The Red Sox didn’t just stop the bleeding Thursday night - they gave themselves a little breathing room before a series that suddenly matters a lot.
Boston snapped back with a 7-0 win over the Toronto Blue Jays, a result that kept the club from getting swept in four games by one of its biggest rivals. Now the attention shifts immediately to Pittsburgh, where the Red Sox open a three-game set Friday night against the Pirates.
The timing matters. Boston is 65-56 and sitting in the No.
2 American League Wild Card spot, three games behind the New York Yankees for the top position. That leaves little margin for error, especially with a stretch like this one.
Pittsburgh comes in at 59-64, and on paper this is the kind of series Boston has to handle if it wants to keep pace.
The Red Sox are set to send out a familiar mix of youth and experience over the weekend.
Friday night belongs to Bennett, the rookie who came over this past offseason and has quietly become a real asset for Boston. He’s made 13 starts and owns a 3.17 ERA along with a 55-to-16 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 76 2/3 innings.
His most recent outing came Aug. 8 against the Athletics, when he worked 5 1/3 innings and gave up four earned runs. He’ll be opposed by right-hander Bubba Chandler.
Saturday brings Gray, the 14-year veteran and three-time All-Star who has put together what looks like the strongest season of his big league career. He enters with a 2.79 ERA and a 110-to-33 strikeout-to-walk ratio over 125 2/3 innings.
When Boston has needed a steady veteran presence, Gray has been the one answering the call. He’ll face 25-year-old right-hander Jared Jones.
Sunday’s game has the most intrigue of the series, and it comes from the other side. Sandoval has made six starts for Boston since returning to the mound for the first time since 2024, and he’s been sharp, posting a 3.30 ERA in 30 innings. But the Pirates are lining up three-time All-Star Paul Skenes, which gives the finale a different kind of edge.
In Other News...
Red Sox Hero Keith Foulkes Abrupt Exit Has Fans Doing A Double Take
Keith Foulkes latest turn in baseball did not last long. The former Red Sox postseason hero had been hired to manage the Boston Hunters in the Womens Pro Baseball League, a move that gave his name a fresh spot in the game after years away from the old October spotlight. But the opportunity was gone almost as quickly as it arrived, leaving the kind of abrupt departure that makes people do a double take.
The explanation offered by the league centered on a need for a coach with more experience working with younger players, while Foulke suggested his situation may have worked against him as well. He was commuting from Arizona, and he pointed to those absences as a possible factor in how things unfolded. For a figure so familiar to Boston fans, the quick exit only adds another odd chapter to a baseball life that already has plenty of them. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Just Opened A Door Yankees Fans Will Notice
Adley Rutschmans return from the injured list forced a roster squeeze behind the plate, and the Red Sox answered by moving Jake Rogers off the active mix. It is the kind of transaction that can seem minor in the moment, but catching depth has a way of getting tested quickly, and Bostons decision creates a little extra room elsewhere on the roster.
For the Yankees, it also opens a name to watch. Their catching situation has been shaky enough that a serviceable defender with major league experience can suddenly look more useful than his bat would suggest, and Rogers fits that profile as a below-average hitter with enough defensive value to draw interest. If New York is looking for a backup option, this is the sort of available catcher that tends to get noticed fast. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Suddenly Have A Garrett Whitlock Concern They Can't Ignore
The Red Soxs slide reached five straight losses, and the late innings of Wednesdays game offered a small but notable clue about why the bullpen looked a little different. Instead of leaning on Garrett Whitlock in the eighth, the club turned to Tyron Guerrero, a usage choice that immediately raised eyebrows given Whitlocks standing as one of Bostons most important relievers.
Interim manager Chad Tracy confirmed Whitlock is dealing with elbow inflammation, an issue that has surfaced intermittently for him this season. Whitlock has been a key piece out of the bullpen, so even a brief absence matters for a team trying to stop the bleeding, and it leaves Boston watching closely as it tries to determine whether this is just another flare-up or something more concerning. [Read more 🡒]