Worcester pitcher Payton Tolle walks the line after being introduced on Opening Day March 27 at Polar Park. Rick Cinclair/Telegram & Gazette / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
While the Boston Red Sox haven’t made an official announcement, it certainly sounds like all signs are pointing towards No. 1 prospect Payton Tolle getting the call to the majors for the club’s upcoming series against the Baltimore Orioles.
Boston began a three-game series against the New York Yankees on Tuesday night that will wrap up on Thursday. The Red Sox will begin a three-game series on the road against the Orioles on Friday night. As of writing, the Red Sox haven’t announced starters yet for any of the three contests. Brayan Bello will start on Thursday against New York, meaning Garrett Crochet will likely nab one of the starts on Friday or Saturday, with the other up in the air.
That’s where Tolle comes in.
MassLive.com’s Katie Morrison-O’Day shared on X on Tuesday that Triple-A Worcester manager, Chad Tracy, said there is a “pretty good likelihood” that Tolle will be promoted to the big leagues throughout this week at some point.
The Red Sox Have A Decision To Make
“There’s a ‘pretty good likelihood’ Tolle goes up to the Red Sox this week, according to Chad Tracy — he’s not scheduled to pitch in Worcester this week as of now,” Morrison-O’Day wrote.
MLB.com’s Ian Browne followed up and noted that it sounds like Tolle will get a start against Baltimore.
This comes after Sonny Gray was placed on the 15-Day Injured List on Tuesday morning.
Bringing up Tolle is the obvious and correct decision. Again, the club hasn’t announced anything yet, but this is the right call if they do in fact make it, which is the most likely option at this point. Neither Kutter Crawford nor Patrick Sandoval is ready to go. Johan Oviedo is on the Injured List. Frankly, it seems like the options for the Red Sox at this moment are Tolle, No. 7 prospect Jake Bennett, or some sort of bullpen day. There really aren’t many other options because of the fact that injuries have really impacted this club so far in 2026.
Tolle appeared in seven games, including three starts, for Boston last season and had a 6.06 ERA in the regular season. He had one scoreless outing in the playoffs for Boston against the New York Yankees. In Spring Training, he made his case to make the team with a 2.53 ERA in 10 2/3 innings across four outings. Tolle didn’t get the call out of camp, but he has been good down in Triple-A with a 3.00 ERA in three starts.
It’s tough to lose Gray. But at least Boston has an MLB-ready flamethrower with star potential ready to go.
