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Rainy skies delayed the Boston Red Sox‘s series finale on Sunday afternoon, but it was worth the wait for starter Payton Tolle.
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It took just one frame for the young lefty to etch his name into an elite class of Red Sox, tossing the eighth immaculate inning in franchise history and the first since Chris Sale did it in 2021.
His three-up and three-down had some serious star power, consisting of Royals third baseman Nick Loftin, shortstop Bobby Witt Jr., and DH Jac Caglianone. Tolle beat them with sheer power, pumping nine straight fastballs, eight of which were four-seamers.
Before his final pitch, with Fenway Park on its feet in anticipation of the moment, Tolle couldn’t hide his emotion. After looking to his catcher Adley Rutschman, the 23-year-old turned to his home dugout with a deep breath and a massive grin on his face. He then erupted alongside the Fenway faithful after blowing his ninth straight strike past Caglianone.
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Payton Tolle Kicks of the Game with…
An Immaculate Inning! pic.twitter.com/g0koe1qs4Y
— Rob Friedman (@PitchingNinja) September 13, 2026
The incredible feat comes as an exclamation mark on what has been a tremendous rookie season for Tolle. Coming into the game, the big left-hander held a 3.15 ERA across 24 starts and ranks 11th in the American League with 159 strikeouts. Adding to this total Sunday, Tolle trails only Daisuke Matsuzaka’s 201 for most all-time among Red Sox rookies.
Boston’s last immaculate inning came on August 26, 2021, when Sale did it against the Minnesota Twins. The only other Red Sox to do so in the first inning was Hall-of-Famer Pedro Martinez, who did it on May 18, 2002, against the Seattle Mariners. Other notable Red Sox to complete the accomplishment include Clay Buchholz (2012), Craig Kimbrel (2017), and Rick Porcello (2017).
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This story was originally published September 13, 2026 at 2:44 PM.