# 2005 Boston Red Sox season

The 2005 Boston Red Sox season was the 105th season in the franchise's Major League Baseball history. The Red Sox finished second in the American League East with a record of 95–67, the same record as the New York Yankees. The Yankees were deemed the division winner, due to their 10–9 head-to-head record against the Red Sox during the regular season. The Red Sox qualified for the postseason as the AL wild card, but were swept by the American League Central champion Chicago White Sox in the ALDS.
On offense, the Red Sox led Major League Baseball in runs scored (910), hits (1,579), doubles (339), RBI (863), walks (653), batting average (.281), OBP (.357), OPS (.811) and sacrifice flies (63). Red Sox pitchers hit opposing batters with 89 pitches, the most by any major league pitching staff in 2005.

## Offseason

The Red Sox made a few notable offseason moves coming off their 2004 World Series championship. The team brought back Jason Varitek by re-signing the veteran catcher to a 4-year $40 million deal. Outfielder Dave Roberts – who played a key role as a base stealer during the 2004 postseason – was traded to the Padres in exchange for shortstop Ramon Vazquez and left fielder Jay Payton.
Management sought to fill the void left by Orlando Cabrera and Pokey Reese at shortstop by signing free agent Édgar Rentería to a 4-year $40 million year with a 5th year option. The move sat well with fans because Rentería was coming off a very successful 2004 campaign with the St. Louis Cardinals. Rentería hit .287 with 10 home runs and 72 RBI in 2004.
The Red Sox front office looked to bolster their starting pitching by signing two veteran pitchers. The need for starting pitching was a point of emphasize due to the departure of Pedro Martínez to the New York Mets after 7 years in a Red Sox uniform. The first pitcher signed was former Padres starter David Wells. Wells was coming off a surprising 2004 season with the Padres in which he posted a 3.73 ERA over 195 innings pitched at the age of 41. The second pitcher signed was former Cubs starter Matt Clement. Clement was coming off a season in which he posted a respectable 3.68 ERA over 181 innings pitched.

## Spring training

| Boston Win | Boston Loss |
2005 Boston Red Sox Spring Training Log :
March
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossRecordSource
1March 3Twins4─3González (1─0)Durbin (0─1)1─0
2March 4Northeastern Huskies17─0WakefieldPellegrine2─0
3March 4Boston College11─5TimlinJeanes3─0 :

## Regular season
### Season standings

vteAL East :
| Team | W | L | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| New York Yankees | 95 | 67 | .586 | — | 53‍–‍28 | 42‍–‍39 |
| Boston Red Sox | 95 | 67 | .586 | — | 54‍–‍27 | 41‍–‍40 |
| Toronto Blue Jays | 80 | 82 | .494 | 15 | 43‍–‍38 | 37‍–‍44 |
| Baltimore Orioles | 74 | 88 | .457 | 21 | 36‍–‍45 | 38‍–‍43 |
| Tampa Bay Devil Rays | 67 | 95 | .414 | 28 | 40‍–‍41 | 27‍–‍54 |

