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“It Comes Down to Reality”

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“Some folks like to get away
Take a holiday from the neighborhood
Hop a flight to Miami Beach
Or to Hollywood
But the Sox are taking a Greyhound
Up the Hudson River Line
They’re in a New York state of mind,” – Apologies to Billy Joel

BRONX – (Wire Service Report) – New York’s Cody Bellinger hit a three-run homer during a six-run sixth inning and finished with four RBIs as the Yankees pulled away for a 9-2 rout of the Boston Red Sox on Wednesday and a two-game sweep of an American League wild-card series.

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The Yankees beat the Red Sox in the wild-card round for the second straight year and were significantly more prolific at the plate than last year, when they needed three games to advance.

Despite the absence of Aaron Judge, who has a strained right calf, New York scored 18 runs and totaled 26 hits in the series to advance to the AL Division Series against the top-seeded Tampa Bay Rays. The best-of-five ALDS begins Saturday in St. Petersburg, Fla.

“That was very satisfying to play that well in these two games,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said after the win. “ … Just really pleased with how we played. Obviously, we’re really going to enjoy that and excited to get our shot at a really good Tampa club.”

Bellinger capped New York’s big inning by hitting a 1-0 changeup from Garrett Whitlock into the right-center-field seats after the Red Sox opted to intentionally walk Ben Rice. The blast pushed New York’s lead to 8-1.

“That was a cool moment. I feel like I was able to enjoy that one,” Bellinger said. “Just a home game in Yankee Stadium, it’s a really fun atmosphere, it’s fun to play (here) and hopefully we get many, many more this month.”

In the fifth, Bellinger chopped an RBI single against left-hander Erik Miller over second baseman Nick Sogard’s head to give the Yankees a 2-0 lead.

New York’s Max Fried (1-0) followed Cam Schlittler’s dominance in the series opener by allowing one run on three hits in six innings on Wednesday. Fried struck out six and walked one.

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“Being able to celebrate with your teammates after a playoff series win, it doesn’t get old,” Fried said. “This is what we start practicing in February for. This is where we want to be. So just about playing our game, having fun and hopefully we’ve got a couple more of these that we can do.”

Luis Garcia Jr. also homered for the Yankees, connecting against Sonny Gray’s 1-2 sweeper while leading off the fourth to open the scoring.

The Yankees sent 10 to the plate against Garrett Crochet and Whitlock in their big inning, getting things started with rookie Spencer Jones hustling around the bases.

Jones started things by reaching on a wild-pitch strikeout when he beat catcher Adley Rutschman’s throw by a step on a call that was overturned on replay after the Yankees challenged. Jones then stole second, advanced to third on Rutschman’s throwing error and scored on George Lombard Jr.’s single.

After singles by Jazz Chisholm Jr. and Trent Grisham loaded the bases, Whitlock replaced Crochet. Austin Wells lifted a sacrifice fly, and Ryan McMahon followed with a soft RBI groundout for a 5-1 lead.

“They swung the bats extremely well. You’ve got to give them credit. It was frustrating,” Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said. “ … Both nights it kind of started to accumulate late in the game.”

Willson Contreras homered off Fried in the sixth, and Nick Sogard homered off Will Warren in the seventh for Boston’s only runs of the season.

Wells added an RBI single in the bottom of the seventh.

Gray (0-1) allowed two runs on six hits in 4 2/3 innings, with five strikeouts and no walks. Crochet made his first appearance since April 25, having recovered from a shoulder ailment, and was charged with four runs without recording an out.

The Red Sox finished with seven hits in the series and experienced a disappointing end to a season where they overcame firing their manager in April and having a 32-46 record in late June. Boston vaulted into playoff contention with a 32-5 surge that included a 15-game winning streak but struggled at the plate in the final month.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Replace Anthony with Mead

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BRONX – (Wire Service Report) – Just when they need their most explosive, young hitter, the season ended for Boston’s outfielder and lead-off hitter Roman Anthony. The Red Sox replaced the injured Anthony on their wild-card series roster with infielder Curtis Mead on Wednesday ahead of Game 2 against the New York Yankees.

