Enough about the Red Sox’ pitching.

Let’s talk about their defense.

This is, after all, the beginning of the post-David Ortiz era, an epoch in which the Red Sox realize they cannot yet replace Ortiz’ thunder at the plate. Instead, they have opted to make up the difference in run production lost with run prevention gained.

Pitching is the favored child of the run prevention equation, the field general when it comes to spearheading the battle against opponents. But they cannot do it alone. What happens after batters make contact or reach base is just as important as the overall goal.

The Red Sox’ defense actually stands up quite well when placed under the spotlight. It should be better than last year, when it ranked among the top three in the American League. Only the infield glovework of shortstop Xander Bogaerts and first baseman Hanley Ramirez were noticeable drags on the overall defense.

Measurements of team and individual defenses continue to improve, so fair warning: If you still roll your eyes when “Ultimate Zone Rating” ” and “Defensive Runs Saved” get brought up and if you think fielding percentage and Gold Gloves are good enough, get out now.

According to FanGraphs’ UZR and DRS, the Red Sox overall defense ranked No. 4 and No. 2 in the league in those respective categories last season, among the AL elite with the Royals, Angels, Indians and Astros. The world champion Cubs were the clear MLB leaders by both standards last year.

So, why will the Red Sox’ defense be better this year? Let’s look at their defense, position by position, ranked unscientifically from strongest to weakest, to see why it’s not only good but also why it should improve:

• 1. Second base, Dustin Pedroia — No need to dwell too long on the obvious. Pedroia had one of his best defensive seasons last year. Ranked No. 1 or tied for first among second basemen in the league in both UZR and DRS, Pedroia stood out among his peers and was the anchor to an infield defense that needed everything he gave.

• 2. Right field, Mookie Betts — It’s possible that we still underrate how good Betts is, and it’s his defense where we likely fall short. Last year was the converted infielder’s first full season as the team’s right fielder (while 2015 was his first full year as an outfielder), and he zoomed to the top at his position in the league. His Gold Glove Award validated what the advanced metrics showed. According to DRS, Betts (a rating of 32) was the best defensive player at any position in both leagues, and by a huge margin over the next closest defender, Adam Eaton (22), now with the White Sox. By UZR, Betts was a little more mortal, ranking No. 5 overall. The point is, he’s outstanding in right field.

• 3. Center field, Jackie Bradley Jr. — Last year, Bradley slipped a bit based on the defensive stats, but it’s safe to say that he remains an elite center fielder. There is a good debate to be had about who’s the best center fielder in the league — Kevin Kiermaier of the Rays and Kevin Pillar of the Blue Jays are the other contenders — but at least Red Sox fans have the pleasure of watching the three center fielders go at it nearly all season long within the AL East.

• 4. Catcher, Christian Vazquez and Sandy Leon — Last year, the Red Sox’ catching unit ranked tied with the Royals for No. 3 in the majors, a nod to Leon and Vazquez’ caught-stealing success rate, framing and catching skillset. One more year removed from his Tommy John surgery, Vazquez’ cannon of an arm already looks stronger and more accurate than last year. He should be even better, which will boost the team’s strong standing at this critical position. Catching is most definitely a position at which the Sox can afford to slough off the weaknesses in the offense of Vazquez and Leon.

• 5. First baseman, Mitch Moreland — Ramirez redeemed himself in almost every way last season, especially at first base, where he proved to be far more capable and respectable than his disastrous tryout in left field in 2015. But let’s not give him too much credit. The Sox’ defense at first base placed them near the bottom of the league (11th via UZR, 14th by DRS). Ramirez produced negative UZR and DRS numbers. They weren’t embarrassing or that far off from replacement level, but they weren’t in the black, either. That’s where Moreland comes in. The No. 1 first baseman in the league by DRS, and No. 2 by UZR in the AL last year with Texas, Moreland won a deserved Gold Glove and stands as the primary reason the Red Sox defense is going to take another step forward this season. His bat may play well in Fenway Park, it may not, but his defense makes him the poster boy for all that’s good about the team’s renewed emphasis on run prevention.

• 6. Left fielder, Andrew Benintendi — This ranking could be a bit high for Benintendi, who displayed misreads on both his throws and his routes to the ball last year but I’m betting big that he’s the type who seldom makes the same mistake twice. He came up as a center fielder, so he still has to adjust to the different read on line drives and fly balls. I don’t think it will take him long to make those adjustments. I’m probably unduly influenced by witnessing that remarkable catch he made at Tropicana Field in August, when he flipped over the left-field wall, but I’ll wear that fanboy tag enthusiastically in this case.

