Red Sox Notes: Boston ‘checked all the boxes’ for Sonny Gray; Wong healthy after surgery; Ketel Marte and Cole Ragans fuel trade speculation

Before the Red Sox could finalize their pursuit of right-hander Sonny Gray, one obstacle stood in the way: his no-trade clause. But the moment Gray learned Boston was the destination on the table, any hesitation vanished. He immediately waived the clause and informed the Cardinals that he was ready—desperate, even—for a change of scenery.

“I just expressed that it would probably be beneficial for me and my family to maybe go to a different situation, a different organization that was maybe going a little bit more all-in for the next year or two in trying to win a World Series,” said Gray in a Zoom call with reporters on Tuesday. “That’s kind of where I’m at in my career and my life.

“I definitely haven’t accomplished everything in the game that I want to and a deep run in the postseason and winning a World Series is definitely one of those things.”

On the eve of Thanksgiving, the Cardinals and Red Sox struck a three-player deal that sent Sonny Gray to Boston—delivering the Red Sox another frontline starter that was on the offseason wishlist. Chief baseball officer Craig Breslow has prioritized adding starting pitching that can impact the top of the rotation to slot in behind left-handed ace Garrett Crochet.

“He told me the team, and he said, ‘Red Sox,’ and immediately in my head I was like, ‘Yes!’” recounted Gray. “I couldn’t be more excited for the opportunity to play for the Red Sox. I’m looking forward to the year. I really, really am.”

Once Gray learned he would be calling Boston home for 2026, he reached out to former teammate Steven Matz, whom the Sox acquired at the trade deadline. The southpaw had nothing but great things to say about his limited time with the Red Sox.

“I kind of followed along last year and the situation Boston was in,” said Gray. “I really felt like it would be a really good situation. I always said I wanted to go to a market that was super competitive, a big market that wants to win. I know I can thrive in that situation. Boston just checked all the boxes for me.”

With the trade completed, Gray has been having conversations with Alex Cora and pitching coach Andrew Bailey. The veteran also plans to join Crochet to do offseason workouts after the New Year.

Gray is excited about sharing a clubhouse with young players “hungry” to win.

“We have a chance to win a World Series, we have a chance to make a deep playoff run, and I just want to be a part of it,” said Gray.

For the moment, Crochet and Gray stand as the Red Sox’ formidable one-two punch atop the rotation. And Boston’s new No. 2 starter is more than just eager—he’s genuinely thrilled—to join forces with Crochet, whose electrifying first season in Boston nearly earned him the American League Cy Young Award. Crochet ultimately finished second to Tigers ace Tarik Skubal, who captured the honor for the second straight year, but his breakout campaign made one thing clear: Gray is pairing up with a rising superstar.

“That’s something that I couldn’t be happier about,” said Gray. “(He’s) someone I can lean on, someone I can follow, someone that I can teach, someone I can learn from, someone who can push me, someone that I can push. Those are all important things for me.

“I’m looking forward to building a better relationship than we already have. That’s already started, but it will continue when we pick up the baseball together and get to talk pitching, talk family, and learn a little bit more about each other. That will happen soon.”

Gray is no stranger to the American League East. He spent a turbulent year and a half with the Yankees—a stint he’s never pretended to enjoy. Now in Boston, the veteran didn’t hold back when reflecting on his time in the Bronx, firing pointed shots at the so-called Evil Empire. His comments spread quickly, lighting up Red Sox social media and catching the attention of his new teammates, who welcomed the candor.

“I never wanted to go there in the first place,” said Gray in a Zoom call with reporters Tuesday, a week after being dealt to the Red Sox. “It just wasn’t a good situation for me. It wasn’t a great setup for me and my family. I never wanted to go there. It just didn’t really work for who I am.

“I do appreciate my time there, because in the last seven years of my life, I’ve been a better baseball player, husband, and everything from having that experience and going through that. I just feel like I learned so much after going through that. I just wasn’t myself. I just didn’t feel like I was allowed to go out there and be Sonny.”

During a Zoom session with reporters, Gray appeared in a 2007 Red Sox World Series cap and shared a childhood memory—watching Boston play, mesmerized by the magic of Fenway Park and the towering Green Monster. Even as a kid, the place left him awestruck. Now, he’s preparing to call it home.

“I’m more of a Boston guy than anything,” said Gray. “That is who I am. Boston is a situation that works for me. I’ve been there, gone there, been around the city and the people, and talked to other people; that is a situation I feel comfortable in. That’s important to me.”

Gray’s ties to the Red Sox stretch well beyond his childhood fascination with Fenway Park and the Green Monster. During his college days at Vanderbilt, he shared a room with Mike Yastrzemski—the grandson of Boston legend Carl Yastrzemski. The two forged a lasting bond, and their friendship endures today, adding yet another unexpected thread connecting Gray to the fabric of Red Sox history.

“When I say I am more Boston than any other place,” said Gray, “there’s a lot that goes into that. Going to Vanderbilt was a very big part of that. Coach Corbin would always talk about that; he was a Boston guy.

“It’s a low-rise city. It doesn’t feel like you’re surrounded by (big buildings). You can see the sky. Things like that are important to me.”

“It’s easy for me to go to a place where it’s easy to hate the Yankees,” said Gray. “It’s easy to go out and have that rivalry and go into it full-force, full steam ahead. I like the challenge. I accept the challenge. But this time around, it’s just go out and be yourself. Don’t try to be anything other than yourself.

“If people don’t like it, it is what it is. I am who I am. And I’m OK with that.”

RED SOX ROOKIES THRILLED WITH GRAY TRADE

Payton Tolle got a laugh when he learned that Gray disliked his time in New York. Tolle is equally as excited to have the veteran in the clubhouse to help serve as a mentor to him and other young pitchers on the Sox’ staff.

