The Boston Red Sox suffered a sweep at the hands of their bitter rival New York Yankees. Pitcher Payton Tolle at least did everything in his power to try and get a win.

After the loss, Tolle put any Boston matchup versus New York into perspective. He wants the Red Sox to be on top of their storied rivalry, via NESN.

“You want to beat the Yankees all the time,” Tolle said. “Having a night like this is fun, but as you can tell, this locker room wants more than just a good pitching performance. At the end of the day, we want to win.”

In a 4-2 loss, Tolle pitched six innings of one run baseball, allowing three hits and a walk while striking out 11. With Sonny Gray on the injured list, Boston is in need of starting pitching. If Tolle keeps performing like this, he won’t be giving up his spot quickly.

While his first run in the majors came with flashes of brilliance, his most recent start was clearly he best. Over his seven MLB appearances in 2025, Tolle held a 6.06 ERA and a 19/8 K/BB ratio. He seemed to work out the kinks to begin 2026 in Triple-A though. Before his call up, the left-hander held a 3.00 ERA and a 19/4 K/BB ratio over three starts. Now, he is trying to put it all together at the major league level.

His Red Sox teammates must follow suit, against the Yankees or any competition. Their latest loss dropped them to 9-16 on the season. Tolle is happy with his breakout performance. But he knows the most important thing is his team winning.