Red Sox Flight Glitches Force Late Arrival, Yet Boston Still Beats Mets 6-2

Boston’s charter plane remained grounded in Chicago for nearly a full day after the team finished a three-game sweep of the White Sox on Thursday, July 10, 2026. Mechanical problems with the tug that tows aircraft and later a cockpit-switch failure kept the plane on the tarmac until the afternoon. The flight finally departed around 2:45 p.m. ET and touched down at LaGuardia Airport at roughly 4:35 p.m., leaving the Red Sox with just over two hours before the originally scheduled 7:15 p.m. first pitch at Citi Field. Major League Baseball announced a revised start time of 7:50 p.m., a 35-minute delay that gave Boston enough runway time to reach the clubhouse at 5:05 p.m. and begin warm-ups.

Heavy

The Chicago delay was the second major travel snag in two weeks. On June 24, a mechanical issue forced the Red Sox’s Denver-to-Boston flight to turn around after half an hour, landing in Boston around 5 a.m. on June 25. Despite the overnight arrival, Boston defeated the Yankees 6-3 and launched an 11-of-13 winning stretch. The pattern of late-night arrivals and rushed preparations has become a recurring theme for the 2026 club.

Bleacher Report

Boston entered the Mets series on a six-game winning streak, having won 12 of its last 14 contests and improving to 44-48 overall. The victory over New York pushed the Sox to a season-high seventh straight win and a 1½-game gap from the third AL wild-card spot with 70 games remaining. Pitcher Sonny Gray delivered six solid innings, allowing one run on five hits, striking out three and maintaining a 2.54 ERA over his last 17 starts. The offense supplied six runs, highlighted by two-run contributions from Anthony Seigler, Masataka Yoshida and Wilyer Abreu.

Boston Herald

MLB Communications confirmed the adjusted 7:50 p.m. start, citing the Red Sox’s “travel issues en route to New York.” Interim manager Chad Tracy told reporters the delay was “what it is” and emphasized the need for extra rest, noting the team would “report a little bit later” than usual. Boston’s front office did not request a postponement, and the league kept the game on the original date.

Red Sox travel delays push back opener vs. Mets

Mets interim manager Andy Green said he first learned of the Boston delay early Friday morning and had “never had any experience with a flight snafu like Boston’s.” He added that the situation was “unfortunate set of circumstances” but did not view it as a competitive advantage, noting the Mets would “just see it as what it was.”

Newsday

Red Sox players described the chaotic travel day with humor. Pitcher Payton Tolle recounted, “the tug broke… Same plane, different issue,” and said the team “tried to make light of the situation, we tried to have fun with it.” Reliever Garrett Whitlock remarked, “Throw it back to travel ball days… Show and go. Go out there and play, have fun.” Center fielder Ceddanne Rafaela said the crew “listened to music and played cards” while waiting.

Newsday

Sources differ on exact timings: some reports list a 3 p.m. ET departure, others cite 1:34 CDT (2:34 ET). Arrival estimates range from 4:10 p.m. to 5:05 p.m., and the start-time delay is described as 35 minutes, 36 minutes, or a shift to 7:51 p.m. No official explanation has been given for the specific mechanical failures beyond “tug” and “switch or light-bulb” issues.

Red Sox travel delays push back opener vs. Mets

• “We'll definitely probably have a little bit of a later show,” — Chad Tracy, interim manager

ESPN

• “I don't think anyone's probably experienced that before,” — Sonny Gray, pitcher

ESPN

• “the tug broke.” — Payton Tolle, pitcher

Newsday

• “I heard this morning that they didn't get out last night. And for whatever reason, they struggled again getting out this morning. So, yeah, I became aware of it early this morning. I was not awake at the point in time when they were still sitting on the runway last night.” — Andy Green, Mets interim manager

Newsday

Boston’s next game is scheduled for Saturday at Citi Field with a standard 4:10 p.m. start, giving the Sox a full day to recover from the travel scramble and continue their push toward the wild-card race.

Heavy