Another year, another miserable first round playoff exit for the Boston Red Sox.
Gone are the days of 2004 (and 2007, 2013 and 2018). After owning the New York Yankees – and baseball – for nearly 15 years, the Red Sox lost their grip on their rival and the league.
Speaking of grip…
Fans spent the night taking a dig at Boston’s Game 2 starter Sonny Gray after images of the Red Sox pitcher’s neck went viral on social media after… something… appeared to get stuck to his back during the final stages of last night’s start.
RED SOX STUNNED IN GAME 1 OF WILD CARD SERIES AGAINST YANKEES
Sonny Gray of the Boston Red Sox reacts after giving up a solo home run in the fourth inning against the New York Yankees in Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on September 30, 2026, in the Bronx borough of New York. (Getty Images)
That’s correct. As if the Red Sox didn’t embarrass themselves enough on national television for two nights in a row, now we have allegations of cheating as the organization limps into the offseason on the sourest note ever.
Take a look and judge for yourself:
Sonny Gray’s neck causes social media frenzy
Thoughts? First impressions?
Look, I’ve been watching Sonny Gray all season. The guy has been touching his neck like this since the first pitch in Cincinnati in March. That in itself means nothing to me, because that’s just what he does.
It’s also important to note that that thing on Gray’s neck didn’t appear at all until round five, as best I can tell. That’s not to say it wasn’t there, but it just wasn’t a “problem” at all until the last few batters of Gray’s outing.
YANKEES BULLPEN CATCHER HEAD SHOTS BEN RICE’S GRAND SLAM VS RED SOX
Sonny Gray #54 of the Boston Red Sox leaves the mound against the New York Yankees during the third inning of Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium on September 30, 2026, in the Bronx borough of New York. (Getty Images)
Obviously, fans are convinced it was pine tar. Even Jomboy — the media company that MLB purchased a stake in last summer — released this lengthy video accusing Gray of using “tacky stuff.”
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Besides, it’s quite rich coming from a VERY FAIR AND BALANCED point of sale like Jomboywhich is 90% Yankees fans.
Glad MLB partnered with them! But that’s neither here nor there.
I’m not telling you whether Gray had pine tar on the back of his neck or not. He’s a 36-year veteran who will probably retire here in a few days. At least that’s what he’s hinted at this season. He’s probably finished.
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Why would he take this risk on what could be his last league start? No idea. This doesn’t make much sense to me.
Boston Red Sox manager Chad Tracy removes Sonny Gray from the game against the New York Yankees in the fifth inning of Game 2 of the American League Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx, New York on September 30, 2026. (Getty Images)
These days, these pitchers are also searched as if they were going through a TSA line after every inning. This is not as easy to achieve as it was ten years ago when this sort of thing was everywhere in sports. That’s kind of the point.
I’m not saying it wasn’t the case something on his neck, just saying that probably deserves a little more context. Gray never addressed what was on his neck in the postgame press conference with reporters and the referees never raised an eyebrow about what was there.
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And if it is was pine tar, maybe Red Sox manager Chad Tracy should have left Gray in there instead of pulling him to 70 pitches and entrusting him to a bullpen that was quickly bombed?
He seemed to be doing great, jump!
Gn sports
