NEW YORK — The Boston Red Sox and New York Yankees are meeting in the playoffs for just the seventh time. It only feels like the 70th.
Perhaps that's because the stakes always feel a little higher when these ancient rivals meet. And in three of their six previous playoff meetings - 1999, 2004 and 2018 - the winner has gone on to win the World Series.
That feels a little bit like a stretch this season. The winner of this American League best-of-three wild-card series, beginning Tuesday, Sept. 29, advances to face the AL East champion Tampa Bay Rays. Then, the AL Championship Series.
And then, with a lot of luck along the way, the World Series.
That's not to say this is an undercard of pretenders. The Yankees (93-68) and Red Sox (87-75) have been
locked into their Nos. 4-5 seeds for quite some time, the Red Sox needing a startling 21-4 July to overcome a grim beginning.
Now, though, they're on equal footing - even as New York enjoys home-field advantage at Yankee Stadium.
Left-hander Payton Tolle will start for Boston, hoping to replicate exactly what his counterpart, Cam Schlittler, did for New York last year: Dominate the archrivals as a rookie. That task will be made a little easier minus Aaron Judge, expectedly ruled out with a bad calf. Yet right-handed slugger Giancarlo Stanton is back for his first games since an April calf injury.
For Boston, Garrett Crochet also returns after a balky shoulder shelved him in April. All those stars should be even healthier down the road - if their team is fortunate enough to survive this prelude.
Where to watch Yankees vs Red Sox: Channel, live stream
- TV channel: NBC
- Streaming: Peacock
Watch the MLB Postseason on Peacock
What time is Red Sox vs Yankees ?
The Yankees host the Red Sox on Tuesday, Sept. 29. First pitch is scheduled for 8 p.m. ET.
Red Sox lineup today
04:03 PM ET, September 29 2026, Jesse Yomtov- Roman Anthony (L) DH
- Adley Rutschman (S) C
- Willson Contreras (R) 1B
- Wilyer Abreu (L) RF
- Ceddanne Rafaela (R) CF
- Nick Sogard (S) 2B
- Jarren Duran (L) LF
- Trevor Story (R) SS
- Caleb Durbin (R) 3B
Yankees lineup today
04:02 PM ET, September 29 2026, Jesse Yomtov- Paul Goldschmidt (R) 1B
- Ben Rice (L) DH
- Heliot Ramos (R) RF
- Cody Bellinger (L) LF
- George Lombard Jr. (R) SS
- Amed Rosario (R) 3B
- Anthony Volpe (R) 2B
- Spencer Jones (L) CF
- Austin Wells (L) C
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Yankees vs Red Sox LIVE updates: Game 1 lineups, predictions for MLB playoffs
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