The Red Sox are down to the last stretch of the regular season, and the playoff roster picture is starting to sharpen. With 12 games left and Boston holding the second American League Wild Card spot by six games, the more likely October question is where the Red Sox will open the postseason: at Yankee Stadium for a second straight year.
That leaves one big task for the final two weeks - deciding which 26 players make the trip to the Bronx.
At catcher, the safest path is to keep both Adley Rutschman and Connor Wong. Wong could be squeezed out in theory, since his playing time would be limited with Rutschman healthy.
But carrying only one backup option creates a nasty problem if Rutschman gets hurt in the Wild Card Series. In that case, a mid-series replacement would make Rutschman ineligible for the next round.
With Wong and Mickey Gasper both on the roster, Boston avoids that mess. Wong also gives them a better glove behind the plate than Gasper.
Gasper still gets in because of what he showed at the plate in August, where his offense gave him enough pop to stick as a bench bat. Monasterio is another name hanging around the bubble, and recent injuries may have opened the door for him as well.
Curtis Mead and Anthony Seigler are projected off the roster, with both listed on the injured list. Mead’s wrist injury does not appear likely to heal in time for the postseason.
The outfield group looks more straightforward. Jarren Duran, Wilyer Abreu, Ceddanne Rafaela, Roman Anthony and Jahmai Jones are the five projected to go.
Eli White is the wild card here because of the foot ligament injury that recently landed him on the 10-day injured list. If he’s healthy, he would fill an important bench role.
If not, Jones or Nate Eaton would be the leading candidates for that last outfield spot, and Jones gets the edge thanks to his ability to hit left-handers. Masataka Yoshida, dealing with a hamstring issue, probably won’t be back this season.
On the mound, the rotation projection is Sonny Gray, Payton Tolle and Ranger Suarez, with Patrick Sandoval the odd man out. Sandoval simply hasn’t been dependable enough to earn a spot.
The bullpen and multi-inning mix are where things get trickier. Jake Bennett and Garrett Crochet are expected to shift into relief, assuming Crochet is healthy enough to provide one or two strong innings.
Justin Slaten, Tanner Houck, Johan Oviedo, Alec Gamboa, Jovani Moran and Raymond Burgos are projected to miss the cut, with several injury situations driving those decisions. Slaten would be in if his elbow were ready, but he was recently shut down from throwing.
Crochet is trending toward being available right around October. Houck is also moving in that direction, but he has not pitched in a major league game since May 2025 and has not looked sharp in rehab outings, which is enough to keep him off the initial roster.
Brayan Bello also gets a spot as a bulk arm after thriving in that role over the second half.
In Other News...
Red Sox May Be Facing A Jarren Duran Decision They Cant Dodge
Jarren Durans name has become part of a bigger conversation in Boston as the Red Sox continue sorting through a crowded outfield and a murkier long-term picture. MLB insider Mark Feinsand has pointed to Duran as a possible trade candidate, a notable shift for a player whose value looked far higher during his peak in 2024. Since then, the offensive decline has changed the way the club has to think about him, even as his profile still carries enough intrigue to keep him in the discussion.
The timing matters, too, because the Red Sox are not just weighing present production but what Duran might look like by the 2027 offseason, when roster pressure and trade considerations could come to a head. A move would not be made lightly, especially with Duran still drawing attention from fans and offering the kind of athleticism that can play elsewhere if Boston decides a change of scenery is the cleaner path. For now, it is less a done deal than a question the Red Sox may eventually have to answer. [Read more 🡒]
Masataka Yoshidas Return Could Force A Tough Red Sox October Call
Masataka Yoshidas health is becoming a late-season roster question the Red Sox may not be able to avoid if they keep playing into October. Interim manager Chad Tracy said Yoshidas return will hinge on how well the injury heals, and if the outfielder is ready in time for the playoffs, Boston will have to weigh what that means for Mickey Gasper and Nick Sogard. It is the kind of decision that looks straightforward on paper but gets complicated fast when a club starts balancing offense, defense and roster flexibility.
Gasper and Sogard have helped give the Red Sox options while Yoshida has been sidelined, and their roles could shrink quickly if he is activated for the postseason. The problem for Boston is not whether Yoshida can hit, but whether carrying him would be the best use of a precious playoff spot when the team is trying to build the most complete roster possible. With the injury timeline still tied to his healing progress, the Red Sox may soon have to choose between the bat they know and the lineup balance they have built without him. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Turnaround Is Suddenly Unlike Anything MLB Has Seen
Bostons season looked buried in April, when the club fired Alex Cora after a miserable start and handed the dugout to Chad Tracy. What followed was the kind of long, stubborn recovery that rarely shows up in modern baseball, especially for a team that spent the first half digging itself out of a hole and still managed to keep the season from slipping away.
The turnaround became historic from there. The Red Sox finished 82-68, becoming the first MLB team to end up above .500 after losing 46 of their first 78 games, and the surge was fueled by a mix of veteran production from Willson Contreras, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu, plus useful contributions from Caleb Durbin and a wave of minor league call-ups. Boston also added Adley Rutschman from Baltimore before the trade deadline, a move that only added to the sense that this was a roster constantly evolving while still somehow finding its footing. [Read more 🡒]