Questions surround this team, in part because the division is so hard to predict.
Like the team itself, Boston Red Sox pitcher John Lackey is seeking a fresh start.
Everybody asks me how the Boston Red Sox will do.
It is with the utmost professionalism that I report I have no idea. Neither do you, and frankly, neither do they.
They are confident. John Farrell's hiring was less about baseball acumen than about restoring trust within the organization, and that mission has been accomplished.
Beyond that, it's anybody's guess. Pretending otherwise, as practiced by many media sources who live in a know-it-all age, is entertaining but dishonest.
I spent 27 days at Fort Myers, Fla., easily a personal record. I watched players numbered from 2 (Jacoby Ellsbury) to 95 (Brandon Workman).
I saw a game in Jupiter. I saw a pitcher, Alfredo Aceves, who sometimes acts like that's where he is from.
We all saw Jackie Bradley Jr. Often, his glow blinded us to see nothing else.
I am fascinated by this team, because the unknown is what makes sports so much fun. I am also stumped.
My inability to peg their chances caused me such guilt that I ditched my plan to put the city's best steak houses on my expense account, and did Wendy's and Arby's instead.
I would have done Popeye's, but that page is turned.
These Red Sox are the New Sox. For the true fan, it is refreshing and promising, and whatever 2013 brings, I am convinced 2014 will be even better.
It is also a venture into the unknown. The starting pitching looks tremendous, and there is every reason to believe Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz will be their old selves again.
Ryan Dempster was portrayed in offseason negotiation as an ace, which he is not. He is a very solid No. 3 starter, which is all he has to be, and to my own surprise, I am buying into the brand known as New Lackey as well.
The bullpen is deep. The lineup is filled with questions, starting with injuries at shortstop and DH.
Beyond those, my biggest questions involve Shane Victorino, whose performance has been sliding for a couple of years. Victorino hit poorly in spring training, but he's only 32 and he's not worried, so we'll see.
Mike Napoli looks like a great pickup as long as his hip holds out. Jonny Gomes will provide power and a few laughs if nothing else.
The catching will probably be good enough. Will Middlebrooks is the real deal, I hope Jacoby Ellsbury is around all year, and Jose Iglesias looks like he might be figuring out this hitting thing.
There is always Dustin Pedroia, the human security blanket for Red Sox fans. But without David Ortiz, this lineup still has a gaping hole in the middle that's hard to ignore.
If pitching is really 70 to 80 percent of the game, these guys might be OK. Predicting the Red Sox is especially difficult, though, because their division is as baffling as they are.
Everybody is burying the New York Yankees, what with all their age and injuries. These being the Yankees, I will wait before declaring that a team which won 95 games last year is cooked.
Everybody is burying the Baltimore Orioles, who whose 29-9 record in one-run games last year (and 16-2 in extra innings) has been summarily dismissed as luck. As Red Sox television color analyst Jerry Remy pointed out, there is no luck involved with a fearsome back end of the bullpen, which is how they won most of those games.
Buck Showalter is worth a few wins. The O's were 24 games ahead of Boston last year, and that's a lot to make up.
I am not conceding the division to Toronto until I see some proof. The 2013 Blue Jays are clones of the 2012 Miami Marlins, who loaded up in the offseason and fell flat on their faces once play began.
I'm picking Tampa Bay to win the AL East. So what if they don't hit?
In 1967, Dick Williams predicted his team, which had lost 90 games under another manager the previous year, would win more games than it lost. It won 92 games and the American League pennant.
I predict the 2013 Red Sox will win more than the 2012 team did. But that team won only 69, so it would not take much.
They will be better and much more likeable. Beyond that, I make no promises, but am I am eager for this season.
I like to read a mystery novel without knowing the ending. If you feel the same way, this will be a team worth watching, however its plot unfolds.