Four years ago and fresh off his fourth World Series title, billionaire Red Sox owner John Henry decided he was no longer interested in competing at the highest levels of the market for baseball’s best players.

That fateful decision set the Red Sox down a disastrous path. In the years since, the Sox have built two last place baseball teams, chased beloved star players out of town, and eroded the trust of baseball’s best fanbase in the process.

Wednesday night, they finally acted like the Boston Red Sox again.

Rafael Devers’ 11-year, $331 million deal, the largest by far in Sox history, is a pivotal moment for a team that has avoided contracts of this magnitude like the plague. But make no mistake about it: the Red Sox did not simply choose to abandon their fiscally-conscious philosophy on a whim. They were forced into it by you, the fans. You’d had enough of the Red Sox acting like a poverty franchise.

The Red Sox spent liberally in the three years leading up to the 2018 World Series title. Meanwhile, teams like the Tampa Bay Rays were proving that a level of success was possible without the type of spending that directly led the Red Sox to their winningest season in team history. Henry pivoted from the free-spending Dave Dombrowski, firing the Cooperstown-bound general manager and replacing him with Rays trainee Chaim Bloom. Henry converted to Rayism, believing success would be attainable without handing out decade-long megadeals.

That may still be the case, but it hasn’t been the case here.

BOSTON, MA – MAY 29: Catcher Robinson Chirinos #23 of the Baltimore Orioles looks on as Rafael Devers #11 of the Boston Red Sox tosses his bat after his home run during the third inning at Fenway Park on May 29, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

The Red Sox failed spectacularly in their quest to operate more shrewdly and resourcefully than other teams. Their obsession with value became a sickness, fueled by a head of baseball operations who placed more importance on winning contracts and trades than winning baseball games. Value, he thought, would lead to winning.

It did not. And you wouldn’t stand for it any longer.

The Sox traded Mookie Betts, one of the greatest all-around players to ever play in Boston, for a bag of balls and a Macintosh II. They refused to go above the luxury tax threshold in 2021, leaving a team that went to the ALCS short of the talent they needed to win the pennant. They insulted homegrown star Xander Bogaerts with a lowball offer and forced him out of town, despite his desire to stay here (and take less to do so). On top of it all, they finished in last place in 2022.

They did all of this and expected you to stand by them. They thought they could sell you on this new way of doing things – the smarter way, they preached. They believed they would win just enough to keep you coming through the gates.

But they didn’t win at all. And you stopped showing up.

Attendance at Fenway Park hit a 20-year low last season as fans turned away from the Red Sox in disgust. You made a statement far more potent than your tweets, calls, and boos. You hit John Henry in his wallet, forcing him to finally use it again. He should have been using it all along.

The Red Sox would have continued down this unimaginable path if it weren’t for you. They would have let Devers walk next year or traded him. But you wouldn’t allow them to. Thank goodness for you.

BOSTON, MA – SEPTEMBER 3: Rafael Devers #11 of the Boston Red Sox is congratulated in the dugout after scoring a run against the Texas Rangers during the seventh inning at Fenway Park on September 3, 2022 in Boston, Massachusetts. (Photo By Winslow Townson/Getty Images)

Signing Devers is undeniably an excellent moment for the team and the fans, but it doesn’t entirely fix the mistakes of the last few years. Bogaerts and Betts are gone, and they are never coming back. The lineup, even with Devers, remains devoid of power. They have no frontline pitching. The Sox were a last place team in 2022, and it is hard to see how they will be that much better than in 2023. The problems remain.

But for one day, you got your wish, and it was a big one. Rafael Devers is under contract for the next decade. John Henry and Chaim Bloom never wanted to sign Devers to this type of deal, but you demanded it. After years of being beaten down by this team, the fans finally got what they wanted and deserved.

This is your victory, Red Sox fans. Soak it in.

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