Yankees Fans Can Stop Crying Foul on Red Sox's Sonny Gray

Not that this changes the series in any way, of course

Sep 30, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Sonny Gray (54) looks on after New York Yankees first baseman Luis Garcia Jr. (26) hits a home run in the fourth inning during game two of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

The Boston Red Sox's season eulogies have all been read, but the one thing that some still considered to be up for debate was Sonny Gray.

In Game 2 of last week's Wild Card Series against the New York Yankees, Gray had some visible debris on the side of his neck. It looked more like a combination of sweat and dirt and rosin than any banned substance for pitchers like pine tar, but controversy ensued regardless.

Sonny Gray obviously had sticky stuff on his neck, a breakdown pic.twitter.com/ii41NNMsDK

— Jimmy O'Brien (@Jomboy_) October 1, 2026

After Jomboy Media's mini-breakdown video of Gray touching his neck repeatedly went viral, there were plenty of Yankees fans who took the opportunity to carry on their grudges against the right-hander. However, if those fans were looking for a hammer still to drop, they'll have to keep dreaming.

Update on Gray "sticky stuff" controversy

Sep 30, 2026; Bronx, New York, USA; Boston Red Sox pitcher Sonny Gray (54) delivers a pitch in the first inning against the New York Yankees during game two of the Wildcard round for the 2026 MLB Playoffs at Yankee Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

On Tuesday, Chris Cotillo of MassLive reported that Major League Baseball had at least "looked into" the controversy, but gave strong evidence that there would be no forthcoming punishment, without confirming full resolution of whatever investigation that was pending.

"I’m told MLB looked into Sonny Gray potentially using sticky stuff in his Game 2 start in the Bronx last week — but he obviously passed in-game standard checks without penalty, which suggests he is in the clear," wrote Cotillo. "Any discipline would likely have been levied by now anyway."

In the game itself, Gray pitched better than his final stat line deserved. He was pulled with two outs in the fifth inning as part of an aggressive strategy to pitch to the Yankees' lefties, and it quickly backfired, as Cody Bellinger singled off reliever Erik Miller to turn a 1-0 deficit into 2-0, tagging Gray with a second earned run.

The Yankees and their fans undoubtedly got the last laugh against Boston, though the first two games of their Division Series against the Tampa Bay Rays have to be making it difficult to celebrate.

But it was petty in the beginning to be coming after Gray for supposed "cheating" when it was a strong possibility the entire time that the substance on his neck was not only legal, but being closely supervised by the umpiring crew.

And if you rewatch that Jomboy video, it's fairly clear that Jimmy O'Brien was being tongue-in-cheek about the whole situation, which is just part of the content business, we suppose.