5 days in 2016 that set Red Sox on their path

One of the unmistakable traits of a championship season is the signature moments and events that take place along the way. With the Red Sox showing peak form late in the season to secure their first American League East title and postseason berth since 2013, the most significant developments all took place after the All-Star break.

Here is a look back at what got this team to the point of being back on the big stage in October.

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July 31: Pedroia hits Street The Red Sox had lost seven of their past nine with the Aug. 1 non-waiver Trade Deadline looming. At that point, they were lacking the ability to come back late in games. This all changed on a Sunday afternoon in Anaheim. Down two runs with two outs in the ninth against tough Angels closer Huston Street, Dustin Pedroia unloaded for a three-run shot over the wall in left, which set off a wave of emotion in Boston’s dugout. Xander Bogaerts made it back-to-back homers with a towering shot to center. The Red Sox had one of their biggest wins of the season by a score of 5-3.

Aug. 2: There’s a new kid in town Red Sox president of baseball operations Dave Dombrowski pushed hard to get a left-handed hitter to play left field prior to the Trade Deadline, most notably Carlos Beltran. But when Beltran wound up in Texas, Dombrowski went to the farm and called up highly touted prospect Andrew Benintendi, who had been drafted out of the University of Arkansas just 14 months earlier. The 22-year-old rocketed …

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