Red Sox Go All-In On Chad Tracy, Craig Breslow Partnership With Extensions

Image courtesy of Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images

Red Sox Video

A miraculous post-June turnaround has earned the Boston Red Sox more than just a postseason spot -- it's gifted them a full-time manager as well.

According to the team, they've officially removed the "interim" tag from Chad Tracy's business card, signing him to a three-year contract that runs through the 2027-29 seasons. It also comes with a club option for 2030 attached, giving ownership more control over the decision-making process when this deal nears its end.

And, as an added bonus, Craig Breslow is officially sticking around for a while longer as well. The options in his contract have been exercised for the 2029 and 2030 seasons, effectively tying him to Tracy for the rest of the decade.

The Tracy decision was pretty much inevitable once the Red Sox officially clinched their postseason spot over the weekend, completing an improbable turnaround following an awful first half. After opening the season with a 10-17 record under Alex Cora, Tracy has guided the club to a 74-55 record, including an immaculate 38-24 mark since the All-Star break.

All eyes will be on how his team performs in their near-certain date against the New York Yankees in the Wild Card Round, a sequel to last year's three-game series. The Red Sox ultimately fell short in the winner-takes-all finale due to a lack of pitching depth (rookie Connelly Early was forced to take the start in that game), so expectations will be higher this time around now that the rotation has more star power.

This also removes the Sox from the managerial market, which, will rife with excellent coaches, never really made sense for Boston to explore. The best skipper with experience (Alex Cora) was never coming back; likewise, the other retreads (e.g., David Ross, Brandon Hyde, etc.) fail to inspire after they were ousted from their previous homes. And it simply would have been a non-starter to move on from Tracy after this turnaround just to hire another first-time manager like Albert Pujols or Carlos Beltran.

The same can't necessarily be said of the Breslow decision since it was less pressing, but it is interesting that ownership opted to give him this much certainty right now. He was never going anywhere this offseason -- his ultra-aggressive performance at the trade deadline and the impending lockout would have made that a foolish choice -- but he was already under contract beyond 2026. It's fair to say that picking up these options may have been a little premature, though it also ties the coaching staff and front office together for the foreseeable future. If one falters, it's fair to say both sides will take the blame. In other words, if everything goes wrong over the next few years, there's now an easy way to make a clean break from everyone and start over with a fresh slate.

These extensions are a sign that ownership believes that won't happen, however. By pulling this team out of the depths of the AL East in the span of a few months, Tracy and Breslow have proven capable of guiding the Red Sox through the ups and downs that define the regular season. Now, with long-term certainty in hand, they must prove capable of winning in October.