Cam Schlittler had racked up eight strikeouts through five innings, exposing the Boston Red Sox's bats. Payton Tolle wasn't fanning batters at the same clip, but he was keeping pace.
The New York Yankees scored just one run on five hits off Tolle. He collected the first two outs of the fifth inning on 83 pitches. Then, Chad Tracy pulled him.
The decision didn't make sense when Tracy went for it, and made even less sense once Tolle's replacement entered the game. Erik Miller threw three pitches to Ben Rice — on the third one, Rice left the yard to collect the New York Yankees' second run of the game, a run they didn't need because Boston didn't score even once.
Swapping Tolle for Miller in that moment is unfathomable. The former San Francisco Giants reliever posted a brutal September with a 7.36 ERA and 2.05 WHIP over 7.1 innings across eight appearances. Command has long been an issue for Miller, and after a stellar August during which he walked just three batters in 11.2 frames, he issued nine free passes in September.
Red Sox pulling Payton Tolle for Erik Miller was the biggest mistake of Wild Card Game 1 against Yankees
It was all downhill for the Red Sox after Tolle left the game. Surprisingly, Greg Weissert collected three outs without letting any of the runners he inherited from Miller score, but Alec Gamboa fell apart in the seventh inning. Gamboa posted a great September before his final game against the Chicago Cubs when he allowed three runs in a two-inning outing. Wyatt Olds and Brayan Bello also struggled, allowing three and two runs, respectively.
Had the Red Sox kept Tolle in the game while he was pitching well, the score might've stayed close. In a 1-0 game, the Yankees would've had to turn to their high leverage relievers, burning them out before Game 2 and giving the Red Sox a better chance to win. Instead, the Yankees got an easy win without using Brent Headrick, Carlos Rodón or David Bednar.
Tolle gave no indication that he needed to be pulled from the game. Sure, Rice had a double off him from the first inning, but the big lefty worked well with runners on and kept a level head. Miller performed well against lefty hitters all year, but his troubles in recent games didn't point to him being ready for a postseason matchup with Rice, who hit 41 home runs in the regular season.
Tracy needed a feel for the game in that moment, and he didn't have it. Now, tomorrow, the Red Sox have to win to keep their season alive.
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