Sonny Gray Controversy Emerges After Red Sox Eliminated
So why was Sonny Gray pulled from the game in the 5th inning by Boston Red Sox manager Chad Tracy last night? He had been one of the best pitchers in baseball all season, and was pitching pretty well, holding the Yankees to just one run to that point, though there were two runners on base.
Gray himself was furious afterwards at being pulled, saying, “I think I’m the best pitcher in the American League going through the order a third time. I think that’s a fact,” Gray said. “I would have liked to have been trusted in that moment.”
But there was another controversy brewing online about Gray's performance that might have led to his removal. He was caught by the broadcast cameras scooping what looked like "sticky stuff" off the side of his neck while pitching.
Images of Gray's neck went viral on social media after what looked like something caked onto the back of it during the 5th inning, and he would scoop his hands on it before throwing a pitch.
Jomboy breaks it down, calling it all "very obvious".
So Gray was pulled with two on and two out in the 5th in a 1-0 game that the Red Sox would go on to lose 9-2, thereby being eliminated by the Yankees in two straight in the Wild Card series.
Afterwards, Gray was noncommittal about wanting to return to the Red Sox if he continues to pitch next season.
When Sonny Gray was asked if the Red Sox were a destination he'd want to return to...
— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) October 1, 2026
"I don't know." pic.twitter.com/YBWE1SRZth
Another sticky end to a season in Boston.