The Boston Red Sox have gone from deadline sellers to one of the hottest teams in baseball, and that kind of turnaround has changed the conversation around Chad Tracy fast.
A team that fired Alex Cora and looked headed for a reset has suddenly surged back into the picture. Boston’s 15-game winning streak and strong mid-season push have put the club right back in the mix in both the AL East and the AL overall, and that kind of run naturally raises the next question: what happens to Tracy after the season?
Karl Rasmussen of Sports Illustrated says there is a real chance the Red Sox move past Tracy’s interim label and give him the job full-time.
"The Sox have vaulted themselves back into postseason contention under Tracy's watch, and their impressive summer could result in the 46-year-old shedding the interim tag during the offseason," Rasmussen writes.
The numbers back up why this is even being discussed. By August 29, Boston is 63-44 under Tracy. That works out to a .589 winning percentage, a mark that would easily put the Red Sox in postseason territory and give the organization plenty of reason to keep him around.
Tracy is only 46, and the way this stretch has unfolded has made his case hard to ignore. The start of his tenure wasn’t smooth, with Boston still trying to find its footing, but the results since then have changed the outlook around the dugout.
If the Red Sox reach the 2026 postseason, Tracy’s chances of sticking as the full-time manager beyond that season should be strong. If they go even further and make a deep October run - or win the World Series - the decision would be even simpler.
For now, his future is still unsettled. But after what Boston has done under his watch since he took over for Cora earlier this year, the signs are leaning toward a longer stay.
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Sonny Gray, though, is still missing from the announced plan for Tuesday, which leaves a familiar veteran-sized question hanging over the middle game. Boston could still slot him in if hes available, or go a different direction altogether, but for now the rotation picture against the Mariners remains only partially drawn in. [Read more 🡒]
Yankees Catcher Failure Looks Even Worse After This Deadline Decision
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Rosenthals reporting only sharpens the question of what New York passed on, because the path to Rutschman apparently existed if the Yankees were willing to part with major league talent. The catch was the cost, and with a farm system already thinned out, the front office seems to have decided the price was too steep. For Boston, the twist is obvious: Rutschman ended up going to the Red Sox, leaving the Yankees to answer for a deadline that addressed needs elsewhere but left one of their most glaring issues hanging in place. [Read more 🡒]
Red Sox Rotation Plan Around Sonny Gray Just Got More Interesting
With Roman Anthony and Trevor Story back from the injured list, the Red Sox are trying to sort out the rest of their roster with the postseason in view, and that means the pitching plan is getting careful attention. Boston has been balancing the health of its arms while also trying to make sure the club is in the best possible shape for October, a stretch when every start and every recovery day matters a little more.
Sonny Gray has been central to that thinking. After putting together a career-high 16 wins with a 2.82 ERA, his next start is being pushed back to Sept. 5 as the Red Sox look to preserve his arm and manage workloads across the staff. With roster expansion also giving the team more flexibility, Boston appears ready to use every tool it has to keep its rotation lined up for the games that matter most. [Read more 🡒]