BOSTON (WHDH) – The Red Sox are gearing up for a battle in the Bronx Tuesday – squaring up with their rival New York Yankees in the AL Wild Card Series for the second year in a row.
The series will mark the seventh time Boston and New York have met in the postseason, and just their third meeting in the Wild Card. With the better record this season, all three games will be played at Yankee Stadium.
The Yankees will let Walpole-native and Cy Young Award frontrunner Cam Schlittler take the mound to start game one Tuesday night. The Red Sox will send their own rookie phenom Payton Tolle up against him.
Tolle emerged as one of the Sox’ frontline starters this season, posting a 3.03 ERA IN 26 games. On September 13, the 23-year-old also threw the Red Sox first immaculate inning since Chris Sale in 2021.
“Tolle, look at his attitude. Look at his motivation. His guts, his grit. You can’t go wrong,” said one Red Sox fan.
On the other side, the 25-year-old Schlittler posted a 1.95 ERA in 33 games. He has an 0.74 ERA in his career against the Red Sox.
Sonny Gray, tied for the league-lead in wins this season with 18, will start game two for the Red Sox, in a match up against Max Fried for the Yankees. It will then be veterans Ranger Suárez for the Red Sox and Gerritt Cole for the Yankees on the bump should a game three be needed.
The storied rivalry has Red Sox fans looking forward to the matchup.
“It’s amazing. Nostalgic. Red Sox, Yankees. I grew up here on the third base line. My dad used to write for the Herald and grew up in Haverhill, Massachusetts. I love this,” said Peter McDonald, a Red Sox fan.
“I think that’s very exciting,” said Karen Pestorich, a Red Sox fan. “What else could be more exciting than that, Red Sox and Yankees?”
The Red Sox swept a four-game series against the Yankees at Fenway Park in June, which helped spark an incredible turnaround that turned the team into playoff contenders. The sweep catapulted the Red Sox into a stretch where they went 32-5 in their next 37 games, including a 15-game win streak from July 3 to July 22.
Even fans of other teams say they like the Sox chances.
“I like their chances,” said Mike Lewis, a Cubs fan visiting Boston. “The Yankees really bring a different element when it’s Red Sox-Yankees. Their rivalry is kind of like my Cubs and Cardinals. It’s a big deal.”
First pitch of game one of the Wild Card series is Tuesday at 8 p.m.
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