### Record vs. opponents

2005 American League recordvte Sources: :
| Team | BAL | BOS | CWS | CLE | DET | KC | LAA | MIN | NYY | OAK | SEA | TB | TEX | TOR | NL |
| Baltimore | — | 8–10 | 2–6 | 1–6 | 3–5 | 4–2 | 2–4 | 3–3 | 7–11 | 4–6 | 7–3 | 12–6 | 4–6 | 9–10 | 8–10 |
| Boston | 10–8 | — | 4–3 | 4–2 | 6–4 | 4–2 | 6–4 | 4–2 | 9–10 | 6–4 | 3–3 | 13–6 | 7–2 | 7–11 | 12–6 |
| Chicago | 6–2 | 3–4 | — | 14–5 | 14–5 | 13–5 | 4–6 | 11–7 | 3–3 | 2–7 | 6–3 | 4–2 | 3–6 | 4–2 | 12–6 |
| Cleveland | 6–1 | 2–4 | 5–14 | — | 12–6 | 13–6 | 3–5 | 10–9 | 3–4 | 6–3 | 7–3 | 4–6 | 3–3 | 4–2 | 15–3 |
| Detroit | 5–3 | 4–6 | 5–14 | 6–12 | — | 10–9 | 4–6 | 8–11 | 1–5 | 1–5 | 5–4 | 5–2 | 4–2 | 4–3 | 9–9 |
| Kansas City | 2–4 | 2–4 | 5–13 | 6–13 | 9–10 | — | 2–7 | 6–13 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 2–7 | 3–5 | 2–8 | 3–6 | 9–9 |
| Los Angeles | 4–2 | 4–6 | 6–4 | 5–3 | 6–4 | 7–2 | — | 6–4 | 6–4 | 10–9 | 9–9 | 4–5 | 15–4 | 1–5 | 12–6 |
| Minnesota | 3–3 | 2–4 | 7–11 | 9–10 | 11–8 | 13–6 | 4–6 | — | 3–3 | 4–6 | 6–4 | 6–0 | 3–6 | 4–2 | 8–10 |
| New York | 11–7 | 10–9 | 3–3 | 4–3 | 5–1 | 3–3 | 4–6 | 3–3 | — | 7–2 | 7–3 | 8–11 | 7–3 | 12–6 | 11–7 |
| Oakland | 6–4 | 4–6 | 7–2 | 3–6 | 5–1 | 4–2 | 9–10 | 6–4 | 2–7 | — | 12–6 | 4–5 | 11–8 | 5–5 | 10–8 |
| Seattle | 3–7 | 3–3 | 3–6 | 3–7 | 4–5 | 7–2 | 9–9 | 4–6 | 3–7 | 6–12 | — | 4–2 | 6–13 | 4–6 | 10–8 |
| Tampa Bay | 6–12 | 6–13 | 2–4 | 6–4 | 2–5 | 5–3 | 5–4 | 0–6 | 11–8 | 5–4 | 2–4 | — | 6–2 | 8–11 | 3–15 |
| Texas | 6–4 | 2–7 | 6–3 | 3–3 | 2–4 | 8–2 | 4–15 | 6–3 | 3–7 | 8–11 | 13–6 | 2–6 | — | 7–3 | 9–9 |
| Toronto | 10–9 | 11–7 | 2–4 | 2–4 | 3–4 | 6–3 | 5–1 | 2–4 | 6–12 | 5–5 | 6–4 | 11–8 | 3–7 | — | 8–10 |
Red Sox vs. National League :
| Team | NL Central | NL Central | NL Central | NL Central | NL Central | NL Central | | |
| Team | CHC | CIN | HOU | MIL | PIT | STL | ATL | PHI |
| Boston | 1–2 | 3–0 | — | — | 2–1 | 1–2 | 2–1 | 3–0 |

### Notable transactions

* December 17, 2004: David Wells and John Halama were signed as free agents with the Red Sox.
* December 19, 2004: Édgar Rentería was signed as a free agent with the Red Sox.
* December 20, 2004: Jay Payton, Ramón Vázquez and David Pauley were acquired by the Red Sox from the Padres in exchange for Dave Roberts.
* December 22, 2004: Matt Clement and Wade Miller were signed as free agents with the Red Sox.
* January 11, 2005: David McCarty was signed as a free agent with the Red Sox.
* May 2, 2005: David McCarty was released by the Red Sox and granted free agency.
* May 2, 2005: John Olerud was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox.
* June 7, 2005: Jacoby Ellsbury was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 1st round (23rd pick) of the 2005 amateur draft. Player signed July 1, 2005.
* June 7, 2005: Clay Buchholz was drafted by the Boston Red Sox in the 1st round (42nd pick) of the 2005 amateur draft. Player signed June 23, 2005.
* July 7: 2005: Alex Cora was acquired by the Red Sox from the Indians in exchange for Ramón Vázquez.
* July 13, 2005: Chad Bradford was acquired by the Red Sox from the Athletics in exchange for Jay Payton.
* July 19, 2005: Alan Embree was released by the Red Sox.
* July 19, 2005: Tony Graffanino was acquired by the Red Sox from the Royals in exchange for Chip Ambres and minor leaguer Juan Cedeño.
* July 26, 2005: John Halama was released by the Red Sox.
* August 9, 2005: Ricky Bottalico was signed as a free agent with the Boston Red Sox.
* August 9, 2005: Mike Remlinger and cash were acquired by the Red Sox from the Cubs in exchange for minor league pitcher Olivo Astacio.
* August 19, 2005: Mark Bellhorn was released by the Red Sox.
* August 25, 2005: Ricky Bottalico was released by the Red Sox.
* August 28, 2005: Mike Remlinger was released by the Red Sox.

