The Boston Red Sox dropped their series finale against the Athletics on Thursday afternoon, losing the rubber game at Fenway Park 5-3.

One bright spot came from the Red Sox’s bullpen, however, as rookie Payton Tolle shined in his first Major League relief appearance.

After burning through his bullpen in Wednesday’s 10-inning victory, Alex Cora needed someone to give him some bulk on Thursday after Brayan Bello lasted just four innings. He turned to Tolle, who recently moved from the rotation to the bullpen.

After struggling in his first three career starts (0-1, 7.84 ERA), the 22-year-old rookie dazzled in his first career relief appearance. He allowed just one unearned run, three hits and no walks over three innings while racking up four strikeouts, whiffing the first three batters he faced.

The hard-throwing lefty came out firing in his first outing since Sept. 10 and recorded the fastest pitch of his MLB career thus far, fanning fellow rookie Nick Kurtz on a 99.7 mph fastball to end the top of the fifth inning. He also showed good control along with his elite velocity, throwing 34 of his 50 pitches for strikes.

While Tolle stopped the bleeding, his teammates weren’t able to rally behind him as their recent offensive struggles continued. Boston now leads the Cleveland Guardians — who won on Thursday — by just 1.5 games for the third Wild Card spot with nine games remaining.

Given Tolle’s terrific first impression out of the bullpen, Cora will likely use him in a similar role going forward. The Red Sox need all the pitching help they can get as they try to make the playoffs, and Tolle proved he can be a valuable weapon out of the bullpen down the stretch.

After losing five of its last seven games, Boston will try to bounce back on the road against the Tampa Bay Rays this weekend.