Zack Littell Reflects on Brief Time With Red Sox as Tampa Bay Rays Visit Boston

BOSTON — In the direct leadup to his time with the Tampa Bay Rays, Zack Littell briefly pitched for the Boston Red Sox.

He took the mound just two times for the club before getting designated for assignment in May 2023, putting his major league career on thin ice. Littell was 13-5 with a 4.17 ERA, 1.338 WHIP and 1.3 WAR primarily out of the bullpen, bouncing around between the Seattle Mariners, New York Yankees, Minnesota Twins, San Francisco Giants and Texas Rangers even before he joined Boston.

Littell's stint with the Red Sox was the shortest of all, as he wound up on waivers five days after he arrived.

The Tampa Bay Rays picked him up two days later, converted him to a starter, and never looked back.

"I'm glad that it played out the way it played out," Littell said. "My career could look completely different than it does right now."

No Tampa Bay pitcher has made more starts than Littell since he first joined the rotation. He boasts a 3.59 ERA, 1.161 WHIP and a 5.30 strikeout-to-walk ratio as a starter in a Rays uniform, carrying his team to a 28-28 record.

Littell never made it back to Fenway Park as a member of the Red Sox, since he joined the team for their road series against the Philadelphia Phillies and got designated for assignment after their ensuing series at the Atlanta Braves.

As a result, not many moments from Littell's brief stint stick out in his mind. Except, of course, when he was able to crash a dinner with his temporary teammates.

"Honestly, it was such a whirlwind," Littell said. "I got to go to a bullpen dinner, which I snuck that in, it was cool."

Littell remembered meeting with manager Alex Cora and pitching coach Dave Bush as well, crediting them and Boston's old front office for giving him a chance and making him feel welcome. During his multiple forays into minor league free agency, there was usually mutual interest between the two sides.

But more than anything, Littell said looking back on his time with the Red Sox feels bizarre.

"Every now and again, I'll see a picture of me in a Red Sox jersey and it's weird," Littell said. "It almost is like it didn't happen, but it did happen – there's proof."

Littell still has his game-worn Red Sox jersey, which he says he'll take out of a box and frame once he retires. His kids will be older by then, too, which will hopefully lower the chances of them breaking said frame.

Because he spent all his time with the team away from Boston, Littell doesn't have the iconic white Red Sox jersey with his name on it. Instead, he has the alternated road jersey, which got phased out this past winter in favor of a new City Connect uniform.

So in case a Zack Littell Red Sox jersey wasn't a rare enough piece of memorabilia to begin with, his keepsake is now even more unique.

The 29-year-old righty will take on his technically-former team Wednesday night in Boston. He made three starts against the Red Sox in 2024, including one at Fenway Park, going 1-0 with a 3.06 ERA and 0.736 WHIP.

First pitch for Wednesday night's rubber match is scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET. Walker Buehler is slated to take the mound for Boston.

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