### Opening Day lineup

| 18 | Johnny Damon | CF |
| 16 | Édgar Rentería | SS |
| 24 | Manny Ramirez | LF |
| 34 | David Ortiz | DH |
| 15 | Kevin Millar | 1B |
| 33 | Jason Varitek | C |
| 44 | Jay Payton | RF |
| 11 | Bill Mueller | 3B |
| 12 | Mark Bellhorn | 2B |
| 3 | David Wells | P |

### Game log

2005 Game Log :
April (12–11)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
1April 3@ Yankees9–2Johnson (1–0)Wells (0–1)—54,8180–1
2April 5@ Yankees4–3Rivera (1–0)Foulke (0–1)—54,6900–2
3April 6@ Yankees7–3Timlin (1–0)Rivera (1–1)—55,1651–2
4April 8@ Blue Jays6–5Arroyo (1–0)Bush (0–1)Foulke (1)50,5602–2
5April 9@ Blue Jays12–5Frasor (1–0)Wells (0–2)—28,7652–3
6April 10@ Blue Jays4–3Batista (1–0)Timlin (1–1)—22,8452–4
7April 11Yankees8–1Wakefield (1–0)Mussina (0–1)—33,7023–4
8April 13Yankees5–2Wright (1–1)Schilling (0–1)Rivera (2)35,1153–5
9April 14Yankees8–5Foulke (1–1)Gordon (0–1)—35,2514–5
10April 15Devil Rays10–0Wells (1–2)Nomo (1–1)—35,0235–5
11April 16Devil Rays6–2Clement (1–0)Brazelton (0–3)—35,1066–5
12April 17Devil Rays3–1Wakefield (2–0)Kazmir (0–1)Foulke (2)35,2327–5
13April 18Blue Jays12–7Schilling (1–1)Bush (0–2)—35,2438–5
14April 19Blue Jays4–3Halladay (3–0)Foulke (1–2)Batista (4)35,5988–6
15April 20@ Orioles8–0Wells (2–2)Chen (1–1)—36,4789–6
16April 21@ Orioles1–0Clement (2–0)López (2–1)Foulke (3)40,41910–6
17April 22@ Devil Rays5–4Báez (3–0)Embree (0–1)—30,53010–7
18April 23@ Devil Rays6–5Fossum (1–1)Schilling (1–2)Carter (1)33,22010–8
19April 24@ Devil Rays11–3Arroyo (2–0)Nomo (2–2)—30,23611–8
20April 25Orioles8–4Chen (2–1)Wells (2–3)—35,00311–9
21April 26Orioles11–8Julio (1–0)Foulke (1–3)Ryan (3)35,67011–10
–April 27OriolesPostponed (rain) Rescheduled for June 2
22April 29@ Rangers7–2Park (3–1)Wakefield (2–1)Mahay (1)43,93311–11
23April 30@ Rangers9–2Arroyo (3–0)Astacio (1–3)—44,11412–11 :
May (16–12)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
24May 1@ Rangers6–5Clement (3–0)Drese (2–3)Foulke (4)49,34213–11
25May 2@ Tigers8–3Bonderman (4–2)Neal (0–1)Urbina (1)17,49713–12
26May 3@ Tigers5–3Halama (1–0)Maroth (2–2)Foulke (5)19,12114–12
27May 4@ Tigers4–3Wakefield (3–1)Farnsworth (1–1)Foulke (6)23,29515–12
28May 5@ Tigers2–1Arroyo (4–0)Urbina (0–3)Foulke (7)24,87016–12
29May 6Mariners7–2Clement (4–0)Moyer (4–1)—35,22917–12
–May 7MarinersPostponed (rain) Rescheduled for May 8
30May 8Mariners6–3González (1–0)Piñeiro (2–3)Foulke (8)34,84818–12
31May 8Mariners6–4Franklin (2–4)Halama (1–1)Guardado (9)34,67118–13
32May 9Athletics13–5Wakefield (4–1)Haren (1–5)—35,00019–13
33May 10Athletics3–2Matt Mantei (1–0)Dotel (1–1)—35,64420–13
34May 11Athletics6–5Foulke (2–3)Dotel (1–2)—35,37521–13
35May 13@ Mariners14–7Mateo (1–0)González (1–1)—44,53421–14
36May 14@ Mariners6–3Myers (1–0)Villone (0–2)Foulke (9)46,22922–14
37May 15@ Mariners5–4Meche (3–2)WakefieldGuardado (10)46,14522–15
