Boston Red Sox
Payton Tolle, Sonny Gray, and Ranger Suarez will be tasked with keeping Boston afloat in a Wild Card Series.
The Boston Red Sox have plenty to work on over the final two weeks of the 2026 regular season.
Even with a dramatic win on Thursday against the Rangers, Boston’s bats have gone cold since the calendar flipped over to September.
The Red Sox’ struggles at the plate — especially when it comes to whiffing, laboring against high velocity pitching, and failing to work counts to get on base — don’t exactly bode well for what is looking like an inevitable rematch against the Yankees in a best-of-three Wild Card Series in the Bronx later this month.
Even if Boston’s lineup does start to show signs of life, the margin for error will be very slim for a Red Sox team that is bracing for a series where New York will likely roll out Cy Young Award frontrunner Cam Schlittler, Max Fried, and either Gerrit Cole or Carlos Rodón.
If the Red Sox want to exact some revenge against the Yankees and punch their ticket to the next round of the playoffs, they’re going to need their own starting rotation to keep New York’s bats in check and keep things close over that best-of-three set.
But who exactly should Boston turn to once the playoffs begin?
Game 1: Payton Tolle
As electric as he’s been all season long, it might be asking a lot for a rookie in Tolle to be the first man up when it comes to setting the tone in a playoff series — especially in a hostile environment like Yankee Stadium.
But since the Red Sox are already going to have their hands full trying to get the better of Schlittler in Game 1, rolling the dice with Tolle gives Boston a dynamic arm who might match the Yankees ace in what will inevitably be a low-scoring game.
Tolle — who has allowed just one run, eight hits, one walk and struck out 19 over his last two starts (12.0 innings) — has held his own this season in matchups against the Yankees.
In two starts against New York this year, Tolle has allowed just four hits and one run over 13 innings of work — striking out 18 and walking just three batters.
If Boston wants to try and fight fire with fire in a battle against Schlittler, Tolle is the arm who might be best equipped to limit damage against New York and keep Boston in that tone-setting Game 1.
Game 2: Sonny Gray
It might be bold to sit out a legitimate Cy Young candidate until Game 2. But if the Red Sox do falter against Schlittler, Gray is the type of steadying presence who could keep Boston afloat with their season on the line.
Gray has risen to the occasion as Boston’s de facto ace this season — a welcome development, given that the Red Sox have been without Garrett Crochet for most of the year due to several injuries.
Gray’s numbers (17-5, 2.82 ERA) speak for themselves, although the 36-year-old’s struggles in the Bronx are also worth monitoring.
In 23 career games at Yankee Stadium, Gray is 7-7 with a 5.95 ERA — surrendering a whopping 22 home runs during that stretch.
It doesn’t take much for left-handed bats to swat pitches into the short porch in right at Yankee Stadium, and Gray has surrendered two homers over 6.1 innings of work at that ballpark this season alone.
But even with those struggles, the Red Sox will take their chances in a potential clinching (or season-ending) game with Gray on the mound, given the body of work he’s submitted this season.
Game 3: Ranger Suarez
It’s been an up-and-down first season for Suarez in Boston, with the southpaw laboring in the dog days of the summer — especially after returning from an IL stint due to a groin strain.
But the 31-year-old lefty appears to be rounding a corner with the postseason approaching — allowing just one run over his last two starts (14.0 innings) with 11 strikeouts and one walk.
Suarez may not have the swing-and-miss stuff that Tolle boasts, nor has he been as consistent as Gray over the course of the 2026 campaign.
But if Boston pushes this inevitable showdown with New York to a decisive Game 3, Suarez is the type of arm you’d want in your corner — given his impressive postseason track record.
In 11 career postseason appearances with the Phillies, Suarez sported a 4-1 record with a 1.48 ERA (42.2 innings of work).
Since MLB expanded its playoff field in 1995, the only pitchers with a lower postseason ERA in as many innings pitched as Suarez? Mariano Rivera (0.70 ERA in 141 innings) and Stephen Strasburg (1.46 ERA in 55.1 innings). Pretty good company to be in.
With their season on the line, Suarez is a good option to turn to if you’re the Red Sox — and there’s a legitimate case to be made that he could warrant a start over Gray in Game 2 if Boston falters in that opener against Schlittler.
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