The Boston Red Sox are in a completely different position than they were even one year ago.

At this point last year, there were plenty of people who thought the Red Sox were going to finish in the last place in the American League East again. The Red Sox didn’t and instead were in third place with an 81-81 record.

Boston was in the playoff hunt pretty much all season before the wheels fell off late in the summer. Now, the expectations are understandably much higher. Boston went out and added Garrett Crochet, Walker Buehler, Aroldis Chapman, and Alex Bregman. The Red Sox also reportedly decided to place Kristian Campbell on the big league roster.

Now, the Red Sox aren’t just looking like a playoff team on paper, but potentially the best team in the American League. ESPN’s Buster Olney even said that Boston is “uniquely qualified” to get past the Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series.

“In the end, however, an AL team will have a seven-game series to take down the Dodgers, and we submit that the revamped Boston Red Sox are uniquely qualified to get this done,” Olney said. “The Yankees’ injuries have pulled them back to the pack of teams in their league, and it’s the Red Sox who will take down the AL East and then the AL pennant…

“The Red Sox have an outstanding lineup, headed by Jarren Duran, Rafael Devers and Alex Bregman. And Devers and Bregman have the kind of postseason experience to lead this group through the biggest games of the year.”

The fact that an insider of Olney’s caliber has this much faith Boston should certainly fire Red Sox fans up. It’s clear that perception around the organization has changed.