38May 16@ Athletics6–4Yabu (3–0)Myers (1–1)Dotel (7)30,28122–16
39May 17@ Athletics7–5Embree (1–1)Cruz (0–2)Foulke (10)29,49423–16
40May 18@ Athletics13–6Etherton (1–0)Wells (2–4)—42,70523–17
41May 20Braves4–3Miller (1–0)Hudson (4–3)Foulke (11)35,33224–17
42May 21Braves7–5Davies (1–0)Wakefield (4–3)—35,00824–18
43May 22Braves5–2Clement (5–0)Colón (0–1)—34,84425–18
44May 24@ Blue Jays9–6Batista (3–0)Embree (1–2)—34,28025–19
45May 25@ Blue Jays6–1Lilly (3–4)Arroyo (4–1)—23,22125–20
46May 26@ Blue Jays8–1Chacín (5–3)Miller (1–1)Walker (2)26,25525–21
47May 27@ Yankees6–3Johnson (5–3)Wakefield (4–4)Rivera (12)55,05125–22
48May 28@ Yankees17–1Clement (6–0)Pavano (4–3)—55,31526–22
49May 29@ Yankees7–2Wells (3–4)Mussina (5–3)—55,23527–22
50May 30Orioles8–1Lopez (4–2)Arroyo (4–2)—35,48327–23
51May 31Orioles5–1Miller (2–1)Cabrera (4–4)—35,14728–23 :
June (17–9)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
52June 1Orioles9–3Ponson (6–3)Wakefield (4–5)—35,52728–24
53June 2Orioles6–4Foulke (3–3)Ryan (0–1)—35,13829–24
54June 3Angels7–4Myers (2–1)Shields (4–3)Foulke (12)35,32830–24
55June 4Angels13–6Colón (7–3)Embree (1–3)—34,75430–25
56June 5Angels6–3Myers (3–1)Woods (1–1)Foulke (13)35,00831–25
57June 6@ Cardinals7–1Morris (7–0)Wakefield (4–6)—50,27031–26
58June 7@ Cardinals9–2Suppan (5–5)Clement (6–1)—47,49631–27
59June 8@ Cardinals4–0Wells (4–4)Carpenter (8–4)—46,92832–27
60June 10@ Cubs14–6Maddux (5–3)Arroyo (4–3)—39,21532–28
61June 11@ Cubs7–6Wellemeyer (2–1)Miller (2–2)Dempster (8)39,09632–29
62June 12@ Cubs8–1Wakefield (5–6)Rusch (5–2)—39,13833–29
63June 13Reds10–3Clement (7–1)Milton (3–8)—35,47834–29
64June 14Reds7–0Wells (5–4)Hudson (1–1)—35,38735–29
65June 15Reds6–1Arroyo (5–3)Harang (4–5)—35,26536–29
66June 17Pirates6–5Foulke (4–3)White (2–3)—35,37737–29
67June 18Pirates2–0White (3–3)Embree (1–4)Mesa (18)35,21637–30
68June 19Pirates8–0Clement (8–1)Wells (5–6)—35,04638–30
69June 20@ Indians10–9Wells (6–4)Sabathia (5–4)Foulke (14)30,56239–30
70June 21@ Indians9–2Arroyo (6–3)Millwood (2–5)—28,45040–30
71June 22@ Indians5–4Foulke (5–3)Wickman (0–2)—29,91541–30
72June 24@ Phillies8–0Wakefield (6–6)Lieber (8–7)—45,09042–30
73June 25@ Phillies7–1Clement (9–1)Padilla (3–7)—44,86843–30
74June 26@ Phillies12–8Timlin (2–1)Cormier (2–2)—45,04244–30
75June 27Indians7–0Millwood (3–5)Arroyo (6–4)—35,45844–31
76June 28Indians12–8Miller (1–0)Foulke (5–4)—35,44544–32
77June 29Indians5–2Wakefield (7–6)Elarton (4–3)Timlin (1)35,06945–32 :
July (14–13)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
78July 1Blue Jays15–2Lilly (6–8)Clement (9–2)—35,30245–33
79July 2Blue Jays6–4Timlin (3–1)Walker (3–2)Foulke (15)35,26846–33
80July 3Blue Jays5–2Halladay (12–4)Arroyo (6–5)Schoeneweis (1)34,79446–34
81July 4@ Rangers6–5Benoit (1–0)Foulke (5–5)—50,49246–35
82July 5@ Rangers7–4Wakefield (8–6)Young (8–5)Timlin (2)33,35647–35
