# List of Boston Red Sox Opening Day starting pitchers

The Boston Red Sox are a Major League Baseball (MLB) franchise based in Boston, Massachusetts. They have played in the American League since it was founded in 1901, and the American League East since divisions were introduced in 1969. The first game of each baseball season for a team is known as Opening Day, for which being named the starting pitcher is an honor. That honor is often given to the player who is expected to lead the pitching staff that season, although there are various strategic reasons why a team's best pitcher might not start on Opening Day.

## Records

Including the team's first 2024 game, the team has had 124 Opening Days. In those Opening Day games:
* The team has used 66 different starting pitchers.
** Roger Clemens holds the team record for most starts with eight. Other pitchers with four or more starts are Pedro Martínez (7), Cy Young (6), Dennis Eckersley (5), Jon Lester (4), Bill Monbouquette (4), and Mel Parnell (4).
* The team has a win–loss record of 60–63–1, which is a winning percentage of .488.
** The one tie occurred in 1910; playing against the New York Highlanders at Hilltop Park in New York City, the game was declared a tie after 14 innings on account of darkness. The first MLB night game did not occur until 1935.
* Starting pitchers have compiled a win–loss record of 49–45, with 30 no decisions.
** The most wins is three, by Roger Clemens, Wes Ferrell, Pedro Martínez, Babe Ruth, and Cy Young. The most losses is three, by Howard Ehmke and Cy Young. The most no decisions is three, by Clemens and Martínez.

### Results by decade

| Decade | Team W–L–T | Pitchers' W–L (ND) | New starters† |
| 1900s‡ | 4–5 | 4–5 | 4 (Kellum, Young, Winter, Arellanes) |
| 1910s | 5–4–1 | 5–4 (1) | 6 (Cicotte, Wood, Collins, Shore, Ruth, Mays) |
| 1920s | 3–7 | 3–6 (1) | 8 (Russell, Jones, Quinn, Ehmke, Ferguson, Harriss, Harriss, Ruffing) |
| 1930s | 5–5 | 4–4 (2) | 6 (Moore, Andrews, Rhodes, Ferrell, Bagby, Grove) |
| 1940s | 6–4 | 4–4 (2) | 6 (Wilson, Newsome, Hughson, Terry, Cecil, Dobson) |
| 1950s | 5–5 | 4–4 (2) | 4 (Parnell, Wight, Sullivan, Brewer) |
| 1960s | 5–5 | 3–4 (3) | 6 (Sturdivant, Monbouquette, Schwall, Wilson, Lonborg, Ellsworth) |
| 1970s | 6–4 | 5–2 (3) | 7 (Peters, Culp, Pattin, Tiant, Jenkins, Torrez, Eckersley) |
| 1980s | 2–8 | 2–3 (5) | 4 (Hurst, Boyd, Stanley, Clemens) |
| 1990s | 8–2 | 6–2 (2) | 3 (Sele, Gordon, Martinez) |
| 2000s | 4–6 | 3–3 (4) | 4 (Wells, Schilling, Matsuzaka, Beckett) |
| 2010s | 5–5 | 4–2 (4) | 5 (Lester, Buchholz, Price, Porcello, Sale) |
| 2020s | 2–3 | 2–2 (1) | 3 (Eovaldi, Kluber, Bello) |
| TOTALS | 60–63–1 | 49–45 (30) | 66 |
‡ 1900s spans nine seasons, as 1901 was the team's first season. † Number of pitchers making their first Opening Day start for the Red Sox franchise, along with their surnames. Pitchers' full names appear in the below List.

## Pitchers
### Key

| Season | Each year is linked to an article about that particular Red Sox season. |
| W | Win |
| L | Loss |
| T | Tie |
| ND (X) | No decision by starting pitcher; (X) indicates game outcome for Red Sox |
| Pitcher (#) | Number of Opening Day starts for the Red Sox, if more than one |
| * | Team advanced to the post-season |
| ** | American League (AL) Champions |
| *** | World Series Champions |