• 7. Shortstop, Xander Bogaerts — I confess to being pretty surprised at how poorly Bogaerts ranked among his peers last year. In the AL, he placed dead last in DRS, and posted only the eighth-best UZR for shortstops. He had negative numbers for each statistic. Not good. In his brief career, he has never been ranked among the best defensively and he does not grade out to be one of the best. His play at this critical position deserves considerable scrutiny this year and in the coming years. Clearly, he’s got room to improve.

• 8. Third base, Pablo Sandoval — If Sandoval can carry into the season the quick feet and hands he’s been displaying this spring, there’s going to be a lot of airwaves and bandwidth expended marveling over how good he is at the hot corner. He’ll be almost unrecognizable when compared to how he played the position his first two seasons (as if last year even counted, which it didn’t) but let’s not get carried away. He was never that good in San Francisco — in six seasons with the Giants, he had just one good season defensively, while the others were below average to poor — and he’s 30 years old now. He’s never looked this good with the Red Sox, but he’s also never been that good of a defender in his career.

A left-handed compliment

Ever wonder why manager John Farrell says a tall, gangly left-hander such as Henry Owens needs more time to blossom than other pitchers? I did. Why don’t right-handers get the same leeway? Is there something anatomically different about left-handers?

The answer is all about supply and demand.

“It’s not left- or right-handed specific,” Farrell said. “The old adage is, ‘If you’re left-handed and have a heartbeat, you’ve still got a chance.’ It’s the scarcity of it, which leads to guys finding it later in their career.

“There are fewer left-handed pitchers, so they get more opportunity and a longer opportunity. The right-handers are probably already released, because there are more coming. Lefties get a longer leash. And everyone always says, ‘if he ever finds it, it’s a lefty you’ve never had.’ ”

“If they’re healthy and they have stuff, they’re going to keep getting opportunities.”

Exceptions for the elite

Another source of wonder: Do the Red Sox place new, elite starters such as David Price last year and Chris Sale this year on the same rigorous shoulder program that newbies such as Joe Kelly, Rick Porcello and Tyler Thornburg were required to follow through a long adjustment period.

The short answer is no, and for good reason.

Said Farrell: “Here’s where someone came in with a track record of performance like Sale or Price has. There was a balance there, so we say, ‘Let’s preserve what he’s done.’ ”

That still involves meeting in the middle between what worked for the pitcher in the past with how it’s done on his new team.

“You don’t want to disrupt their personal routine,” Farrell said. “You look at players physically, mentally and fundamentally and you have to find the right blend. And then it maybe becomes a little bit more of an education process to incorporate things more. The end goal is the same — keeping guys strong and on the field as much as possible.”

Besides routine, each new pitcher, no matter how established, also brings with him a personality, sometimes a strong one. It can be tricky at times to find the right balance between the old ways and the new way.

“That’s why their inclusion in the process is key,” Farrell said. “You can’t just blanket everyone and say, ‘Hey, this works for everyone here.’ You’re working with the personality of the individual pitcher.”

Moreland easing way in

Moreland is happy with how smooth his transition to the Red Sox is going. A member of the Texas Rangers organization since his draft year of 2007, Moreland is spending his first spring training in Florida after training in Arizona with the Rangers.

A native of Mississippi, Moreland has found the locale switch and humidity boost easy to take.

“Oh, yeah, this is great,” he said. “This feels like home to me.”

The new organization does not feel that much different.

“They’re pretty similar in a lot of ways — real loose, everything’s fun, you get your work in but at the same time you’re focused on that work,” Moreland said. “The whole staff, the group of guys has been great, accepting me really quick. It’s been a fun camp so far and I feel like I’ve adjusted pretty easily.”

Moreland plans to keep his left-handed swing the same, even though he moves from the short right-field porch of the Rangers’ Globe Life Park to an opposite situation at Fenway.

“We haven’t really changed anything, just try to stay on top of it and fine-tune some stuff and believe in what we’re doing,” said Moreland.

Moreland will not be more tempted to hit the ball to the opposite field and try to aim for the Green Monster, although he said, “I think it will help as far as just being comfortable going that way and sticking with that middle and other-way approach. I’ll try to stay with my approach, keep it simple and put the barrel on the ball.”