Brandon Glick

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. View full article

MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Wyatt Olds 0 14 0 12 18 44 Raymond Burgos 0 0 18 0 0 18 Jovani Morán 0 23 0 0 0 23 Greg Weissert 0 0 15 0 27 42 Garrett Whitlock 0 0 0 12 0 12 Erik Miller 0 0 22 0 32 54 Brayan Bello 0 19 0 0 0 19 Aroldis Chapman 0 0 0 0 0 0 Alec Gamboa 0 18 0 7 0 25

Closing in on locking up that No. 2 Wild Card... better to do it sooner than later, so we can rest everyone and align the rotation for the trip to New York.

SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Wyatt Olds 0 0 14 0 12 26 Raymond Burgos 0 0 0 18 0 18 Jovani Morán 0 0 23 0 0 23 Greg Weissert 11 0 0 15 0 26 Garrett Whitlock 9 0 0 0 12 21 Erik Miller 16 0 0 22 0 38 Brayan Bello 0 0 19 0 0 19 Aroldis Chapman 25 0 0 0 0 25 Alec Gamboa 0 0 18 0 7 25

Standings Watch: The Red Sox remain 5.5 games behind the Yankees for the top AL Wild Card spot.

MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Wyatt Olds 30 0 20 0 0 50 Raymond Burgos 0 33 0 0 0 33 Jovani Morán 0 0 12 0 23 35 Greg Weissert 0 16 0 0 18 34 Garrett Whitlock 15 0 0 0 0 15 Erik Miller 0 0 0 0 12 12 Aroldis Chapman 0 0 0 0 0 0 Alec Gamboa 12 0 12 0 0 24

Yesterday's loss dropped the Red Sox below .500 at home, yet they're 44-31 on the road. Of all the bizarre things in this very bizarre season, that's one of the most incomprehensible.

SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Wyatt Olds 0 30 0 20 0 50 Raymond Burgos 0 0 33 0 0 33 Jovani Morán 10 0 0 12 0 22 Greg Weissert 0 0 16 0 0 16 Garrett Whitlock 0 15 0 0 0 15 Erik Miller 14 0 0 0 0 14 Aroldis Chapman 19 0 0 0 0 19 Alec Gamboa 0 12 0 12 0 24

Standings Watch: The Red Sox are 4.5 games behind the Yankees for the top AL Wild Card spot.

SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Wyatt Olds 0 0 53 0 0 53 Raymond Burgos 0 0 0 19 0 19 Jovani Morán 40 0 0 0 0 40 Greg Weissert 15 0 19 0 0 34 Garrett Whitlock 0 0 0 0 13 13 Erik Miller 0 16 0 0 24 40 Brayan Bello 0 0 0 69 0 69 Aroldis Chapman 0 15 0 0 13 28 Alec Gamboa 0 23 27 0 0 50

Standings Watch: Red Sox sit 4.5 games behind Yankees for top AL Wild Card spot.

MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Wyatt Olds 0 18 25 0 11 54 Tyron Guerrero 0 26 0 0 6 32 Jovani Morán 0 0 33 0 0 33 Greg Weissert 0 12 0 0 5 17 Erik Miller 16 13 0 0 0 29 Brayan Bello 42 0 0 0 0 42 Aroldis Chapman 18 0 0 0 0 18 Alec Gamboa 0 20 0 0 0 20

Lotta moving parts in this game thread. Max Fried is back tonight. Roman Anthony is NOT back today (and probably not until the end of the weekend). No Sox starter is confirmed for Game 2. Bello is expected to handle bulk duties.

SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Wyatt Olds 0 0 18 25 0 43 Tyron Guerrero 11 0 26 0 0 37 Jovani Morán 0 0 0 33 0 33 Greg Weissert 0 0 12 0 0 12 Erik Miller 0 16 13 0 0 29 Brayan Bello 0 42 0 0 0 42 Aroldis Chapman 15 18 0 0 0 33 Alec Gamboa 0 0 20 0 0 20

Buckle in. This should be a fun series.

MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Wyatt Olds 12 11 0 0 0 23 Tyron Guerrero 0 19 9 0 0 28 Jovani Morán 13 0 26 0 0 39 Greg Weissert 13 0 31 0 0 44 Erik Miller 0 18 23 0 13 54 Brayan Bello 76 0 0 0 0 76 Aroldis Chapman 0 0 14 0 20 34 Alec Gamboa 14 0 0 0 11 25

I don't care what anyone says, that Devers homer meant something to me. Nice to see an old friend's still got it. Still glad we won though. Let's maybe do the same tonight?

SUN MON TUE WED THU TOT Wyatt Olds 0 12 11 0 0 23 Tyron Guerrero 0 0 19 9 0 28 Jovani Morán 0 13 0 26 0 39 Greg Weissert 0 13 0 31 0 44 Erik Miller 0 0 18 23 0 41 Brayan Bello 0 76 0 0 0 76 Aroldis Chapman 0 0 0 14 0 14 Alec Gamboa 0 14 0 0 0 14

At long last, Raffy returns home. I know there's tension, but I really hope he gets the ovation he deserves.

Welp. This was an unfortunately timed article

MON TUE WED THU FRI TOT Tyron Guerrero 0 0 7 9 0 16 Raymond Burgos 0 0 0 0 34 34 Justin Slaten 0 0 0 17 0 17 Jovani Morán 0 0 15 14 0 29 Garrett Whitlock 0 0 11 13 0 24 Erik Miller 0 4 0 33 0 37 Brayan Bello 0 28 0 28 0 56 Aroldis Chapman 0 0 0 18 0 18

One more away from another 10-game winning streak...

That 15-game winning streak officially broke something in Craig Breslow. He's done trying to build slowly and methodically around a core group of prospects. Instead, he's certain it's time to go all-in. Following their blockbuster move for Adley Rutschman earlier in the day and a swap of Tyler Uberstine for Eli White, the Boston Red Sox have now traded former top prospect Marcelo Mayer to the San Francisco Giants, reuniting him with Rafael Devers. In exchange, they're getting reliever Erik Miller. This is an aggressive move by the front office, and not just because Miller is a 28-year-old reliever with a 2.76 ERA. Mayer was one of the fabled "Big 3" Red Sox prospects alongside Kristian Campbell and Roman Anthony, both of whom signed long-term extensions with the franchise. The former, unfortunately, is struggling in Triple-A this year and comes with a lot of buyer's remorse, while the latter has looked elite while healthy but is currently dealing with a long-term hand injury. Mayer is an excellent infield defender and was the supposed heir to Trevor Story's throne at shortstop. Unfortunately, he just didn't hit at the big-league level (.625 OPS, 69 wRC+) and, like Campbell, has regressed in 2026. He should earn a lot of playing time in San Francisco, where the rebuilding Giants can afford to let him figure things out in low-pressure games. As for Miller, he fills the left-handed set-up man quota Breslow has been desperate to meet. His peripherals are outstanding, as he ranks in the 90th percentile or above in strikeout rate, whiff rate, expected batting average allowed, average exit velocity allowed, hard-hit rate, and groundball rate. In other words, he does almost everything well on the mound, which makes it easy to buy into his 2.76 ERA despite terrible command. He's also under team control through 2029, meaning he could be the closer of the future once Aroldis Chapman finally decides to hang 'em up. Losing Mayer is a painful price to pay, but Miller is good enough to make that gamble pay off. The Sox are also receiving Carlos Gutierrez in the deal, per MassLive's Christopher Smith. The 21-year-old outfielder has a 124 wRC+ in High-A this season. View full article