83July 6@ Rangers7–4Clement (10–2)Park (8–3)Embree (1)34,96248–35
84July 7@ Orioles3–1Cabrera (7–7)Wells (6–5)Byrdak (1)47,38948–36
85July 8@ Orioles7–2Arroyo (7–5)Ponson (7–7)—49,17449–36
86July 9@ Orioles9–1Chen (7–5)Miller (2–3)—49,33149–37
87July 10@ Orioles4–1Lopez (8–5)Wakefield (8–7)Ryan (19)49,82849–38
88July 14Yankees8–6Gordon (3–3)Schilling (1–3)Rivera (21)35,23249–39
89July 15Yankees17–1Wells (7–5)Redding (0–6)—35,08350–39
90July 16Yankees7–4Johnson (10–6)Clement (10–3)Rivera (22)34,69450–40
91July 17Yankees5–3Leiter (4–7)Wakefield (8–8)Rivera (23)34,80250–41
92July 18Devil Rays3–1Kazmir (4–7)Miller (2–4)Báez (17)35,40550–42
93July 19Devil Rays5–2Arroyo (8–5)Fossum (4–8)Schilling (1)35,42851–42
94July 20Devil Rays9–4Wells (8–5)Hendrickson (4–7)—35,12352–42
95July 21@ White Sox6–5Schilling (2–3)Vizcaíno (4–4)—36,78453–42
96July 22@ White Sox8–4Garland (15–4)Wakefield (8–9)—37,51153–43
97July 23@ White Sox3–0Miller (3–4)Hernández (7–3)Schilling (2)39,40854–43
98July 24@ White Sox6–4Contreras (6–6)Arroyo (8–6)Hermanson (23)37,16854–44
99July 25@ Devil Rays4–3Colomé (2–2)Schilling (2–4)—21,55054–45
100July 26@ Devil Rays10–9Schilling (3–4)Báez (5–3)—24,02955–45
101July 27@ Devil Rays4–1Wakefield (9–9)McClung (1–6)Schilling (3)22,07956–45
102July 29Twins8–5Arroyo (9–6)Silva (7–5)Schilling (4)35,21157–45
103July 30Twins6–2Wells (9–5)Lohse (7–10)—35,16758–45
104July 31Twins4–3Timlin (4–1)Rincón (4–4)Schilling (5)34,92959–45 :
August (18–9)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
105August 2Royals6–4Wakefield (10–9)Burgos (1–4)Schilling (6)35,38660–45
106August 3Royals8–5Miller (4–4)SnyderSchilling (7)35,05561–45
107August 4Royals11–9Clement (11–3)Núñez (2–2)Schilling (8)35,06062–45
108August 5@ Twins12–0Radke (7–10)Arroyo (9–7)—38,16162–46
109August 6@ Twins4–3Nathan (4–3)Timlin (4–2)—40,62662–47
110August 7@ Twins11–7Wakefield (11–9)Mays (5–7)Schilling (9)40,98263–47
111August 8Rangers11–6González (2–1)Karsay (0–1)—35,45364–47
112August 9Rangers8–7Schilling (4–4)Gryboski (1–1)—35,30865–47
113August 10Rangers16–5Arroyo (10–7)Rogers (11–5)—35,37966–47
114August 12White Sox9–8Bradford (1–0)Buehrle (13–5)—35,13267–47
115August 13White Sox7–4Wakefield (12–9)Garland (16–6)—35,05568–47
–August 14White SoxPostponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 5
116August 15@ Tigers7–6Walker (4–3)Schilling (4–5)—30,42668–48
117August 16@ Tigers10–7Bradford (2–0)Dingman (1–2)—32,12969–48
118August 17@ Tigers6–5Bonderman (14–9)Wells (9–6)Rodney (5)30,63469–49
119August 18@ Angels13–4Colón (16–6)Wakefield (12–10)—44,05069–50
120August 19@ Angels4–3Schilling (5–5)Shields (8–9)—43,89670–50
121August 20@ Angels4–2Santana (7–5)Arroyo (10–8)Rodríguez (28)44,01470–51
122August 21@ Angels5–1Timlin (5–2)Byrd (9–8)—44,02271–51
123August 23@ Royals5–2Wells (10–6)Greinke (3–15)—21,32372–51
124August 24@ Royals4–3Sisco (2–2)Arroyo (10–9)—18,87172–52
