The Boston Red Sox are officially out of the postseason, swept right out of Yankee Stadium by their biggest rivals, and their ace, Sonny Gray, is NOT holding back on how it went down. They fell 9-2 on Wednesday night, closing out a brutal two-game Wild Card Series where the Yanks outscored them a crushing 18-2. For the second straight year, the Red Sox are going home for the winter because of New York.
Pulled on 70 Pitches, Gray Drops Truth Bomb
This series was a gut punch for Boston fans, and honestly, the way it ended for their top pitcher is just wild. Sonny Gray, an 18-game winner this year, was absolutely dealing, trailing by just one run in the fifth. He’d thrown only 70 pitches when rookie manager Chad Tracy decided it was time for a change. Tracy, supposedly eager to hand the ball to what was described as baseball’s best regular-season bullpen, yanked Gray right after a two-out single put runners at the corners.
Gray, though? He felt good. He felt sharp. He told reporters, “I felt good. You know, I felt crisp. I felt sharp. I felt like I was just out there competing. And yeah, I mean, I got clipped for a solo homer and then some singles, but I felt like I stayed on the attack throughout. I was just executing what I wanted to do.” He wasn’t just “frustrated” either, telling everyone, “I think I’m the best pitcher in the American League going through the order the third time. I think that’s a fact. I would have liked to have been trusted in that moment.” Talk about a statement! That’s a guy who believes in himself and felt he got cut short. He’s “frustrated, for sure,” and definitely “not ready for it to end. A lot of emotions.”
Another Postseason Stumble for the Sox
This isn’t just about Gray’s frustration, though. Tracy’s decision-making was under the microscope for both playoff games. The night before, in a 9-0 beatdown, he pulled rookie starter Payton Tolle after just 4 ⅔ innings and 83 pitches, even though it was a tight 1-0 game at the time. It really makes you wonder what the strategy was here, especially considering they were facing a Yankees lineup that was missing their slugger, Aaron Judge.
This whole series was a disaster at the plate, too. Boston mustered a measly seven hits in two games! They even snapped a painful 26-inning postseason scoring drought that stretched back to last year, thanks to a Willson Contreras homer in the sixth on Wednesday. Giving up 26 hits in two games is just brutal, even if the starters did put in effective performances. Shortstop Trevor Story summed it up, “To have it end here two times in a row is tough.” No kidding. Last year, they won their Wild Card opener, but then lost to New York in Game 3, overpowered by Cam Schlittler, who apparently still owns them after pitching another playoff gem Tuesday.
Contreras, when asked about Gray being pulled, literally put his finger to his lips before laying down some wisdom. He said, “It’s not enough when you have talent, or you have data, or you have computers that tell you what to do, because this is baseball. The data is here to help us, but at the end of the day you are going to have to need experience and veteran guys to win games.” That sounds like a clear shot at a manager who only took over in April when Alex Cora got fired. Yikes.
So, the Red Sox are heading home for the winter, leaving behind a truly miserable finish to what Tracy himself called an “eventful year.” He wasn’t wrong. This team clearly has some soul-searching to do, especially when your top pitcher is publicly calling out his manager’s trust. You have to wonder what the fallout from this kind of exit will be. For now, it’s just “not ready for it to end” for Gray, and a whole lot of questions for Boston management.
This article was created with AI assistance and published under Seattle On Tap’s editorial standards. See our Editorial Policy.
Originally reported by Fox Sports.
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