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Anthony underwent imaging in Boston on Wednesday morning that displayed he had “additional damage to some muscles” in his right hand and wrist, Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said prior to Game 2 of the American League series.

Anthony had an injury to the same hand earlier this season that caused him to miss nearly four months. He returned to action Aug. 30.

“I’ve been experiencing some things with the swings and the check swings over the past six weeks,” Anthony said on Wednesday. “Last night just felt a little bit more intense, a little bit more worse than past swings that have been lingering a little bit longer than the ones I was used to.

“It was just super alarming and it got to a point where it was tough to grip a bat,” Anthony added. “I knew then and there that this was a little bit more similar to the one earlier in the year. That’s why we decided to go get imaging.”

Major League Baseball approved the roster change after reviewing the medical information. Anthony will be ineligible to return if the Red Sox reach the AL Division Series, but he will be eligible to play if Boston advances to the AL Championship Series.

Anthony started Tuesday’s 9-0 loss in Game 1 batting leadoff as the designated hitter and struck out in both at-bats — on check swings — against New York’s Cam Schlittler. The hand injury flared up and he couldn’t continue. Anthony was replaced by Andruw Monasterio in the sixth inning.

Tracy was unsure if the 22-year-old Anthony might require hand surgery.

“I don’t know the answer to that yet,” Tracy said. “I just know that the imaging shows more than what was originally there. So as far as what treatment plans are in the future, haven’t gotten there.

“Just midday today I first found out, yeah, there’s more there that we’re not going to have him. We’ll figure it out as we move along.”

Anthony batted .245 with five homers and 15 RBIs in 55 games.

“After I came back, the hand was never really fully a hundred percent,” Anthony said. “For me, it was to a point where it was tolerable and I was taking certain swings that were sketchy and I was still able to come back and recover enough to just be in there every single day, but, ultimately, I just took a few swings here recently where that wasn’t the case.”

Mead was acquired from the Washington Nationals a few days ahead of the trade deadline and sustained a broken left wrist in his first game with the team.

He was hit by a pitch from Athletics right-hander Jack Perkins in the fourth inning of his debut on July 27.

Mead, 25, hit .254 with 17 homers, 17 doubles and 48 RBIs — all career highs – in 87 games with the Nationals before the trade.

–Field Level Media

Boone Warns Against Over-Confidence

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BRONX – (Wire Service Report) – The New York Yankees believed their starting pitching was strong enough entering the postseason and they possessed just enough offense to consistently win games.

In an impressive all-around showing in the opener of the wild-card series, both came together in a massive way for the Yankees, who hope they do enough again to close out the Boston Red Sox in Game 2 on Wednesday.

New York leads the best-of-three 1-0 and can advance to the division series against the top-seeded Tampa Bay Rays in a best-of-five series that begins Saturday night.

Max Fried will pitch for New York on Wednesday, and if the Yankees close out the series, they can save Gerrit Cole for the opening game of the next round.

After New York’s rotation led the majors with a 3.30 ERA, Cam Schlittler allowed two hits and struck out 10 in 6 1/3 dominant innings against his hometown team before New York scored seven of its runs in the final two innings en route to a 9-0 rout on Tuesday.

Ben Rice, another Massachusetts native, fueled New York’s offense by following his 41-homer season with two homers and six RBIs. Rice hit a solo homer along with a grand slam while tying the team record for RBIs in a postseason game.

“It’s a more confident group, but it’s one game,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said postgame. “… So as much as tonight was a special night here in the Bronx and you could feel that energy, it was electric and so many guys played so well, you enjoy it for a minute. But it’s getting right back after it tomorrow knowing that we’ll have a chance to close it out.”

The Red Sox have lost their past three postseason games to the Yankees, the past two being shutout defeats.

Boston was held to three hits and one walk on Tuesday. Willson Contreras went 0-for-4 with three strikeouts after missing most of the final weeks of the regular season with a hand injury.

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The Red Sox may also be without Roman Anthony for Wednesday. The designated hitter exited after two at-bats in Game 1 because of hand and wrist issues that caused him to miss 101 games until returning Aug. 30.

“Now you have to win two in a row, so you’ve got to be aggressive and try to win as many moments as you can because we’ve got to win two games in a row now to keep the season alive,” Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said.