125August 25@ Royals7–4Lima (5–12)Schilling (5–6)MacDougal (17)21,81572–53
126August 26Tigers9–8Wakefield (13–10)Johnson (7–10)Timlin (3)35,05673–53
127August 27Tigers12–8Colón (2–5)Papelbon (0–1)—35,22873–54
128August 28Tigers11–3Wells (11–6)Robertson (6–11)—34,65874–54
129August 29Devil Rays10–6Clement (12–3)McClung (5–8)—35,00775–54
130August 30Devil Rays7–6Timlin (6–2)Borowski (1–1)—35,10176–54
131August 31Devil Rays7–6Wakefield (14–10)Fossum (8–11)Timlin (4)35,25377–54 :
September (17–12)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
132September 1Devil Rays7–4Arroyo (11–9)Waechter (5–9)Timlin (5)35,33778–54
133September 2Orioles7–3Maine (2–1)DiNardo (0–1)—35,15678–55
134September 3Orioles7–6Clement (13–3)Bédard (6–6)Timlin (6)35,14279–55
135September 4Orioles5–1Wells (12–6)Lopez (13–9)—35,00380–55
136September 5White Sox5–3McCarthy (2–1)Schilling (5–7)—35,67380–56
137September 6Angels3–2Wakefield (15–10)Shields (8–11)—35,06181–56
138September 7Angels6–3Arroyo (12–9)Santana (8–7)Timlin (7)35,42382–56
139September 8Angels3–0Byrd (11–9)Clement (13–4)Rodríguez (35)35,35182–57
140September 9@ Yankees8–4Small (7–0)Wells (12–7)—55,02482–58
141September 10@ Yankees9–2Schilling (6–7)Chacón (5–10)—55,07683–58
142September 11@ Yankees1–0Johnson (14–8)Wakefield (15–11)Rivera (37)55,12383–59
143September 12@ Blue Jays6–5Papelbon (1–1)Walker (6–5)—24,61784–59
144September 13@ Blue Jays9–3Downs (3–3)Clement (13–5)—25,25384–60
145September 14@ Blue Jays1–0Wells (13–7)Towers (11–11)Timlin (8)25,86585–60
146September 15Athletics6–2Blanton (10–11)Schilling (6–8)—35,07985–61
147September 16Athletics3–2Timlin (7–2)Cruz (0–3)—35,24986–61
148September 17Athletics2–1Arroyo (13–9)Haren (13–11)Timlin (9)35,22087–61
149September 18Athletics12–3Saarloos (10–7)Clement (13–6)—34,84987–62
150September 19@ Devil Rays8–7Hendrickson (10–7)Harville (0–3)Báez (38)16,12487–63
151September 20@ Devil Rays15–2Schilling (7–8)McClung (6–11)—18,72388–63
152September 21@ Devil Rays7–4Miller (2–2)Timlin (7–3)Báez (39)20,00288–64
153September 23@ Orioles6–3Arroyo (14–9)Cabrera (10–12)Timlin (10)46,85089–64
154September 24@ Orioles4–3Papelbon (2–1)Ryan (1–4)Timlin (11)48,61290–64
155September 25@ Orioles9–3Wells (14–7)Maine (2–3)—46,55991–64
–September 26Blue JaysPostponed (rain) Rescheduled for September 27
156September 27Blue Jays3–1Wakefield (16–11)Bush (5–11)Timlin (12)35,70092–65
157September 27Blue Jays5–7Frasor (3–5)Bradford (2–1)Batista (31)35,47692–65
158September 28Blue Jays7–2LillyArroyo (14–10)—35,31392–66
159September 29Blue Jays5–4Papelbon (3–1)Batista (5–8)—35,34593–66
160September 30Yankees5–3Wells (15–7)Wang (8–5)Timlin (13)34,83294–66 :
October (1–1)
#DateOpponentScoreWinLossSaveAttendanceRecord
161October 1Yankees8–4Johnson (17–8)Wakefield (16–12)—34,55694–67
162October 2Yankees10–1Schilling (8–8)Wright—34,53495–67 :

