Why Friday’s Red Sox-Pirates Game On NESN Will Be Must-Watch

For a variety of reasons, fans won’t want to miss Friday night’s Boston Red Sox-Pittsburgh Pirates matchup on NESN.

The starting pitching matchup for the series opener at Fenway Park will be one of the most exciting of the season to date. According to multiple reports, Alex Cora and company will promote Payton Tolle to the big leagues to make his MLB debut. Tolle, a 2024 second-round draft pick by the Red Sox, blitzed through Boston’s minor league system and, in turn, earned the billing of the organization’s top pitching prospect.

The 22-year-old is set to go toe-to-toe with arguably the best starter in all of baseball: Pirates sensation Paul Skenes. Skenes enters Friday with an MLB-leading 2.07 ERA to go along with a 0.94 WHIP and 181 strikeouts over 27 starts (161 total innings). The two-time All-Star currently is the runaway betting favorite at FanDuel Sportsbook to win the National League Cy Young Award, which he finished third in the voting for as a rookie last season.

But before Tolle and Skenes battle on the mound, NESN will kick off a broadcast like no other in celebration of Tom Caron, who recently marked his 30-year anniversary with the network. The festivities, which include TC throwing out the ceremonial first pitch, will begin at 5:30 p.m. ET.

All things considered, Boston fans will be locked into NESN on Friday night as the Red Sox go for their fifth straight win.