The season to believe

Pedey, Sox ignore underdog talk

HOUSTON — There is nothing on paper to suggest the Red Sox should win this Division Series. Not a single thing. The Astros have a better offense, two elite starting pitchers, a strikeout-heavy bullpen and home-field advantage.

RED SOX BEAT Chad Jennings

Even with Chris Sale, even with Craig Kimbrel, even with Mookie Betts heating up and Eduardo Nunez getting healthy, the Red Sox cannot be considered the favorites in this best-of-five set.

So they must embrace the persona of the bearded second baseman who’s never had time for expectations or cared what’s written down on paper.

“I don’t think any of us think it matters,” Dustin Pedroia said. “It doesn’t matter where we play, you’re just going and competing. So I don’t think anybody picks up a newspaper and says, ‘Oh, we’re the underdogs,’ or, ‘We’re the favorites.’ We’re just trying to do the best we can to win games and continue playing.”

There’s so much to be said for missing David Ortiz this time of year — the Sox could use his bat — but it’s not Big Papi’s personality they need in this series.

They don’t need the bravado to suggest the numbers are wrong. They need the confidence to say the numbers don’t matter.

That attitude will define this group of Red Sox if they make a real run toward the World Series. They’re not Idiots, with a capitalI. They’re not in Texas to Cowboy Up. I’m honestly not sure Rafael Devers can grow a beard.

The most notorious personality quirk in this clubhouse might be David Price’s battle with the media.

It’s a team of defiance. The Sox have a skinny kid from Tennessee playing right field. Their Game1 starter is a gangly guy who’s never been to the playoffs. Their second baseman is 5-foot-9, and his 34-year-old knees have seen better days. So what?

“The playoffs, it’s about anything you can do to help the team win,” Pedroia said. “It doesn’t matter what it is. If you ... have a 15-pitch atbat and you strike out, you’re 0-for-1 in the box score, but that at-bat is crucial to helping your team win. And that’s what it’s about.”

This October could be Pedroia at his defiant best. He had offseason knee surgery, came out of the gate hitting .303 with a .382 onbase percentage by the AllStar break, and he’s spent much of the second half just trying to get healthy.

All the while, he’s downplayed the severity of his injury at every opportunity. He even shrugged it off yesterday, making it clear he’s ready to play and make a difference, with no excuses.

You think his teammates haven’t noticed?

“You think about the Boston Red Sox, he’s probably the first name you think of,” Sale said. “He’s, by definition, a grinder. We all know this year and how it’s played out and the things he’s had to go through, and it’s admirable. He’s as tough as they get, and to be able to have him in my corner is huge.”

You think Pedroia’s opponents haven’t noticed?

“He never takes it for granted,” Astros second baseman Jose Altuve said. “He dives, he slides, he does everything the right way . ... When I was in the minor leagues, he was one of my favorite players. To play the same position (as) Dustin Pedroia — former MVP, World Series, everything he has accomplished — I feel really proud to ... play in the game with him.”

The Astros are not going to make this easy. In fact, they’re going to make it incredibly difficult. All signs point to Astros vs. Indians in the ALCS.

But who’s reading signs this time of year? The Red Sox don’t have to embrace the underdog role. They can ignore it altogether.

“There’s a voice in our clubhouse that speaks from experience,” manager John Farrell said. “And I think a number of guys will look to (Pedroia) for that as well. So we come off a year last year where some of our young guys have experienced it just for the three games, and yet Pedey, who is back in the middle of the diamond, gives us some stability.”

And what does stability look like in the postseason?

“You just have to find a way to be one run better than the other team,” Pedroia said.

It’s not flashy. It doesn’t come with a slick catchphrase. It doesn’t make for a particularly good t-shirt.

But it’s the one way this Red Sox team can beat the odds and beat the Astros.