### List

| Season | Pitcher | W/L | Opponent | Location |
| 1901 | Win Kellum | L | Baltimore Orioles | Oriole Park |
| 1902 | Cy Young | W | Baltimore Orioles | Huntington Avenue Grounds |
| 1903*** | George Winter | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Huntington Avenue Grounds |
| 1904** | Cy Young (2) | L | New York Highlanders | Hilltop Park |
| 1905 | Cy Young (3) | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Columbia Park |
| 1906 | Cy Young (4) | L | New York Highlanders | Hilltop Park |
| 1907 | Cy Young (5) | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Columbia Park |
| 1908 | Cy Young (6) | W | Washington Senators | Huntington Avenue Grounds |
| 1909 | Frank Arellanes | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1910 | Eddie Cicotte | ND (T) | New York Highlanders | Hilltop Park |
| 1911 | Joe Wood | L | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1912*** | Joe Wood (2) | W | New York Highlanders | Hilltop Park |
| 1913 | Joe Wood (3) | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1914 | Ray Collins | L | Washington Senators | Fenway Park |
| 1915*** | Ernie Shore | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1916*** | Babe Ruth | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1917 | Babe Ruth (2) | W | New York Yankees | Polo Grounds |
| 1918*** | Babe Ruth (3) | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1919 | Carl Mays | W | New York Yankees | Polo Grounds |
| 1920 | Allen Russell | W | Washington Senators | Fenway Park |
| 1921 | Sam Jones | W | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1922 | Jack Quinn | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1923 | Howard Ehmke | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1924 | Howard Ehmke (2) | L | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1925 | Alex Ferguson | ND (L) | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1926 | Howard Ehmke (3) | L | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1927 | Slim Harriss | L | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1928 | Danny MacFayden | W | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1929 | Red Ruffing | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1930 | Danny MacFayden (2) | ND (W) | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1931 | Wilcy Moore | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1932 | Danny MacFayden (3) | L | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1933 | Ivy Andrews | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1934 | Gordon Rhodes | ND (L) | Washington Senators | Fenway Park |
| 1935 | Wes Ferrell | W | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1936 | Wes Ferrell (2) | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1937 | Wes Ferrell (3) | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1938 | Jim Bagby | W | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1939 | Lefty Grove | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1940 | Lefty Grove (2) | W | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1941 | Jack Wilson | ND (W) | Washington Senators | Fenway Park |
| 1942 | Dick Newsome | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1943 | Tex Hughson | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1944 | Yank Terry | L | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1945 | Rex Cecil | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1946** | Tex Hughson (2) | W | Washington Senators | Griffith Park |
| 1947 | Tex Hughson (3) | ND (W) | Washington Senators | Fenway Park |
| 1948 | Joe Dobson | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1949 | Joe Dobson (2) | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1950 | Mel Parnell | ND (L) | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1951 | Bill Wight | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1952 | Mel Parnell (2) | W | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1953 | Mel Parnell (3) | ND (W) | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1954 | Mel Parnell (4) | L | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1955 | Frank Sullivan | W | Philadelphia Athletics | Shibe Park |
| 1956 | Frank Sullivan (2) | W | Baltimore Orioles | Fenway Park |
| 1957 | Tom Brewer | W | Baltimore Orioles | Memorial Stadium |
| 1958 | Frank Sullivan (3) | L | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1959 | Tom Brewer (2) | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1960 | Tom Sturdivant | L | Washington Senators | Griffith Stadium |
| 1961 | Bill Monbouquette | L | Kansas City Athletics | Fenway Park |
