NEW YORK - You never forget the first time you overreacted to an Opening Day loss.
For me, it was April 5, 1988 when Alan Trammell launched a two-run, 10th-inning home run off the pitcher who was supposed to solve all the Red Sox' problems, closer Lee Smith. Five days into April, all hope was lost.
Or maybe you were stung by that opener in St. Petersburg, Fla. four years ago, when Alex Cora's bullpen maneuvering - particularly the choice to use Joe Kelly in the eighth inning - turned a 4-0 lead into a 6-4 loss to the Rays.
The Red Sox had picked a first-year manager who couldn't keep up! That was the narrative for the next 20-or-so hours.
And now we have the latest test - the Red Sox' season-opening, 6-5, 11-inning loss to the Yankees. The '161-1' and '0-162' jokes are flying once again.
In reality the true test when it comes to Opening Day is weeding out who truly understands how a baseball season works and who is committed to six months of overreaction. Let's try and lump ourselves in with the former.
Truth be told, sometimes the opener can actually serve as a hint of a tone-setter. In 2013, that was the case when the gritty, gutty Red Sox officially set out on their mission to show Major League Baseball they had the right stuff with an impressive win in the Bronx. Conversely, the loss in Seattle three years ago should have served as a warning that there was a post-World Series-winning hangover brewing.
So, what should we make of this one?
Perhaps simply that these Red Sox will be good enough to compete, but still a work in progress, just the same.
Most of the anchors - such as Nathan Eovaldi, Garrett Whitlock, Rafael Devers, Xander Bogaerts, Alex Verdugo and J.D. Martinez - did more to help the Red Sox win than they did in contributing to the end result. That's a good, and important, place to start.
There were other glimmers of encouragement, with Matt Strahm showing late-inning stuff and resolve in getting out of the eighth inning. Veteran relievers Ryan Brasier and Hansel Robles also showed big-moment gumption.
The warning signs? Jake Diekman hasn't looked like a late-inning reliever since arriving in Fort Myers, and continued that vibe in getting just one out in the 10th inning. And the bobbing and weaving Cora already has had to do with his bullpen without the presence of built-in, no-doubt-about-it game-enders remains unnerving. (Note: Matt Barnes was unavailable due to a tight back.)
But can anyone really jump all over Trevor Story's 0-for-5 Game 1 when we are still shaking off the embarrassment of jumping on the Grady Sizemore bandwagon following his Opening Day homer in 2015. By the way, Story has gone hitless in at least five at-bats 25 times in his career, including once last year.
The legitimate takeaway: They need to stay healthy at key positions. Witnessing Xander Bogaerts limp off the field in the 10th inning with a bad hamstring, and subsequently watching Jonathan Arauz take his place, was a big dose of reality. (Another note: Bogaerts believed he had a chance to return to the lineup Saturday.)
So that's what you have after one game with the last-place Red Sox. But sleep easy ... they are just one game out of first-place.
"Like I said yesterday, it’s going to be a grind from Day 1," Cora said. "They have a good team, we have a good team, there are some good teams in the division and from the first pitch all the way to the last one, there’s a lot of stuff going on. We made pitches, made plays, good at-bats. It was a good baseball game."
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