Sox posting highest OPS in playoff history

October 19th, 2021

If it seems that the 2021 Red Sox are tearing up opposing pitching with unusual effectiveness this postseason, your instincts are right on the money.

To be fair, that's been obvious enough to the naked eye. Through Game 3 of the ALCS -- with, at the very least, three games remaining on their schedule -- the Red Sox have already hit 20 postseason home runs.

But there's another historic slant to Boston's incredible offensive output. To this point, the Red Sox have posted a .941 OPS in the postseason, the highest by any playoff team in baseball history (min. five games). It isn't close, either -- the previous record, shared between the World Series-champion 2007 Red Sox and the 1960 Yankees, was .911.

The Red Sox's .567 slugging percentage is also the highest in postseason history (min. five games), ahead of another old Boston team -- the 1999 Red Sox are in second place with a .531 mark.

While there's plenty of time for those numbers to level out, and quite a few pitchers who will try to make that happen, those 30-point leads stand a chance to hold, regardless of when and how Boston's season ultimately comes to a close.