Red Sox's Starting Pitching Uncertainty Becoming Major Red Flag
If you don't have a strong starting rotation, you don't have much. And the Boston Red Sox's rotation, which was their greatest strength for much of the summer, is starting to show cracks.
There's a solid top three of Garrett Crochet, Brayan Bello, and Lucas Giolito that won't change unless an injury occurs. But Dustin May has been anything but reliable as the No. 4 starter, and promising rookie Payton Tolle is proving tough to work around.
Tolle's second career start on Friday was a flop, with five earned runs, two home runs, and four walks allowed in just three innings. And for the second straight trip through the rotation, Tolle probably won't be able to pitch the fifth game after his last start.
Red Sox don't have a set plan for Wednesday's game
Boston travels to West Sacramento next to take on the fifth-place Athletics. It's a series the Red Sox need to win if they want any chance at the division, and a series it would behoove them to win to ensure they don't lose their grip on a playoff spot.
Crochet will pitch Monday and May will go Tuesday. But there's once again no plan for Wednesday's game, as manager Alex Cora explained to the media on Saturday.
“We’re talking about that one,” Cora said, per Chris Cotillo of MassLive. “It’s Crochet, May, then we’ll determine what we do on Wednesday.”
Cotillo reported that Boston's options are a bullpen game, which worked out poorly this past Wenesday, Kyle Harrison, who is starting Sunday for Triple-A Worcester, and Tolle, who would be pitching on four days' rest for the first time in his professional career (seems unlikely).
Fortunately, Boston is off the Monday the 15th, so Tolle should be able to start this coming Friday and the Thursday after. But bullpen games are far from ideal at this point in the season, especially when there isn't a bulk option to come in behind an opener.
The Red Sox need their starters to be at their strongest now that Roman Anthony is out of the picture. Instead, they're met with more uncertainty than they've experienced all season.
Dan Campbell Lashes Out After Lions' Humbling 27-13 Loss to Packers
The Detroit Lions kicked off the 2025 season with expectations of building on their 15-2 campaign a year ago. Instead, they walked out of Lambeau Field with more questions than answers after a 27-13 loss to the Green Bay Packers.
Head coach Dan Campbell didn’t sugarcoat the performance when he spoke with the media after the game.
Campbell Owns the Mistakes
“I thought we would be cleaner than we were,” Campbell said postgame. “I thought we would be much cleaner than we were. Our players are accountable… nobody takes it worse than they do. We’ve got some good dudes.”
The Lions stumbled out of the gate, allowing the Packers to march 83 yards on the opening possession for a touchdown. Detroit’s defense never found a way to rattle Jordan Love, who calmly completed 16-of-22 passes for 188 yards and two touchdowns. Meanwhile, the Lions’ vaunted pass rush finished with zero sacks and only one pass defense (by cornerback Terrion Arnold, who later left with a groin injury).
Offense Falls Flat
On offense, the Lions struggled to capitalize in the red zone, settling for field goals on three of their first four trips. Quarterback Jared Goff was efficient but uninspiring, completing 31-of-39 passes for 224 yards, one touchdown, and a costly interception.
Detroit’s ground game, a strength in 2024, was bottled up completely. Jahmyr Gibbs and David Montgomery combined for just 44 yards on 20 carries, averaging 2.2 yards per attempt. Gibbs did manage to lead the team in receptions with 10 catches, but they went for a modest 31 yards.
The lone bright spot came late in the game when rookie Isaac TeSlaa hauled in a spectacular one-handed touchdown catch, preventing Detroit from being shut out of the end zone until the final minute.
Discipline Issues and Missed Opportunities
If the offense’s inefficiency wasn’t frustrating enough, penalties wiped away two potential game-changing plays. Linebacker Alex Anzalone dropped a would-be interception, and one play later, safety Brian Branch had a pick-six negated by a defensive holding call on Rock Ya-Sin. On the same return, Aidan Hutchinson was flagged for unnecessary roughness.
Those miscues summed up the night for Detroit — a team that never seemed comfortable against a Packers squad that looked every bit like an NFC North contender with new addition Micah Parsons wreaking havoc.
Campbell’s Message Moving Forward
Despite the mistakes, Campbell made it clear he still believes in his locker room.
“Our players are accountable,” Campbell emphasized. “Nobody takes it worse than they do. We’ve got some good dudes.”
The Lions will need those “good dudes” to rebound quickly. Their next challenge comes against former offensive coordinator Ben Johnson and the Chicago Bears, who visit Ford Field in Week 2. A bounce-back performance will be crucial to quiet doubters and prevent Detroit from digging an early-season hole.