Fried went 5-5 with a 2.80 ERA in the regular season, including a 1-1 mark with a 2.73 ERA in five starts to end the campaign following his second IL stint.

He last pitched in a 6-1 loss against Tampa Bay on Sept. 22, when he allowed four runs in 6 1/3 innings. Fried went 1-0 with an 0.77 ERA in two starts against Boston this season, giving him a 4-1 record with a 1.93 ERA in seven career outings vs. the Red Sox. He threw 6 1/3 shutout innings against Boston in Game 1 of the 2025 wild-card series, which was eventually won by the Red Sox.

Sonny Gray gets the call for Boston after setting a career high with an AL-best 18 wins to go with a 2.72 ERA. He closed the regular season by throwing six shutout innings to beat the Cleveland Guardians on Sept. 23.

The right-hander is 3-3 with a 3.67 ERA in 10 career starts against the Yankees. This season, Gray went 1-0 with a 1.98 ERA in two games vs. New York.

– Field Level Media

The Two Who Got Away …

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BRONX – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – New York Yankees starter Cam Schlittler – the most definite Cy Young Award winner since Cy Young – will always be known to the Red Sox as the kid from Walpole and Northeastern who got away. The un-hittable righty lasted until the seventh round and 220th overall pick of the 2022 MLB Draft. That means every team had its chance to draft him, to call him one of their own – EVERYBODY.

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Schlittler fanned 10 batters in 6 1/3 dominant innings while Ben Rice homered twice and drove in six runs as the New York Yankees pulled away for a 9-0 rout of the Boston Red Sox in Game 1 of an American League wild-card series on Tuesday night.

Speaking like a seasoned veteran, the young pitcher noted, “Ben has excelled very well in the organization,” Schlittler said. “He was someone I knew while I was in the minors of how well he was excelling. And, again, it’s great to be teammates with him and have that comfortability being from home. And he’s been dominant all season. It’s very exciting to watch. And I’m glad he can go out there today and get his flowers.”

The Yankees can close out the best-of-three series on Wednesday when Max Fried pitches. Sonny Gray will try to extend Boston’s season to a decisive Game 3 on Thursday.

Nearly a year after fanning 12 and allowing five hits in eight scoreless innings in Game 3 of last year’s wild-card series against Boston, Schlittler (1-0) was equally as sharp in his third career postseason start to help the Yankees take the 1-0 series lead.

Schlittler allowed just three baserunners, two singles and a walk. His 117 pitches were not only a career high but the most by a Yankee in a postseason game since CC Sabathia threw a 121-pitch complete game in Game 5 of the 2012 AL Division Series against the Baltimore Orioles.

“They took some tough at-bats against him, I thought, throughout the night that made it hard for him to get super deep,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “But he was terrific. Probably his best curveball of the year to go with obviously, I thought, really good command and in control of his heaters.”

Schlittler threw 77 pitches for strikes while going up against the team he grew up rooting for from his home in Walpole.

“Cam was obviously awfully good,” Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said. “The fastball shapes are well-documented. He’s throwing hard. He also had a good curveball today that you know it’s there but he used it a little bit more often. He landed it if he wanted to for strikes. He was able to get it beneath for swing and miss. We weren’t able to do much with him.”

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Rice, a fellow native of Schlittler’s home state of Massachusetts in nearby Cohasset, hit a solo homer for a 2-0 lead in the fifth off left-handed reliever Erik Miller and added an RBI single in the seventh. He capped a five-run eighth by launching a Grand Slam off Brayan Bello over the right-center-field fence. Rice was a 12th round draft choice (363rd overall) of the 2021 MLB Draft. Again, he was a player everyone but the Yankees passed on.

Rice hit New York’s 16th grand slam in a postseason game and the first since Anthony Volpe hit one in Game 3 of the 2024 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers. Rice went 4-for-5 and had New York’s first four-hit postseason game since Gleyber Torres accomplished the feat in Game 1 of the 2020 wild-card series at Cleveland.

“He pummeled pitches all night,” Boone said. “They went after him a little bit and he made them pay. I mean, some great left-on-left at-bats, the double to right-center smoke, the homer out the front door in Monument Park. And an exclamation point there at the end. Just a big-time night by a great hitter.”

