Sonny Gray has more innings in him. The Red Sox right-hander, who briefly left retirement on the table after Boston’s American League Wild Card Series exit, plans to pitch again in 2027 and remains open to doing it in Boston.
Gray will turn 37 in November, but his 2026 work gave little reason to think the finish line is immediate. In his first season with the Red Sox, he made 29 starts, posted a 2.72 ERA and paced the majors with 18 victories. It was one of the finest seasons in a 14-year big league career that has carried him through Oakland, New York, Cincinnati, Minnesota, St. Louis and now Boston.
The next step is contractual as much as competitive. Gray and the Red Sox hold a mutual option for 2027. Should either side decline it, he would still be willing to explore a return to the club through free agency.
A postseason ending that still stung
Gray’s last outing of the year came in Game 2 of Boston’s Wild Card Series against the Yankees. He surrendered two runs over 4 2/3 innings and struck out five, but the fifth inning remained the lingering image: Gray was removed with two runners aboard, a move he plainly did not enjoy.
He said afterward that he believed he was the best pitcher in the American League when facing a lineup for the third time, and that he would have preferred the chance to decide that moment himself. Gray said he felt physically strong, confident and fully committed to finishing the inning, adding that his competitive nature made the decision difficult to accept.
Manager Chad Tracy took responsibility for the hook during his season-ending remarks. Tracy said Gray naturally wanted the ball, but rejected the idea that one tense October decision damaged their working relationship. After five months together, Tracy said, the relationship remains in a good place even with a clear understanding of his starter’s disappointment.
If Gray returns next spring, it will mark his 15th MLB season and his second in a Red Sox uniform. The former Cubs 27th-round pick in 2008 owns a 3.51 career ERA, and his Boston debut suggested that, even at this stage of a well-traveled career, he can still take the mound looking like a front-of-the-rotation answer.