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

Note: Pos = Position; G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Pos | Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| C | Jason Varitek | 133 | 470 | 132 | .281 | 22 | 70 |
| 1B | Kevin Millar | 134 | 449 | 122 | .272 | 9 | 50 |
| 2B | Mark Bellhorn | 85 | 283 | 61 | .216 | 7 | 28 |
| SS | Édgar Rentería | 153 | 623 | 172 | .276 | 8 | 70 |
| 3B | Bill Mueller | 150 | 519 | 153 | .295 | 10 | 62 |
| LF | Manny Ramirez | 152 | 554 | 162 | .292 | 45 | 144 |
| CF | Johnny Damon | 148 | 624 | 197 | .316 | 10 | 75 |
| RF | Trot Nixon | 124 | 408 | 112 | .275 | 13 | 65 |
| DH | David Ortiz | 159 | 601 | 180 | .300 | 47 | 148 |

#### Other batters

Note: G = Games played; AB = At bats; H = Hits; Avg. = Batting average; HR = Home runs; RBI = Runs batted in
| Player | G | AB | H | Avg. | HR | RBI |
| Tony Graffanino | 51 | 188 | 60 | .319 | 4 | 20 |
| John Olerud | 87 | 173 | 50 | .289 | 7 | 37 |
| Doug Mirabelli | 50 | 136 | 31 | .228 | 6 | 18 |
| Jay Payton | 55 | 133 | 35 | .263 | 5 | 21 |
| Alex Cora | 47 | 104 | 28 | .269 | 2 | 16 |
| Gabe Kapler | 36 | 97 | 24 | .247 | 1 | 9 |
| Kevin Youkilis | 44 | 79 | 22 | .278 | 1 | 9 |
| Ramón Vázquez | 27 | 61 | 12 | .197 | 0 | 4 |
| Roberto Petagine | 18 | 32 | 9 | .281 | 1 | 9 |
| Adam Hyzdu | 12 | 16 | 4 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
| Adam Stern | 36 | 15 | 2 | .133 | 1 | 2 |
| Kelly Shoppach | 9 | 15 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| José Cruz Jr. | 4 | 12 | 3 | .250 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave McCarty | 13 | 4 | 2 | .500 | 0 | 2 |
| Alejandro Machado | 10 | 5 | 1 | .200 | 0 | 0 |
| Hanley Ramirez | 2 | 2 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |
| Shawn Wooten | 1 | 1 | 0 | .000 | 0 | 0 |

### Pitching
#### Starting pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ER = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Tim Wakefield | 33 | 225.1 | 16 | 12 | 4.15 | 151 |
| Bronson Arroyo | 35 | 205.1 | 14 | 10 | 4.51 | 100 |
| Matt Clement | 32 | 191.0 | 13 | 6 | 4.57 | 146 |
| David Wells | 30 | 189.0 | 15 | 7 | 4.45 | 107 |
| Wade Miller | 16 | 91.0 | 4 | 4 | 4.95 | 64 |

