The day before the start of their Wild Card rematch with their biggest rival, the Boston Red Sox announced their starting rotation. As the Sox foreshadowed a week before during their series against the Cleveland Guardians, Payton Tolle will start Game 1, Sonny Gray will start Game 2 and Ranger Suarez will take Game 3, if necessary.
Red Sox manager Chad Tracy on September 28 confirmed the rotation in a press conference. He sang Tolle's praises as he did so.
"Just felt like with his power stuff that was the best choice for Game 1," Tracy said. "...With Payton, when he's starting, you're not as much worried who's in the lineup, you trust him either way. I just feel like we're pretty confident in who he is as a pitcher and what he brings to the table regardless of who he's facing as far as difficulty to hit."
And trust Tolle he should. The 23-year-old has posted a stellar rookie season with a 3.03 ERA, 1.10 WHIP, 171 strikeouts and 40 walks over 148.2 innings. His 28.4 strikeout percentage is in the upper quartile of the league and his 7-foot-4 extension is elite, making his pitches seem even faster and keeping hitters frazzled.
Red Sox will start Payton Tolle in Wild Card Game 1 against Yankees, Cam Schlittler
Tolle will face fellow rookie Cam Schlittler in the Wild Card opener following much debate from the Yankees organization. They reportedly considered Max Fried and Gerrit Cole (their Game 2 and 3 starters, respectively) for the job before settling on Schlittler — the right call. Game 1 of the Wild Card series is largely considered the most important, as the winner often goes on to take the series. New York finally decided to take Boston seriously.
Despite Schlittler's dominance on the mound, the two rookies couldn't be more different. Tolle is a "class clown" type in the best way, with an infectious personality and unrivaled passion on the mound that has even made Yankees fans fall in love with him. Meanwhile, Schlittler is buttoned up, quiet and has maybe never smiled in public. His stuff does all the talking for him, while Tolle is the total package.
Tolle is Boston's best option to face off against Schlittler because he's had great success against the Yankees already this year. The lefty made his 2026 debut on April 23 against New York and allowed one run on three hits with a staggering 11 strikeouts in six innings. Two months later, Tolle blanked the Yankees on just one hit and two walks with seven strikeouts over seven innings. He's logged a 0.69 ERA and 0.538 WHIP over those two outings.
Tolle vs. Schlittler is a matchup Red Sox and Yankees fans can hopefully look forward to for years to come. The two pitchers are diametrically opposed in terms of personality and likability, but they can pitch with the best of them. Winning Game 1 is key to the series and Tolle will give the Red Sox the start they need to get a leg-up on Schlittler and get the job done.
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