Red Sox's Projected Playoff Roster for 2026 ALWCS, Including Garrett Crochet

The 2026 Major League Baseball postseason is here.

On Tuesday night, the Boston Red Sox will face off against the New York Yankees in the American League wild-card series in Game 1. The winner of the best-of-three series will face off against the Tampa Bay Rays in the American League Division Series. But that's thinking too far ahead right now. It's going to be an electric series against New York and before the Red Sox can think about anything ahead, they need to announce their wild-card roster and get through this series, in the first place.

The Red Sox haven't announced their roster yet, but that should come early on Tuesday. The biggest for Boston is going to be whether or not it puts Garrett Crochet on the roster. With that being said, let's project what the playoff roster could look like with him on it.

Position Players

Catcher (2)

Sep 23, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox catcher Adley Rutschman (31) hits a single against the Cleveland Guardians during the third inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Adley Rutschman, Connor Wong

This is going to be one of the easier decisions for the Red Sox. If Mickey Gasper were healthy, this could've been different. But he hurt his bicep towards the end of the regular season. So, here we are. Rutschman is the main guy and Wong will be the backup.

Infielders (6)

Aug 21, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox first baseman Willson Contreras (40) and third baseman Caleb Durbin (5) celebrate after defeating the San Francisco Giants at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Paul Rutherford-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Willson Contreras, Nick Sogard, Isiah Kiner-Falefa, Caleb Durbin, Trevor Story, Andruw Monasterio

There was some fear about Contreras leading up to the wild-card series, but he's alright. Contreras returned to the lineup on Sunday and should be good to go. He'll be at first base and then the rest of the infield should have Sogard at second base, Story at shortstop and Durbin at the hot corner.

Outfielders (5)

Sep 25, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox left fielder Roman Anthony (19) catches a fly ball hit by Chicago Cubs designated hitter Alex Bregman (3) (not pictured) during the fifth inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: Gregory Fisher-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Jarren Duran, Roman Anthony, Jahmai Jones, Ceddanne Rafaela, Wilyer Abreu

The biggest question here is whether Braiden Ward will be on the playoff roster. He's in New York and had 61 steals in the regular season for Triple-A Worcester. For now, we'll leave him off. In this scenario, you can roll with Anthony, Rafaela and Abreu in the outfield and Duran at designated hitter. The reason why Duran would make sense as the DH is that you could then pinch-hit later in the game and replace him with Jones, and not put the veteran in the field.

Pitchers

Starters (4)

Sep 22, 2026; Boston, Massachusetts, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Payton Tolle (70) throws a pitch against the Cleveland Guardians in the first inning at Fenway Park. Mandatory Credit: David Butler II-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Payton Tolle, Sonny Gray, Ranger Suarez, Jake Bennett

Tolle is set to start Game 1. Gray is set to start Game 2. Suarez will start Game 3, if one is necessary. The Red Sox don't need a fourth starter, but Bennett would be the guy. He'll surely be on the roster, even if he doesn't start. In that case, he'll certainly be used out of the bullpen.

Bullpen (9)

Apr 25, 2026; Baltimore, Maryland, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Garrett Crochet (35) throws during the first inning against the Baltimore Orioles at Oriole Park at Camden Yards. Mandatory Credit: Daniel Kucin Jr.-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Garrett Crochet, Aroldis Chapman, Garrett Whitlock, Erik Miller, Brayan Bello, Jovani Moran, Greg Weissert, Wyatt Olds, Alec Gamboa

Crochet has been working his way back and came out of his weekend bullpen feeling good. At this point, why not give the big lefty a shot? He says he's feeling well. If the Red Sox have seen him look like himself in these bullpens, they should roll with him.

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