Catcher Austin Wells helped Schlittler by winning an ABS challenge on Wilyer Abreu for a called third strike to end the first inning and hit an RBI single with two on in the second against Boston starter Payton Tolle.

Rookie George Lombard Jr. had three hits and scored two runs.

Tolle allowed one run on five hits in 4 2/3 innings. The left-hander struck out four, walked one and threw 58 of 83 pitches for strikes.

Paul Blackburn (1 2/3 innings) and John Schreiber (one inning) finished the Yankees’ three-hitter.

–Field Level Media

 

Fireballers Take the Stage

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NEW YORK – (Wire Service Preview) – While Cam Schlittler’s first full season with the New York Yankees was among the best in team history, Payton Tolle delivered a strong rookie campaign for the Boston Red Sox.

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Both starting pitchers did more than enough to earn their teams’ trust for Game 1 of the best-of-three wild-card series that begins Tuesday night.

After the intense Schlittler starts for the Yankees, Max Fried has been tabbed for Game 2 followed by Gerrit Cole if Game 3 is necessary. Sonny Gray follows the easygoing Tolle for the Red Sox, who will turn to Ranger Suarez in Game 3 if needed.

Schlittler, 25, won Game 3 in last year’s wild-card series against the Red Sox by striking out 12 in eight dominant innings as New York advanced with a 4-0 victory. He did enough in 14 starts over the final two months of last season to be entrusted with that start after Clarke Schmidt needed elbow surgery.

This season, Schlittler was an important part of the rotation from the start and the Walpole, Mass. native ranks as the prohibitive favorite to win the American League’s Cy Young Award after going 14-6 with a 1.95 ERA and 239 strikeouts in 33 starts.

“It’s special,” Schlittler said. “Being able to get that experience last year in Game 3, it’s a good feeling to go out there and get the first one.”

Schlittler tied Dylan Cease for the AL’s second-most strikeouts. He joined Cole (2.63 in 2023) as the only Yankees to lead the AL in ERA since 1980.

Schlittler also held hitters to a .185 average and ended the season by going 6-1 with a 1.81 ERA in his final 15 starts that spanned 89 2/3 innings.

“We obviously love his makeup,” manager Aaron Boone said Monday. “He’s obviously super-talented and really skilled, but he’s also mentally really tough and able to focus and it seems like the bigger the game, the better he seems to be here in his young career.”

Schlittler also thrived against the Red Sox, who had the pick before the Yankees selected the right-hander in the seventh round of the 2022 draft. Schlittler went 2-1 with a 0.74 ERA in four starts against Boston this year. In those games, he struck out 27 in 24 1/3 innings while holding hitters to a .174 average.

“You’ve got to rely on your strengths,” Schlittler said. “At the same time, you got to see what adjustments they make and kind of just go from there.”

Tolle, 23, didn’t get to make as big of an impact as Schlittler last year. After making three starts and four relief appearances during the regular season, he got to face just one batter in the playoffs — and the lefty retired Trent Grisham for the final out of the eighth inning in Game 2.

This season, he debuted by striking out 11 in six innings against the Yankees during a no-decision on April 23. He stayed in the rotation the rest of the year and posted a 9-6 record with a 3.03 ERA.

Tolle was fourth among qualified AL rookies in ERA and second behind Cleveland’s Parker Messick with 171 strikeouts. He notched 97 of those strikeouts while going 5-0 with a 2.66 ERA over his final 13 starts, as the Red Sox recovered from a 32-46 start by winning 32 of 37 games, including a 15-game winning streak in July.

“When he’s starting, you’re not as much worried about who’s in the lineup, you trust him either way,” Boston manager Chad Tracy said. “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. That’s what we felt like was best.”

Tolle was 1-0 with a 0.69 ERA in two starts against the Yankees — both at Fenway Park. New York was 4-for-43 with 18 strikeouts in their two encounters with Tolle, who held hitters to a .222 average overall.

“It means a lot,” Tolle said. “I think it’s something that you work for for a long time. To be able to get this opportunity is really special. To be able to go out there and try to set the tone as best I can is really special.”

