The Boston Red Sox scored a wild, come-from-behind walk-off 9-8 win over the Seattle Mariners on Monday in 10 innings at Fenway Park.
The win saw the Red Sox gain a game on the New York Yankees in the American League race for the top wild-card spot. Only three games separate the two archrivals with 24 games left to play.
For the second game of the Mariners series, the Red Sox Tuesday morning announced a new starting pitcher after ace Sonny Gray was forced to miss his scheduled outing due to the need for extra rest. And this announcement carried a significant milestone for the 22-year-old right-hander who got the call-up from Triple-A.
Jedixson Paez climbs a Fenway Park mound for the first time Tuesday, called up from Triple-A Worcester to start against the Seattle Mariners in Sonny Gray’s place, according to a Red Sox announcement posted online Tuesday morning. Though it will be Paez’s fourth appearance in the big leagues, it marks his first start and his first for the Red Sox, the team that signed him as an international free agent out of Venezuela just two days before his 17th birthday.
Boston is preserving Gray, its 36-year-old 16-game winner, for the stretch run, handing the ball to the 22-year-old who flamed out in Chicago five months ago.
To clear a 40-man roster spot, the Red Sox designated infielder Brett Harris for assignment, reinstated Isiah Kiner-Falefa from the 60-day injured list and shifted left-hander Eduardo Rivera to the 60-day list.
Jedixson Paez’s Path to a Red Sox Start
The right-hander was born Jan. 17, 2004, in Tinaquillo, Venezuela, and signed with Boston as an international free agent in January 2021 for a $450,000 bonus. He was named the organization’s Latin Program Pitcher of the Year that same year.
Paez climbed through the system as a command-first arm with modest velocity, reaching High-A Greenville before a right calf strain cost him more than three months in 2025. The Chicago White Sox grabbed him out of the Red Sox system with the No. 2 overall pick in that December’s Rule 5 Draft, betting his strike-throwing would translate immediately.
Paez made Chicago’s Opening Day roster and worked three outings totaling three innings, allowing six earned runs for an 18.00 ERA, before the White Sox designated him for assignment in early April. White Sox pitching coach Zach Bove offered a blunt postmortem. “Obviously it just didn’t work out, so that’s on us,” Bove said, as quoted by the Chicago Sun-Times.
Boston reclaimed Paez for a $50,000 fee and sent him to Double-A Portland, where he went 2-3 with three saves and a 4.41 ERA over 17 games, striking out 56 batters in 49 innings, the Sea Dogs said in a social media post. Worcester summoned him Aug. 12, and he answered with a 2.92 ERA over three starts, striking out 18 in 12 1/3 innings, including an eight-strikeout outing in his most recent turn.
Why Sonny Gray Is Sitting This One Out
Gray, at 16-4 with a 2.82 ERA over 25 starts, has been Boston’s most reliable arm all season. Instead of taking his regular turn, he will next pitch Saturday in Baltimore, buying extra recovery time before the stretch drive.
“I feel fine,” Gray said. “I think it’s just taking a few days, getting my body recovered, fully recovered, and that was it. To be honest, I needed a couple days, and I’m not scared to admit that. But I feel good,” as quoted by Field Level Media.
Tuesday’s start is not Paez’s major league debut — that came March 26 against Milwaukee. It is, however, his first appearance in a Red Sox uniform and his first career start, a spot audition for a pitching staff that will need more of them before October.
Red Sox Announce Decision on 22-Year-Old Pitcher Before Mariners Game