Red Sox complete remarkable turnaround, set for Wild Card showdown with Yankees

BRONX, NEW YORK — The Red Sox and Yankees are renewing one of baseball’s greatest rivalries in the postseason.

Boston travels to the Bronx on Tuesday for Game 1 of the American League Wild Card Series. Rookie pitcher Payton Tolle is expected to start for the Red Sox, while Walpole native and Cy Young favorite Cam Schlittler will take the mound for New York.

For Boston, simply reaching the playoffs is one of the biggest stories of the season.

The Red Sox stumbled out of the gate with a 10-17 start and made a major change early in the year, parting ways with manager Alex Cora just weeks into the season. Chad Tracey was promoted from Triple-A Worcester to take over, but the team’s struggles continued. By June 22, Boston was in last place at 31-45 and had just an 8.4% chance of making the playoffs, according to FanGraphs.

Then came a dramatic turnaround.

The Red Sox won 20 of 22 games during a stunning midseason surge that began with a four-game sweep of the Yankees. The run helped propel Boston back into playoff contention and ultimately into the Wild Card field.

Following the team’s playoff-clinching victory, the organization officially named Tracey as the club’s manager. Players have credited him with helping steady the team during a difficult stretch of the season.

“It’s incredible to see what he did coming in and being that calming presence that we needed because it got crazy,” Rooke Pitcher Payton Tolle said. “The relationship that he can have with, especially the young players, we had a lot of guys come up and help us out this year. He was able to really bring them in, let them get comfortable. That’s why I think we were able to be so successful with the guys that we had this year.”

This marks the second consecutive year the Red Sox and Yankees have met in the Wild Card round. Boston fans are hoping this postseason chapter ends differently than the last.

This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.

Download the FREE Boston 25 News app for breaking news alerts.

Follow Boston 25 News on Facebook and Twitter. | Watch Boston 25 News NOW