With a postseason meeting against the Yankees looming next week, the Boston Red Sox have rewarded the manager who helped steady the club after a chaotic start.
Boston announced Tuesday that Chad Tracy’s interim designation had been removed, officially naming him the team’s full-time manager. He agreed to a three-year contract that includes a club option for the 2030 season.
The Red Sox also confirmed that they picked up their 2029 and 2030 options on chief baseball officer Craig Breslow.
Tracy, 41, had been managing Boston’s Triple-A affiliate in Worcester before replacing Alex Cora. Cora and five members of his coaching staff were dismissed after the Red Sox opened the season with a 10-17 record.
Since Tracy took over, Boston has gone 74-55 and put itself in position to reach the playoffs.
“Craig and Chad are two exceptionally talented leaders who have earned these opportunities in very different ways,” Red Sox president and CEO Sam Kennedy said in a statement. “Over the last three years, we have watched Craig bring clarity, discipline, and conviction to the work of building our baseball operation. Chad was asked to step into a difficult situation with little notice, but the trust he immediately commanded at the major league level was earned through years of work across our organization.
“What this team has accomplished over the past several months has been historic. Results matter greatly in this business, but so do judgment, character, and the ability to bring out the best in others. Craig and Chad have demonstrated all of those qualities, and they have earned our confidence in leading us forward.”
The Rangers selected Tracy in the third round of the 2006 draft. He spent time in the minor leagues and independent baseball but never appeared in a major-league game.
He launched his managerial career in the Angels’ farm system before becoming Worcester’s manager ahead of the 2022 season.
Boston is currently projected to secure the American League’s No. 2 wild-card spot, which would send the Red Sox to Yankee Stadium for the playoff series. New York does not expect star slugger Aaron Judge to return from his calf strain in time for that matchup.