| 1962 | Don Schwall | L | Cleveland Indians | Fenway Park |
| 1963 | Bill Monbouquette (2) | L | Los Angeles Angels | Chavez Ravine |
| 1964 | Bill Monbouquette (3) | ND (W) | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1965 | Bill Monbouquette (4) | W | Washington Senators | Robert F. Kennedy Memorial Stadium |
| 1966 | Earl Wilson | ND (L) | Baltimore Orioles | Fenway Park |
| 1967** | Jim Lonborg | W | Chicago White Sox | Fenway Park |
| 1968 | Dick Ellsworth | W | Detroit Tigers | Tiger Stadium |
| 1969 | Jim Lonborg (2) | ND (W) | Baltimore Orioles | Memorial Stadium |
| 1970 | Gary Peters | W | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1971 | Ray Culp | W | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1972 | Marty Pattin | L | Detroit Tigers | Tiger Stadium |
| 1973 | Luis Tiant | W | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1974 | Luis Tiant (2) | ND (W) | Milwaukee Brewers | County Stadium |
| 1975** | Luis Tiant (3) | W | Milwaukee Brewers | Fenway Park |
| 1976 | Ferguson Jenkins | L | Baltimore Orioles | Memorial Stadium |
| 1977 | Ferguson Jenkins (2) | ND (L) | Cleveland Indians | Fenway Park |
| 1978 | Mike Torrez | ND (L) | Chicago White Sox | Comiskey Park |
| 1979 | Dennis Eckersley | W | Cleveland Indians | Fenway Park |
| 1980 | Dennis Eckersley (2) | ND (L) | Milwaukee Brewers | County Stadium |
| 1981 | Dennis Eckersley (3) | ND (L) | Chicago White Sox | Fenway Park |
| 1982 | Dennis Eckersley (4) | W | Baltimore Orioles | Memorial Stadium |
| 1983 | Dennis Eckersley (5) | L | Toronto Blue Jays | Fenway Park |
| 1984 | Bruce Hurst | L | California Angels | Angel Stadium of Anaheim |
| 1985 | Oil Can Boyd | W | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 1986** | Bruce Hurst (2) | ND (L) | Detroit Tigers | Tiger Stadium |
| 1987 | Bob Stanley | L | Milwaukee Brewers | County Stadium |
| 1988* | Roger Clemens | ND (L) | Detroit Tigers | Fenway Park |
| 1989 | Roger Clemens (2) | ND (L) | Baltimore Orioles | Memorial Stadium |
| 1990* | Roger Clemens (3) | W | Detroit Tigers | Fenway Park |
| 1991 | Roger Clemens (4) | W | Toronto Blue Jays | SkyDome |
| 1992 | Roger Clemens (5) | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 1993 | Roger Clemens (6) | W | Kansas City Royals | Kauffman Stadium |
| 1994 | Roger Clemens (7) | ND (W) | Detroit Tigers | Fenway Park |
| 1995* | Aaron Sele | W | Minnesota Twins | Fenway Park |
| 1996 | Roger Clemens (8) | L | Texas Rangers | Rangers Ballpark in Arlington |
| 1997 | Tom Gordon | ND (W) | Anaheim Angels | Angel Stadium of Anaheim |
| 1998* | Pedro Martinez | W | Oakland Athletics | Network Associates Coliseum |
| 1999* | Pedro Martinez (2) | W | Kansas City Royals | Kauffman Stadium |
| 2000 | Pedro Martinez (3) | W | Seattle Mariners | Safeco Field |
| 2001 | Pedro Martinez (4) | ND (L) | Baltimore Orioles | Oriole Park at Camden Yards |
| 2002 | Pedro Martinez (5) | ND (L) | Toronto Blue Jays | Fenway Park |
| 2003* | Pedro Martinez (6) | ND (L) | Tampa Bay Devil Rays | Tropicana Field |
| 2004*** | Pedro Martinez (7) | L | Baltimore Orioles | Oriole Park at Camden Yards |
| 2005* | David Wells | L | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 2006 | Curt Schilling | W | Texas Rangers | Rangers Ballpark in Arlington |
| 2007*** | Curt Schilling (2) | L | Kansas City Royals | Kauffman Stadium |
| 2008* | Daisuke Matsuzaka | ND (W) | Oakland Athletics | Tokyo Dome |
| 2009* | Josh Beckett | W | Tampa Bay Rays | Fenway Park |
| 2010 | Josh Beckett (2) | ND (W) | New York Yankees | Fenway Park |
| 2011 | Jon Lester | ND (L) | Texas Rangers | Rangers Ballpark in Arlington |
| 2012 | Jon Lester (2) | ND (L) | Detroit Tigers | Comerica Park |
| 2013*** | Jon Lester (3) | W | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 2014 | Jon Lester (4) | L | Baltimore Orioles | Oriole Park at Camden Yards |
| 2015 | Clay Buchholz | W | Philadelphia Phillies | Citizens Bank Park |
| 2016* | David Price | W | Cleveland Indians | Progressive Field |
| 2017* | Rick Porcello | W | Pittsburgh Pirates | Fenway Park |
| 2018*** | Chris Sale | ND (L) | Tampa Bay Rays | Tropicana Field |
| 2019 | Chris Sale (2) | L | Seattle Mariners | T-Mobile Park |
| 2020 | Nathan Eovaldi | W | Baltimore Orioles | Fenway Park |
| 2021* | Nathan Eovaldi (2) | L | Baltimore Orioles | Fenway Park |
| 2022 | Nathan Eovaldi (3) | ND (L) | New York Yankees | Yankee Stadium |
| 2023 | Corey Kluber | L | Baltimore Orioles | Fenway Park |
| 2024 | Brayan Bello | W | Seattle Mariners | T-Mobile Park |
| 2025 | Garrett Crochet | | Texas Rangers | Globe Life Field |