Both pitchers could face lineups missing prominent bats, as Aaron Judge and Willson Contreras are question marks with injuries. The teams must lock in their rosters by the 10 a.m. EDT deadline on Tuesday.

Judge missed the final 10 games with a strained right calf that Boone said was moderate last week. During Sunday’s rainout, he hit and did some throwing indoors. During Monday’s workout, he took batting practice on the field.

The Yankees were 41-25 in games Judge played and 52-43 in games he missed.

Contreras was hit on the hand Sept. 17 and did not return until getting two at-bats in Sunday’s regular-season finale. Tracy seemed to think the first baseman would be on the roster.

– Field Level Media

TL’s Sunday Sports Notes | Sept 27

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By TERRY LYONS

While We’re Young (Ideas) is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

FENWAY – Earlier this season, the Boston Red Sox were 9-19 at Fenway Park, and then the Olde Town Team fell to the depths of an early June record of 27-40 at America’s Most Beloved Ballpark.

At that point in time, playing the Red Sox was truly beloved by every visiting team.

Now, as the season ended and the Red Sox and Chicago Cubs traveled to Tampa-St. Pete to play their 162nd game of the season, the Sox left behind a 41-39 record at Fenway – a miraculous midseason turnaround. Boston won 18 of their final 30 series, including 10 of their final 16 home series, dating back to June 12.

On Friday, against the Chicago Cubs, Boston recorded its AL-leading 18th pitching shutout of the season and second of their last four games. They also shutdown Cleveland on Sept. 23rd. The Sox lead the AL but trail Philadelphia (19) for the MLB lead in shutouts. For Boston, it’s the second most shutouts in the Live-Ball Era (since 1920) behind 1972 when they registered 20.

Amongst the most miraculous of turn-arounds has been the season of Brayan Bello who was demoted to the minors earlier in the season but has bounced back in his 13 games (including three starts) since the All-Star break. Bello is 4-1 with a 2.12 ERA in 51 innings with 43 strikeouts.

On the offensive side, no Sox player has been more inconsistent than Jarren Duran. Dialing it back to 2023, Duran batted .295 (BA)/.346 OBP; In 2024, .285 (BA)/.342 OBP with career highs in At Bats – 671; Doubles 48 and Triples 14. He had a 20/20 season with Home Runs and Stolen Bases.

This year, Duran is batting .208 (BA)/.267 (OBP). While Duran registered another 20/20 season, his WAR (Wins Above Replacement) went from a luxurious 9.0 in ‘24 to a measly 0.6 this season. Duran’s season-long Runs Batting went from (31) in ‘24 to (-19) this season.

Looking ahead to a Wild Card series against the New York Yankees, this season Duran batted .211 in 38 At Bats. At least .211 > .208.

The streaks, stats and game scores over the course of 161 games, underlines the fact the Red Sox are about as inconsistent as a team can be. One month – invincible. Another – anemic. And, it’s not just Duran. It’s everyone.

Outfielder and leadoff man Roman Anthony had been sidelined for the vast amount of the season but has returned to his position in left (or DH) and on top of the Red Sox batting order and he’s been hot, including a three-for-four performance Friday by way of two doubles and a triple. After that, the Sox can’t put three hot bats together on any given night.

Since September 19, the Sox have lost games by the score of 2-1, 5-1, 3-2 and 1-0. That’s four runs in four key games. That noted, they head into the final game of the regular season with a three-of-four win streak.

Regarding the New York Yankees, the Red Sox lost three of four between August 28-30, splitting a doubleheader on the 29th. Back in late June, Boston took four straight between June 25 and June 28th. Those four wins began a run to take the Sox from a dismal 26-35 on June 4th to 64-51 on August 7th. That’s a 38-16 maneuver into playoff contention. It eventually locked the Sox into the No. 5 Wild Card seed, facing the Yankees (No. 4) while the No. 3 Houston Astros face the No. 6 Chicago White Sox.

The Red Sox will play New York in a best-of-three Tuesday-Wednesday-Thursday (Sept. 29-Oct 1).

HERE NOW, THE NOTES: The WNBA Playoffs begin Sunday, September 27 with a 30-minute WNBA Countdown (Presented by Google Pixel) at 1:30pm ET on ABC and streaming on the ESPN App, followed by a first-round doubleheader. At 2:00pm, Napheesa Collier and the top-seeded Minnesota Lynx, the No. 1 seed for the second consecutive year, host Breanna Stewart and the No. 8 New York Liberty in a rematch of the 2024 WNBA Finals. At 4 p.m., reigning WNBA MVP A’ja Wilson and the No. 3 Las Vegas Aces begin their title defense against Caitlin Clark and the No. 6 Indiana Fever.

ESPN is coming off its most-watched WNBA regular season ever as the league celebrated its 30th season. This season also marked the third straight year ESPN has delivered its most-viewed WNBA regular season on record. Across 29 games, the WNBA on ESPN networks averaged 1.37M viewers, up 17% year-over-year and ranking as ESPN networks’ most-viewed WNBA regular season on record. ESPN presented 17 games this season, averaging 1.24M viewers, up 32% year-over-year, while 12 games on ABC averaged 1.56M viewers, up 9% year-over-year.

WNBA Playoff games will be telecast by Prime Video, USA Network, CNBC, along with ESPN and ABC.

TIDBITS & NUGGETS: The Travelers Championship recently announced that the 2026 tournament generated more than $5 million for 290 charities, setting record highs in both categories. Funds were distributed to representatives from participating nonprofits at the annual Travelers Championship Charity Celebration at TPC River Highlands.

Howie Singer, longtime producer and director for New York Knicks games on the MSG Network became the first television director to receive the prestigious Governors’ Award at the New York Sports Emmy Awards reception this past week. Singer began in the 1981-82 season and has worked Knicks games ever since. Along the way, he directed dozens of NBA Playoff games for Turner Broadcasting, produced and directed USA Basketball Showcase and Olympics/World Cup games, NBA Finals and NBA All-Star Games for the league’s World Feed.

Golden State’s Stephen Curry agreed to a two-year contract extension reportedly worth $116 million that would take him through the 2028-29 season. Curry was eligible to command up to $136 million, so he is giving his club a discount as he backs up his longstanding commitment to finish his career with the Warriors.

Gary Bettman will begin his 34th season as NHL Commissioner. The one time General Counsel of the NBA under then-Commissioner David Stern and Deputy Commissioner Russ Granik is now the longest-serving commissioner among the major North American sports leagues.

“We’re coming off a season of record revenues and record attendance, said Bettman to the Sports Business Journal. “Our ratings were through the roof in the United States, we’re over 80 national sponsors and we want to continue to first make sure the game maintains its entertaining, compelling nature because we’ve had a spectacular run on the ice.”

“It’s On to Tampa Bay”

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FENWAY – (Staff Report from Official Team News Statement) – Major League Baseball announced today that the Red Sox series finale against the Chicago Cubs will be relocated to Tropicana Field in St. Petersburg, Florida. Originally set for 7:15 p.m. on September 25 at Fenway Park, the new game is scheduled for 3:05 p.m. on Sunday, September 26 at the home of the Tampa Bay Rays.

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The change was made in continued consultation with the Boston Red Sox and the Chicago Cubs due to the unchanged forecast of a major nor’easter expected to bring heavy rain, high winds, and potential flooding to the region during the weekend. Tickets purchased directly from the Red Sox will be automatically refunded back to the original payment. The ticket will hold no cash value. Refunds will be completed within 7 days. Sunday’s game will be televised on NESN

Red Sox Rally Past Cubs

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FENWAY – (Wire Service Report) – Boston left fielder Roman Anthony went 3-for-3 with three runs, including one on Connor Wong’s tie-breaking RBI double in the seventh inning, leading the Red Sox to a 4-3 win over the visiting Chicago Cubs in the first game of their Friday doubleheader.

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Anthony hit two doubles and walked before lining a one-out triple down the right field line off Cubs reliever Aaron Civale (6-8) to spark the Red Sox in the seventh. Wong then drove in Anthony, lining a double over third baseman Matt Shaw’s leap and into the left field corner.

Adley Rutschman was 2-for-4 with two RBIs for the Red Sox (86-74), tying the game with a two-run single in the fifth.

