When the New York Yankees and the Boston Red Sox meet for the first time this year, Tuesday at Fenway Park, they’ll be going in different directions.
The Yankees will be battling to stay atop the American League East, despite encountering a few early bumps, including a leaky bullpen. The Red Sox will be trying to further claw their way out of the division cellar with a lineup that’s lacked power and a starting rotation that’s been among the sport’s worst.
Here are three storylines to watch for each team ahead of the three-game series.
Most immediate worry
Yankees: The bullpen is the easy answer
Closer David Bednar (six saves, 4.15 ERA) has worked around a lot of self-made trouble. Lefty Tim Hill and righty Fernando Cruz have been stoppers. Starter-turned-reliever Brent Headrick, a lefty, has been a revelation, posting a 1.59 ERA, but the Yankees are going to run him into the ground, as he’s tied for the most appearances in the AL at 13.
But everyone else? Yikes.
Camilo Doval (10 games, 7.56 ERA) has flashed great stuff but been erratic. Paul Blackburn and Ryan Yarbrough are glorified mop-up men. The club sent down Jake Bird (eight games, 7.71 ERA) and turned to a revolving-door cast of Triple-A types.
The Yankees will get some help when Carlos Rodón and Gerrit Cole return to the rotation, pushing starters to the bullpen, likely Luis Gil and Ryan Weathers.
Until then? Hold onto your butts, as Samuel L. Jackson said in “Jurassic Park.” — Kuty
Red Sox: Offensive inconsistency
On Monday, the Red Sox scored eight runs after managing just four total in their previous three games. That’s been the story of their season: Bursts of offense followed by prolonged dry spells.
Strikeouts have been an issue. They’ve registered 10 games in which they’ve struck out 10 or more times and, unsurprisingly, are 1-9 in those games.
After an offseason in which the Red Sox added only Willson Contreras and Caleb Durbin to their lineup, they weren’t expected to hit for much power (they are tied for last in the majors with San Francisco with 13 homers), so they need to move the line to create offense. When they walk, as they did on Monday, good things happen.
Contreras, Ceddanne Rafaela and Wilyer Abreu have been their most reliable bats. Trevor Story has shown spurts of breaking out after an awful start to the year. But Roman Anthony is struggling to find his rhythm in the leadoff spot and Jarren Duran has a 28 percent strikeout rate. When they’re locked in, they score in bunches, but when they’re disjointed, the offensive droughts pile up. — McCaffrey
What’s going well
Yankees: Their starters have been quite good
Through 22 games, Yankees starters have a 2.98 ERA — third-best in the majors. They have struck out 133, the second-most in the majors. They have even held down opposing batting averages (.206, tied for second-best).
They have done it without Max Fried looking particularly dominant, and with Rodón, Cole and Clarke Schmidt all on the injured list.
Major props goes to Boston favorite (just kidding) Cam Schlittler, who has shoved. Through five starts, he hasn’t allowed a home run, and he’s posted a 1.95 ERA. He’s struck out 36 and walked only three.
Fellow righty Will Warren (five starts, 2.49 ERA) has taken a step forward, too. Weathers remains tantalizing, and he was great against the terrible Kansas City Royals on Sunday. The Yankees would love to get more out of Gil, though it’s still unclear whether he’ll recapture the form he showed as the 2024 AL Rookie of the Year. — Kuty
Red Sox: The bullpen is doing work
Although the Red Sox rotation has been a disappointment, the bullpen has picked up some big innings and largely held its own.
Over the past 13 games, Red Sox relievers have needed to cover 50 innings and posted a 3.06 ERA in that stretch.
This weekend was particularly taxing. On Saturday, they covered five innings after a short Brayan Bello start. On Sunday, the bullpen combined for 4 1/3 innings after Garrett Crochet exited with two outs in the fifth. And on Monday, they needed 6 1/3 innings after Sonny Gray departed with a hamstring injury.
Closer Aroldis Chapman and setup man Garrett Whitlock have anchored the back of the pen. Greg Weissert faltered in the first couple of weeks, but over his past five appearances, he’s given up no runs and just two hits. On Sunday, Weissert entered with two on and no outs and struck out the next three.
Jovani Moran and Danny Coulombe have combined to allow four runs over 19 innings. And rookies Tyler Samaniego, Jack Anderson and Tyler Uberstine have contributed big innings at various points over the first month.
But taxing a bullpen early in the season always adds up down the road, and there will likely be some reinforcements needed heading into the Yankees series. — McCaffrey
Biggest surprise
Yankees: Ben Rice and Jazz Chisholm Jr.
Ben Rice has impressed. Jazz Chisholm Jr. — not so much. (Brad Penner / Imagn Images)
Can we pick two?
They represent both ends of the spectrum. Rice has been even better than expected after a breakout 2025. Chisholm joked in spring training that he might go for 50 home runs and 50 steals this year, and he’s way closer to 50 strikeouts than bombs.
Rice has been so good that manager Aaron Boone has been fielding increased questions about starting him at first base against lefties — even with Paul Goldschmidt, a lefty killer, available. The 27-year-old looks much more comfortable and less plodding defensively than he did last season, possibly a result of the Yankees taking catching responsibilities mostly off his plate this year.
Meanwhile, Chisholm has been terrible. Boone gave him Sunday off going into Monday’s off day, likely hoping that two days in a row of rest would allow for a mental reset. Chisholm, who will be a free agent after the season, has started the year hitting .164 (12-for-73) with no home runs, three RBIs and 26 strikeouts compared to nine walks. — Kuty
Red Sox: The rotation’s struggles
After failing to sign Alex Bregman this offseason, the Red Sox pivoted to a run-prevention approach. So far, they’ve had a tough time preventing runs as their starters have posted a 4.93 ERA, ranking sixth-worst in the majors.
Monday’s win after Gray’s early exit marked the first time this season the Red Sox won a game when their starter threw fewer than six innings. They were 0-13 in such situations.
Meanwhile, every member of the rotation has thrown fewer than six innings in at least two starts, and perhaps most surprising is Crochet.
Crochet had his worst career start in Minnesota last week and struggled again Sunday, allowing five runs in 4 2/3 innings. He has a 7.88 ERA. Gray was coming off a rough outing in Minnesota before Monday’s curtailed outing. Bello has failed to finish five innings in three of his four starts.
Ranger Suárez, who signed a five-year, $130 million deal in January, was awful in his first two starts but has been brilliant in his past two, including eight scoreless innings Friday against the Detroit Tigers. It marked the best start of Boston’s season, but was an outlier. Rookie Connelly Early, who will start in the first game against the Yankees on Tuesday, has a 2.29 ERA, best on the staff. — McCaffrey