“I think it’s going to be incredible,” Tolle said. “I’ve heard nothing but great things about him. So I’m excited to get to know him a little bit and pick his brain. I’m gonna try to keep asking plenty of questions.”

Rookie Connelly Early added his own thoughts about Gray: “I think he’s a really big, competitive guy out there, and that’s somebody that you want behind Crochet, want in the lineup. And he’s a great player. So great addition.”

Tolle, Early, Nate Eaton, Nick Sogard, and catcher Connor Wong participated in a Red Sox Holiday Caravan on Tuesday, visiting with patients battling cancer, local youth, and nonprofit organizations across greater Boston. The Sox’ players will continue their caravan around the city on Wednesday, when they visit Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, the Boys & Girls Club in Chelsea, and the Fenway Community Center.

WONG TALKS ABOUT HAND SURGERY

On Tuesday, Wong opened up to reporters about the offseason surgery he underwent to remove a carpal boss from his right hand—an injury that had quietly tormented him for the past few seasons. After years of managing the pain, he finally seized the chance this winter to fix the problem once and for all.

“Going into this offseason, I felt pretty healthy, and I knew I was going to take a little bit of time off, and that was something I wanted to take care of for the last few years,” Wong said during the Red Sox Holiday Caravan on Tuesday.

“Just didn’t really have the chance to (in previous offseasons),” he added. “And this year I felt like I had time, so I got to take care of it.”

Wong battled offensive struggles throughout the entire season, a slide that began after he fractured his left pinky finger in early April. The injury never truly loosened its grip. The 29-year-old finished the year hitting just .190 with a .500 OPS—no home runs, eight doubles, seven RBI, and only 16 runs scored across 63 games. 

As his production dwindled, he ultimately ceded his starting role to rookie catcher Carlos Narváez. The two are currently projected to form Boston’s catching tandem next season—unless Breslow decides to upgrade. And the Red Sox have already been linked to Phillies free agent J.T. Realmuto, a potential addition who would represent a significant step up from Wong behind the plate.

“For me, it’s just be myself, and I know the kind of player I can be, and I’m looking forward to doing that,” Wong said.

Despite the rough year, Breslow has made it clear he believes Wong can rebound. At the GM Meetings in early November, the chief baseball officer offered a public vote of confidence, signaling that the organization still sees a path back to the catcher they believe Wong can be.

“We felt like he was kind of on the cusp of breaking out (after 2024),” Breslow said. “And I think there’s a number of things that we could point to in ’25 that could explain why the performance wasn’t what we had anticipated. But still believe in the player that he is.”

KETEL MARTE AND COLE RAGANS ON THE RED SOX RADAR?

The Red Sox continue to explore multiple paths to inject more power into their lineup this offseason, and their search has reportedly led them to three-time National League All-Star Ketel Marte.

Bob Nightengale of USA Today listed Marte as the third-best trade candidate on the market, identifying Boston as a natural fit—though he noted the Diamondbacks would demand pitching in return to pull the trigger on any deal.

The Sox, however, won’t have the field to themselves. Both the Tigers and Rays are also believed to be in on Marte, setting up a potentially fierce multi-team pursuit.

Marte is coming off a star-caliber 2025 campaign—batting .283 with 28 homers and 72 RBI—earning his second Silver Slugger award and a spot on the All-MLB First Team for the second straight year. But his season wasn’t without turbulence. A series of absences and time-off requests around the All-Star break led to public scrutiny and ultimately forced Marte to offer an apology.

Boston possesses the young pitching Arizona covets, but ESPN’s Jeff Passan believes another team might be better positioned: the Reds. Cincinnati could dangle young fireballer Hunter Greene, who is coming off a season in which he posted a 7–4 record with a sparkling 2.76 ERA, 132 strikeouts, and a 0.94 WHIP in 19 starts.

Still, ESPN pegs the odds of Greene being traded at just 10%, despite the Reds’ deep well of young starters—Andrew Abbott, Nick Lodolo, Chase Burns, Brady Singer, and Rhett Lowder among them—crowding the rotation picture. It's a moot point now, but during Chaim Bloom's tenure as the Red Sox' front office leader, Boston was enamored with Singer when he was with the Royals, according to a league source. 

The Diamondbacks, meanwhile, are staring down major voids. Zac Gallen is a free agent, and Corbin Burnes will miss time recovering from Tommy John surgery. Arizona’s need for arms is real.

If trade talks with Boston gain momentum, one name could headline a Sox package: Jarren Duran. The dynamic outfielder has surfaced in trade rumors throughout the winter and is widely expected to be moved. Duran and Corbin Carroll would be a lethal weapons in Arizona's lineup, with both players atop the triples' leaderboard last season. If the D-backs aren’t the destination, the Royals remain a strong possibility—they’ve had interest in Duran dating back to last season.

Kansas City also happens to possess a pitcher the Red Sox covet: left-hander Cole Ragans. But prying him loose won’t come cheap.

As The Boston Globe’s Alex Speier noted this week: “For teams that are in the market for high-end starting pitching and willing to deal big league talent to get it, the Royals represent one of the most interesting potential trade partners of the offseason… If we have what they may be interested in, and they have an outfielder that would be of interest, then there’s potentially the opportunity to make a deal.”

While the Royals aren’t declaring Ragans untouchable, they remain hesitant to part with him—or with Seth Lugo and Michael Wacha. Kansas City is believed to be targeting a right-handed-hitting outfielder, but if the Red Sox were willing to significantly sweeten a trade package, Ragans could become attainable.

And if Boston were to pair newly acquired Gray with Ragans and Crochet, the trio could form one of the most formidable rotations the franchise has fielded in years.