#### Other pitchers

Note: G = Games pitched; IP = Innings pitched; W = Wins; L = Losses; ERA = Earned run average; SO = Strikeouts
| Player | G | IP | W | L | ERA | SO |
| Curt Schilling | 32 | 93.1 | 8 | 8 | 5.69 | 87 |
| Jonathan Papelbon | 17 | 34.0 | 3 | 1 | 2.65 | 34 |
| Lenny DiNardo | 8 | 14.2 | 0 | 1 | 1.84 | 15 |

#### 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 |
| Keith Foulke | 43 | 5 | 5 | 15 | 5.91 | 34 |
| Mike Timlin | 81 | 7 | 3 | 13 | 2.24 | 59 |
| Mike Myers | 65 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 3.13 | 21 |
| Alan Embree | 43 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 7.65 | 30 |
| Matt Mantei | 34 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 6.49 | 22 |
| Chad Bradford | 31 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 3.86 | 10 |
| John Halama | 30 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 6.18 | 26 |
| Geremi González | 28 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 6.11 | 28 |
| Manny Delcarmen | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 | 9 |
| Blaine Neal | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 9.00 | 3 |
| Chad Harville | 8 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6.43 | 3 |
| Mike Remlinger | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14.85 | 5 |
| Craig Hansen | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6.00 | 3 |
| Cla Meredith | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27.00 | 0 |
| Abe Alvarez | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 15.43 | 1 |
| Mike Stanton | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 | 1 |
| Scott Cassidy | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 40.50 | 0 |
| Matt Perisho | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | inf | 0 |

## ALDS

| Game | Score | Date |
| 1 | Boston 2, Chicago 14 | October 4 |
| 2 | Boston 4, Chicago 5 | October 5 |
| 3 | Chicago 5, Boston 3 | October 7 |
The Chicago White Sox swept the Red Sox in the American League Division Series. The White Sox went on to win the World Series that year against the Houston Astros. The Red Sox entered the 2005 postseason as a wild card team even though they had the same regular season record as their division rival, the New York Yankees because they lost the regular season head-to-head matchups 10–9.
A crucial moment of the series came in Game 2 when Red Sox second baseman Tony Graffanino made a crucial error that led to the White Sox scoring three unearned runs in the fifth inning. A slow groundball hit to the right side of the infield was able to get past Graffanino and a key double play was not turned. Later in the inning, White Sox second baseman Tadahito Iguchi hit a three-run home run to give the White Sox a one-run lead. Red Sox pitcher David Wells was pitching well in the game until the error. The error is viewed by many fans as having the Red Sox lose Game 2 and eventually the American League Division Series.
Red Sox ace Curt Schilling did not start a game in the American League Division Series after pitching in the last game of the season against the Yankees.

## Awards and honors

* David Ortiz – Silver Slugger Award (DH), AL Player of the Month (September)
* Manny Ramirez – Silver Slugger Award (OF)
* Jason Varitek – Silver Slugger Award (C), Gold Glove Award (C)

### All-Star Game

* Matt Clement, reserve P (roster replacement)
* Johnny Damon, starting CF
* David Ortiz, starting DH
* Manny Ramirez, starting LF
* Jason Varitek, starting C

## Farm system

The Wilmington Blue Rocks replaced the Sarasota Red Sox as the Class A-Advanced affiliate, and the Greenville Bombers replaced the Augusta GreenJackets as the Class A affiliate.
| Level | Team | League | Manager |
| AAA | Pawtucket Red Sox | International League | Ron Johnson |
| AA | Portland Sea Dogs | Eastern League | Todd Claus |
| A-Advanced | Wilmington Blue Rocks | Carolina League | Dann Bilardello |
| A | Greenville Bombers | South Atlantic League | Chad Epperson |
| A-Short Season | Lowell Spinners | New York–Penn League | Luis Alicea |
| Rookie | GCL Red Sox | Gulf Coast League | Ralph Treuel |
| Rookie | DSL Red Sox | Dominican Summer League | Nelson Paulino |
| Rookie | VSL Red Sox (cooperative) | Venezuelan Summer League | Josman Robles |
VSL cooperative was with the San Diego Padres.
Source: