Tonight the Red Sox will take the field for the first time since Thursday night’s MLB trade deadline, and the lineup will look a little different than usual.
Abraham Toro will be batting cleanup when the Red Sox open their weekend series against the Houston Astros, batting ahead of Roman Anthony, Alex Bregman and Jarren Duran and ahead of Trevor Story, Masataka Yoshida, Carlos Narvaez and Wilyer Abreu.
Toro is batting .264 with a .719 OPS on the season but just .212 over his last 33 games. His presence in the heart of the lineup is likely due to his ability to switch hit, which could come in handy against an Astros pitching staff that boasts one of baseball’s best bullpens.
Cooper Criswell (1-0, 5.06) is slated to get the start for Boston. He’ll face Houston’s Hunter Brown (9-5, 2.54).
Friday night’s game will be broadcast exclusively on Apple TV+ and will not be available on NESN or any traditional television networks. More information on how to watch can be found here.
Red Sox lineup
Roman Anthony LF
Alex Bregman 3B
Jarren Duran CF
Abraham Toro 1B
Trevor Story SS
Masataka Yoshida DH
Carlos Narvaez C
Wilyer Abreu RF
Ceddanne Rafaela 2B
Cooper Criswell P
How to watch
When: 7:10 p.m.
Where: Fenway Park, Boston
Broadcast info: Apple TV+, WEEI 93.7 FM, WCCM 1490 AM (Spanish), WESX 1230 AM (Spanish)
Originally Published: August 1, 2025 at 4:13 PM EDT