers8–6Campbell (7–5)Morris (3–5)Hassler (1)Tiger Stadium15,90190–61
152September 20@ Tigers2–12Rozema (9–10)Torrez (15–12)Tiger Stadium16,68990–62
153September 21@ Tigers5–1Eckersley (18–8)Wilcox (13–11)Tiger Stadium15,21391–62
154September 22@ Blue Jays4–5Murphy (6–9)Hassler (3–5)Exhibition Stadium22,17291–63
155September 23@ Blue Jays3–1Tiant (11–8)Jefferson (7–15)Exhibition Stadium30,05992–63
156September 24@ Blue Jays7–6 (14)Drago (4–4)Buskey (0–1)Exhibition Stadium33,61893–63
157September 26Tigers6–0Eckersley (19–8)Rozema (9–11)Fenway Park27,07894–63
158September 27Tigers5–2Tiant (12–8)Wilcox (13–12)Stanley (10)Fenway Park26,03595–63
159September 28Tigers1–0Torrez (16–12)Young (6–7)Fenway Park26,77496–63
160September 29Blue Jays11–0Stanley (15–2)Clancy (10–12)Fenway Park29,62697–63
161September 30Blue Jays5–1Eckersley (20–8)Jefferson (7–16)Fenway Park32,65998–63 :
October: 1–1 (Home: 1–1; Away: 0–0)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveStadiumAttendanceRecord
162October 1Blue Jays5–0Tiant (13–8)Kirkwood (4–5)Fenway Park29,20199–63
163October 2Yankees4–5Guidry (25–3)Torrez (16–13)Gossage (27)Fenway Park32,92599–64 :

## Player stats
### Batting
#### Starters by position

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
* = Indicates team leader
| Pos | Player | G | AB | R | H | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB |
| C | Carlton Fisk | 157 | 571 | 94 | 162 | .284 | 20 | 88 | 7 |
| 1B | George Scott | 120 | 412 | 51 | 96 | .233 | 12 | 54 | 1 |
| 2B | Jerry Remy | 148 | 583 | 87 | 162 | .278 | 2 | 44 | 30 |
| 3B | Butch Hobson | 147 | 512 | 65 | 128 | .250 | 17 | 80 | 1 |
| SS | Rick Burleson | 145 | 626 | 75 | 155 | .248 | 5 | 49 | 8 |
| LF | Jim Rice | 163 | 677 | 121 | 213 | .315 | 46 | 139 | 7 |
| CF | Fred Lynn | 150 | 541 | 75 | 161 | .298 | 22 | 82 | 3 |
| RF | Dwight Evans | 147 | 497 | 75 | 123 | .247 | 24 | 63 | 8 |
| DH | Bob Bailey | 43 | 94 | 12 | 18 | .191 | 4 | 9 | 2 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; R = Runs scored; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in; SB = Stolen bases
| Player | G | AB | R | H | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB |
| Carl Yastrzemski | 144 | 523 | 70 | 145 | .277 | 17 | 81 | 4 |
| Jack Brohamer | 81 | 244 | 34 | 57 | .234 | 1 | 25 | 1 |
| Frank Duffy | 64 | 104 | 12 | 27 | .260 | 0 | 4 | 1 |
| Garry Hancock | 38 | 80 | 10 | 18 | .225 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Bernie Carbo | 17 | 46 | 7 | 12 | .261 | 1 | 6 | 1 |
| Fred Kendall | 20 | 41 | 3 | 8 | .195 | 0 | 4 | 0 |
| Bob Montgomery | 10 | 29 | 2 | 7 | .241 | 0 | 5 | 0 |
| Sam Bowen | 6 | 7 | 3 | 1 | .143 | 1 | 1 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; CG = Complete games; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | CG | IP | W | L | ERA | BB | SO |
| Dennis Eckersley | 35 | 16 | 268.1 | 20 | 8 | 2.99 | 71 | 162 |
| Mike Torrez | 36 | 15 | 250.0 | 16 | 13 | 3.96 | 99 | 120 |
| Luis Tiant | 32 | 12 | 212.1 | 13 | 8 | 3.31 | 57 | 114 |
| Bill Lee | 28 | 8 | 177.0 | 10 | 10 | 3.46 | 59 | 44 |
| Allen Ripley | 15 | 1 | 73.0 | 2 | 5 | 5.55 | 22 | 26 |
| Bobby Sprowl | 3 | 0 | 12.2 | 0 | 2 | 6.39 | 10 | 10 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; BB = Walks allowed; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | BB | SO |
| Jim Wright | 24 | 116.0 | 8 | 4 | 3.57 | 24 | 56 |
| Andy Hassler | 13 | 30.0 | 2 | 1 | 3.00 | 13 | 23 |

#### Relief pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; SV = Saves; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | W | L | SV | ERA | SO |
| Bob Stanley | 52 | 15 | 2 | 10 | 2.60 | 38 |
| Dick Drago | 37 | 4 | 4 | 7 | 3.03 | 42 |
| Tom Burgmeier | 35 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 4.40 | 24 |
| Bill Campbell | 29 | 7 | 5 | 4 | 3.91 | 47 |
| John LaRose | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 22.50 | 3 |
| Reggie Cleveland | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 0 |

## AL East tie-breaker game

October 2, 1978 at Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts :
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
| New York Yankees | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 5 | 8 | 0 |
| Boston Red Sox | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 11 | 0 |
| WP: Ron Guidry (25-3) LP: Mike Torrez (16-13) Sv: Goose Gossage (27) Home runs: NYY: Bucky Dent, Reggie Jackson BOS: Carl Yastrzemski |||||||||||||

## Awards and honors
### Awards

* Dwight Evans – Gold Glove Award (OF)
* Fred Lynn – Gold Glove Award (OF)
* Jim Rice – American League Most Valuable Player, AL Player of the Month (May, August)

### Accomplishments

* Jim Rice, American League leader, Hits (213)
* Jim Rice, American League leader, Home runs (46)
* Jim Rice, American League leader, RBIs (139)

### All-Star Game

* Rick Burleson, reserve SS (did not attend)
* Dwight Evans, reserve OF
* Carlton Fisk, starting C
* Fred Lynn, reserve OF (started CF)
* Jerry Remy, reserve 2B
* Jim Rice, starting LF
* Carl Yastrzemski, reserve OF (did not attend)

## Farm system

| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Pawtucket Red Sox | International League | Joe Morgan |
| AA | Bristol Red Sox | Eastern League | Tony Torchia |
| A | Winston-Salem Red Sox | Carolina League | Bill Slack |
| A | Winter Haven Red Sox | Florida State League | Rac Slider |
| A-Short Season | Elmira Red Sox | New York–Penn League | Dick Berardino |
LEAGUE CHAMPIONS: Bristol
Source: