Sonny Gray Was Skipped for Extra Rest; Here's Where Red Sox Ace Stands Now

On Tuesday night, the Boston Red Sox turned to Jedixson Páez on the hill as the club opted to skip righty Sonny Gray in the rotation this time around.

Páez had a tough night in his Boston debut. The 22-year-old righty allowed eight earned runs in 3 2/3 innings against the Seattle Mariners, including two homers. On the bright side, Roman Anthony and Trevor Story continued to thrive in their return. Now, Páez is expected to return to Triple-A on Wednesday with a reliever expected to replace him, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive.com.

"No surprise but Jedixson Páez is going down and the Red Sox will get a fresh bullpen arm up tomorrow," Cotillo wrote.

Páez filled in on a tough night overall for Boston. Obviously, it would've been better if the Red Sox could've had Gray on the hill, but the Red Sox made the right call by pushing him back. On Tuesday, Red Sox interim manager Chad Tracy was asked about the decision and made it clear that it wasn't just an example of getting rest for rest's sake, but it was a necessity after his last few starts.

Boston Is Trying To Keep Sonny Gray Fresh

Aug 26, 2026; Miami, Florida, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Sonny Gray (54) delivers a pitch against the Miami Marlins during the first inning at loanDepot Park. Mandatory Credit: Sam Navarro-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

"I wouldn't call it prioritizing rest," Tracy said. "I think it was necessary. It wasn't just like, 'Hey, let's do this.' It was necessary. It was a conversation that happened a while ago and then as he had his last couple of outings, we continued talking and felt like it was necessary for him to get some rest for him physically to stay on line. It's not something we just walked in to intentionally. It was necessary. If that has him in a really good spot on the backside of this, then that's good."

Chad Tracy says this wasn't a situation where the Red Sox were prioritizing rest. It was a neccessary break for Sonny Gray based on conversations they've had after his recent starts.

Also, seems like there's a roster move coming to add a fresh arm for tomorrow. pic.twitter.com/chP0V2fiWw
— Tyler Milliken (@tylermilliken_) September 2, 2026

Fortunately, Gray said that he "feels fine" earlier in the week and the current expectation is that he'll start on Saturday against the Baltimore Orioles. With all of the injuries that have plagued Boston this season, it's even more important to make sure that Gray is as close to 100 percent as possible. At this point in the year, everyone seemingly is banged up in some way. The season is a marathon and bumps and bruises add up.

Gray is 36 years old and already has 143 2/3 innings of action under his belt this season. He has been Boston's ace. Gray has a 2.82 ERA and is leading the league with 16 wins. Boston needs that version of him down the stretch and especially in the postseason. Over his last seven starts, Gray has a 3.64 ERA. That number is skewed by two tough starts towards the end of July. He started to look more like himself in August with a 2.40 ERA in five starts.

Clearly, the Red Sox have noticed something, though, if they're saying it was necessary for Gray to have a few extra days of rest. With a few weeks to go until the end of the regular season, the Red Sox need to find a way to keep him healthy, while also keeping him fresh on the hill.

When the playoffs kick off, Gray is your Game 1 starter. It was a tough night for Páez on Tuesday, but if pushing Gray keeps him fresh for the playoffs, that's going to be much more important than one loss.

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