Red Sox Go From 10-17 to Playoffs Under Tracy — SkimNews
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- The Red Sox fired manager Alex Cora and five other coaches on April 26 after starting 10-17; Triple-A manager Chad Tracy, then managing in Worcester, was promoted to replace him after learning of the job through a clandestine phone call mid-game
- Boston's low point came in late June at 14 games under .500, the worst record in the American League, after losing two of three to the Colorado Rockies
- A stranded plane in Denver became the turning point — hours stuck on the tarmac unable to take off broke down walls between players and staff, sparking a 15-game winning streak and a 32-5 stretch that included another 10-game winning streak
- Over roughly 50 days, the Red Sox went from the AL's worst team to clinching an American League wild-card spot (clinched Sunday)
- Rookie Payton Tolle emerged as the AL's best rookie pitcher; his sneakers read "GOT" on the left heel and "JOY" on the right, a tribute to his mother Jina, who died less than three years ago after a long fight with cancer
- Caleb Durbin went from "one of the worst players in the league" to a season with a WAR above 4, while 38-year-old Aroldis Chapman kept throwing 96-98 mph fastballs in his 17th major league season
- Tracy's first team meeting with the squad lasted roughly five minutes and contained no baseball X's and O's — only a reassurance that "it's going to take time, but we'll be OK," which he saw as a sigh of relief from 26 frustrated players
Why it matters: The Red Sox went from a club that fired its manager after 27 games and bottomed out at 14 games under .500 into a playoff team, with Tracy rebuilding clubhouse culture around relief rather than tactics and rookie Payton Tolle anchoring the staff — a reminder that managerial change and chemistry, not just roster moves, can flip a season. Key actors Craig Breslow (chief baseball officer) and Tracy now face an October test of whether that chemistry holds under playoff pressure.
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