Greg Weissert (4-2) pitched 1 1/3 innings of scoreless relief to earn the victory. Raymond Burgos locked down his second save of the season, striking out three of the final six batters.

Shaw and Michael Busch both had multiple hits and Miguel Amaya drove in two for the Cubs (88-72), who clinched a National League playoff berth Thursday and remain in the running to host a wild-card series.

Alex Bregman returned to Chicago’s lineup just five days after sustaining multiple facial fractures from a foul ball. He went 0-for-4 as the designated hitter.

The Cubs struck first in the opening frame. After Red Sox opener Alec Gamboa struck out leadoff hitter Pete Crow-Armstrong, Seiya Suzuki walked and scored when Tyrone Taylor hit a two-out RBI double into the wind and off the Green Monster two batters later.

Back-to-back hits by Shaw and Busch to start the second helped Chicago extend its lead to 3-0. After Shaw was cut down on Dansby Swanson’s fielder’s choice, Amaya knocked a two-run double down the left field line.

The Red Sox wasted Anthony’s leadoff double in the first and two on with one out in the second, but cut into their deficit with a run in the third. Anthony drew a leadoff walk and reached second on Rutschman’s single to right before scoring on shortstop Swanson’s overthrow while attempting to double up Wilyer Abreu.

Rutschman’s game-tying single up the middle came after Caleb Thielbar relieved Holmes in the fifth. Setting the table, Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit a leadoff single to left before Anthony doubled into the corner.

Jake Bennett pitched 3+ innings of three-hit shutout ball behind Gamboa.

Cubs starter Clay Holmes allowed three runs (two earned) in his 4 1/3-inning start.

Red Sox catcher Mickey Gasper left with right biceps discomfort after striking out in the fifth.

–Field Level Media

Cubs Visit Cold, Rainy Boston for Finale

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BOSTON – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – As Boston braces for an extended nor’easter, the Red Sox and the visiting Chicago Cubs are looking to get ahead of the storm and make sure baseball gets played with a Friday doubleheader.

The teams will begin their final regular-season series with 1:05 and 6:05 p.m. games today. The opener originally was slated for Sunday. The clubs’ final regular-season game remains set for Saturday night, but it could be moved to another location with multiple days of continued wind and rain in the Boston-area forecast.

“There have been discussions around an alternate site. They’ve talked about a handful of different places. But at this point, nothing is concrete,” Red Sox manager Chad Tracy said before his team’s 1-0 loss to the Cleveland Guardians on Thursday.

The Cubs (88-71) earned a 2-1 win over the Miami Marlins on Thursday afternoon, clinching their second straight postseason berth.

It was a memorable day in Chicago even before the result. Pete Crow-Armstrong became the seventh 40-homer, 40-steal player in major league history after stealing second base in the first inning. The National League MVP favorite has 45 homers to go with his 40 steals.

“You’re just part of enjoying it,” Cubs manager Craig Counsell said. “And I think it’s the things you remember about the job, moments like that and moments that he’s provided all of us.”

Chicago’s Seiya Suzuki homered and Nico Hoerner had the deciding RBI in the playoff clincher.

The Cubs have work to do this weekend if they want to host a best-of-three wild-card series. Chicago sits in the second NL wild-card spot, one game behind the San Diego Padres (89-70) and one game up on the Philadelphia Phillies (87-72). The top wild-card team stays home through the opening round of the playoffs.

“It’s a time when things feel stronger — the end of the season with a lot on the line,” Hoerner said. “Those are also times with the greatest opportunity, too. So just really leaning into all of it.”

The Cubs are expected to start Clay Holmes (6-8, 3.25 ERA) and David Peterson (9-8, 4.96) — both midseason acquisitions from the New York Mets — in the Friday games.

Holmes allowed six runs in 5 1/3 innings in a Sept. 18 loss to the Cincinnati Reds, and he is 0-2 with a 9.39 ERA in three starts this month. He has faced the Red Sox 21 times in his career (one start), going 4-2 with a 3.42 ERA and four saves.

Peterson threw six innings of one-run ball while fanning seven in each of his past two outings, including Sunday against the Reds. He is 2-1 with a 2.79 ERA in five career outings (three starts) opposite Boston.

