Baseball is back.

Thursday marks Opening Day for the Boston Red Sox as they kick off the 2025 season. After a couple of disappointing years, the Red Sox made some major improvements and head into the season with a wave of excitement.

Here’s what to know for opening day:

When is opening day? When is the first game at Fenway Park?

The Red Sox will play their first game Thursday, May 27 at 4:05 p.m. EDT against the Texas Rangers in Arlington, Texas. The first home game is Friday, April 4 at 2:10 p.m. against the St. Louis Cardinals.

How are the Red Sox supposed to be this year?

The 2025 Red Sox are really good — on paper.

Boston has had a couple of down years, with fans criticizing the team for failing to spend money on top-end talent. That changed this offseason with some exciting acquisitions.

Longtime MLB analyst Keith Law projected the Red Sox to win 91 games, tops in the AL.

Need to catch up? Here are 5 stories that will get you up to speed on the state of the 2025 Red Sox.

1. 2025 MLB predictions: Who will win World Series? Will Red Sox make playoffs, win big awards?

2. With Kristian Campbell on team, how does Boston Red Sox 26-man roster look?

3. Boston Red Sox CEO weighs in on Rafael Devers controversy: ‘He’s put winning above all else’

4. The latest on the DH drama with Rafael Dever

5. MassLive’s Top 25 Boston Red Sox Prospect Rankings

Who are the important players on the roster?

Here’s a rundown of the Red Sox 2025 roster as I would explain it to someone who hasn’t paid attention since last year.

First baseman Triston Casas: A colorful character, Casas is a young player who the team is waiting on to make a big leap.

Second baseman Kristian Campbell (New Player): The star rookie, one of the top prospects in baseball. The Red Sox made a bold decision by keeping him on the Opening Day roster. Expect a lot of excitement and hype around his rookie season this year.

Shortstop Trevor Story: Signed a huge contract in free agency a couple of years ago, but has struggled with injuries. He’s under pressure to bounce back in 2025.

Third baseman Alex Bregman (New Player): One of this year’s big free agent signings. He was once a playoff rival on the Astros. Now he’s a clubhouse leader in Boston.

Left fielder Jarren Duran: He was Boston’s top breakout star last year, making his first All-Star team. He’s a great fielder, hits for average and can steal bases.

Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela: Just 24, Rafaela is an exciting young defensive talent who played all over the field last year. He’s expected to hold down center field this year.

Right fielder Wilyer Abreu: An exciting player who came out of nowhere to be one of the top rookies in all of baseball last year. He won a Gold Glove as a right fielder in 2024.

Designated Hitter Rafael Devers: He’s the team’s franchise slugger. Previously, he was the third baseman. However, Bregman has that spot now. There was some drama about him not wanting to leave third base. That’s a storyline to watch this year.

Catcher Connor Wong: The 28-year-old is in his third season as Boston’s primary catcher. He was much improved as a hitter last year.

Other players of note: OF/DH Masataka Yoshida, infielder David Hamilton, infielder Romy Gonzalez

Who are the starters, and other pitchers?

Starting pitcher Garrett Crochet (New Player): The team’s ace and Opening Day starter. An exciting young left, the Red Sox got him in a big trade with the White Sox. He’s expected to be the new ace.

Starting pitcher Walker Buehler (New Player) — A two-time All-Star and World Series champ with the Dodgers, Buehler had Tommy John surgery in 2022 and the team hopes he’ll be back in peak form.

Starting pitcher Tanner Houck: A homegrown talent, Houck had a breakout season last year, making his first All-Star team. However, he’s had a rocky spring training.

Starting pitcher Brayan Bello: A long, talented pitcher who’s working his way back from injury.

Starting pitcher Lucas Giolito (New-ish player): Signed as a free agent in 2024, but missed the whole season due to injury. He’s still working his way back.

Relief pitcher Aroldis Chapman (New Player) — The 37-year-old is one of baseball’s premier fireballers. The Red Sox drew criticism for signing Chapman because of his history of domestic violence allegations. He’s famous for consistently throwing over 100 MPH. He was officially named the team’s closer earlier this week.

Other pitchers of note: SP Kutter Crawford, RP Liam Hendriks, RP Garrett Whitlock

Who is the manager?

Alex Cora returns for his seventh season as the manager of the Red Sox. There was some speculation last year that he could love. However, that all vanished when Boston signed him to a three-year contract extension that runs through 2027.

Wait, where is (Insert player)?

The following players did not return to the Red Sox in 2025: OF Tyler O’Neill, infielder Baobby Dalbec, 1B Dominic Smith, pitcher Chris Martin, starting pitcher Nick Pivetta and closer Kenley Jansen,

Where to watch the games, and who’s calling them?

NESN returns as the primary carrier of Red Sox games this year. You can watch games via your local TV provider (or streaming apps like fuboTV, DirecTV Stream or Sling).

NESN also has a standalone app to watch games: NESN 360.

Dave O’Brien returns as the play-by-play broadcaster for games on NESN. Lou Merloni is set to be the primary color analyst. Will Middlebrooks and Kevin Millar are also set to call games. Kevin Youkilis will not return to the booth, as his contract expired last year.

Per usual, 93.7 WEEI in Boston will carry the radio broadcast. You can find affiliate radio stations here.

Legendary radio broadcaster Joe Castiglione retired from the booth last year. Will Flemming is not the primary radio voice of the Red Sox.

Who does MassLive have covering the Red Sox?

Beat writers Chris Cotillo and Christopher Smith are back for another season along with columnist Sean McAdam. We’ll be at all the home games and most of the road games.

You can follow all of our reporters on social media: Chris Cotillo on X | Christopher Smith on X | Sean McAdam on X.

But if you want the best access, make sure to sign up for a MassLive subscription to check out our exclusive Fenway Insider coverage.

• BETTING: Check out our MA sports betting guide, where you can learn basic terminology, definitions and how to read odds for those interested in learning how to bet in Massachusetts.