Red Sox Make Notable Lineup Changes In Bid To Avoid Sweep originally appeared on NESN. Add NESN as a Preferred Source by clicking here.
Boston revealed its starting lineup for Thursday afternoon’s series finale against the Toronto Blue Jays at Rogers Centre. The Red Sox have lost five consecutive games and need a win to avoid suffering a four-game sweep. Nick Sogard will receive an opportunity at the top of the order and start at second base. Ceddanne Rafaela will bat second and play center field, while Wilyer Abreu will move into the No. 3 spot in right field.
Willson Contreras will bat cleanup and play first base one day after hitting his 24th home run of the season. Masataka Yoshida will serve as the designated hitter and bat fifth.
Caleb Durbin, Jarren Duran and Andruw Monasterio will occupy the next three spots. Connor Wong will start behind the plate and bat ninth.
Payton Tolle will take the mound for Boston.
Red Sox Give Adley Rutschman A Day Off
Adley Rutschman is the most notable absence from the lineup. The veteran catcher started each of the previous two games against Toronto and will receive a break for the afternoon finale. Wong will catch Tolle and make his first start of the series. Rutschman went hitless in three at-bats Wednesday and is 0-for-9 with one walk through the first three games in Toronto. He has not been alone in struggling during Boston’s sudden downturn.
Afternoon baseball today. pic.twitter.com/BOvmaf4QCA
— Red Sox (@RedSox) August 13, 2026
The Red Sox have scored only eight runs during the series. They managed one run in each of the first two games before producing four in Wednesday’s 6-4 loss.
Boston entered the eighth inning tied 1-1, but Toronto scored five runs after Contreras dropped a foul popup that would have recorded the first out. Kazuma Okamoto followed the error with the go-ahead single before Myles Straw added a two-run double.
The Red Sox scored three times in the ninth but could not finish the comeback.
Contreras will have an immediate opportunity to respond. Despite the costly defensive mistake, he provided Boston’s only run through the first eight innings with a solo homer off José Soriano.
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Nick Sogard Gets Opportunity At Top Of Order
Moving Sogard from the bottom of the lineup to the leadoff spot is the biggest change made by manager Chad Tracy. Sogard offers switch-hitting ability and will bat from the left side against Toronto right-hander Max Scherzer. He will be asked to create opportunities for Rafaela, Abreu and Contreras at the top of Boston’s order.
Yoshida had led off in each of the first three games of the series. He will move down to fifth as the Red Sox attempt to generate more production from the middle of the lineup.
The matchup presents Boston with an opportunity. Scherzer entered Thursday with a 1-4 record and 7.25 ERA through seven appearances. The three-time Cy Young Award winner has allowed 11 home runs across only 36 innings.
Tolle has been much more consistent for the Red Sox. The left-hander owns a 7-6 record, 3.20 ERA and 124 strikeouts across 107 innings. Boston also will be operating with a reshaped bullpen. Garrett Whitlock reportedly is headed to the injured list, with Greg Weissert joining the club in Toronto.
The Red Sox have gone from winning eight consecutive games to matching their longest losing streak of the season. They entered Thursday at 64-56 and in third place in the American League East.
A single lineup change cannot solve everything that has gone wrong over the last five games. Boston nevertheless is hoping a new leadoff hitter, a rested Rutschman and another strong start from Tolle can help prevent a miserable trip from becoming even worse.
First pitch is scheduled for 3:07 p.m. ET. The game will air on NESN.