The Red Sox (85-74) have lost four of their last five, scoring no more than two runs in any contest over that span. The recent series loss to Cleveland finished a split of consecutive 1-0 games, a Red Sox win on Wednesday and a Guardians victory on Thursday.

In the series finale, Boston managed only two hits, singles by Nick Sogard and Jarren Duran, wasting a solid five-inning pitching performance from Ranger Suarez.

Andruw Monasterio snapped an 0-for-21 skid with a game-winning RBI single the previous night.

“Over these next three games, if you see some (offense) bust out, that would be great,” Tracy said. “We did have some quality plate appearances from certain guys, which was good to see.”

Tracy’s lineup on Thursday included Ceddanne Rafaela in center field. One night earlier, Rafaela exited the game due to right hamstring tightness. However, first baseman Willson Contreras sat out his sixth game in a row.

Contreras was hit in the right hand by a pitch a week ago, and he couldn’t swing a bat the past two days. Tracy hopes to have him back for postseason play on Tuesday, but the first baseman gave a disappointing update about his condition.

“It’s really frustrating when you’re doing the best you can do, you’re expecting to heal faster and it doesn’t happen,” Contreras said.

Rookie southpaw Alec Gamboa (1-0, 1.16 ERA) will pitch for the Red Sox in the Friday afternoon game. He has made 20 appearances this season, including two outings as an opener. In his past 13 outings, he has allowed just two runs, one earned, in 18 innings (0.50 ERA).

Gamboa will be facing the Cubs for the first time.

Right-hander Brayan Bello (6-7, 4.49) is slated to start the nightcap after striking out 11 Tampa Bay Rays over eight innings of one-run ball on Saturday.

In two career starts vs. the Cubs, Bello is 1-1 with a 4.50 ERA.

–Field Level Media

Sonny Gray, Sox Shut-Out Guardians

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FENWAY – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – Boston’s reserve utilityman Andruw Monasterio’s sixth-inning RBI single and starting pitcher Sonny Gray’s six shutout innings propelled the ed Sox to a 1-0 win over the visiting Cleveland Guardians on Wednesday night.

The Red Sox (85-73) managed the lone run on 12 hits, all singles. They went 1-for-9 with runners in scoring position and left eight men on base through five innings before Monasterio’s run-scoring, two-out knock off Cleveland starter Foster Griffin (15-6) broke the deadlock.

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In the sixth, Jarren Duran (2-for-3) lined a leadoff single to left and moved to second on a groundout. He scored from second base on Monasterio’s knock, sliding ahead of left fielder Steven Kwan’s relay throw and catcher Patrick Bailey’s tag.

Gray (18-5) struck out three while allowing four hits and one walk to increase his American League-leading win total. Tyron Guerrero, Garrett Whitlock and Aroldis Chapman each threw a scoreless inning to finish off Boston’s 17th shutout victory of the season.

Chapman struck out the side in the ninth to log his 35th save as Boston snapped a three-game losing streak.

Red Sox center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela returned from a 17-game injury absence caused by a right quad strain to record all three outs in the first, including a spectacular diving catch on Kwan, the leadoff hitter who still went 2-for-4 for Cleveland (82-76).

Griffin worked six frames, striking out seven and allowing one run on 10 hits and no walks.

The Guardians remained one game up on the White Sox (81-77) in the American League Central after Chicago lost 5-4 at Kansas City on Wednesday.

Rafaela hit a leadoff single in the second inning but appeared to be in pain after reaching first. He stayed in the game to run the bases and initially took his defensive position before Duran replaced him. The Red Sox announced that Rafaela was dealing with right hamstring tightness.

Rafaela’s defense helped Gray retire the first six men he faced. Bailey recorded Cleveland’s first hit with a leadoff single in the third, but a 6-3 double play ended the inning without any damage. Gray fanned a pair of Guardians to strand two to end the fourth.

After the lone run scored and Gray exited, Guerrero struck out three in the seventh after a leadoff walk. Whitlock worked around Brayan Rocchio’s leadoff single and Jose Ramirez’s one-out walk in the eighth, inducing an inning-ending double-play grounder from Chase DeLauter.

–Field Level Media