There’s a myth surrounding Boston Red Sox pitcher Sonny Gray that he struggles to perform in big markets. It’s a falsity that’s based largely on Gray’s sub-optimal performance with the New York Yankees. In 41 appearances with the Yanks, Gray went 15-16 with a 4.51 ERA. But according to MLB analyst Eric Kratz, who was a catcher for the Yankees when Gray was there, this big market narrative surrounding Gray couldn’t be further from the truth. Kratz went into detail about this during a recent episode of Foul Territory, and Red Sox fans will be pleased to hear what Kratz had to share about Gray. "We're sitting in the bullpen in the playoffs, and he's like, I just wanna throw how I wanna throw."Sonny Gray's struggles with the Yankees shouldn't influence how Red Sox fans feel about how he'll perform in another large market, says @ErikKratz31. pic.twitter.com/oPW3Sm6j4K— Foul Territory (@FoulTerritoryTV) November 25, 2025 “If I wasn’t there, maybe I would jump on board with the whole, ‘can’t pitch in the big market’ thing, ’cause (Gray’s) got that country accent,” Kratz said. Story continues below advertisement “(But) that’s just a narrative. I was there, I saw it. It was a contradiction of pitch usage. Larry Rothschild was the pitching coach (in New York), and … he wanted (Gray) to throw more of what was considered his slider … when he was more slider and curveball.” In explaining how Gray pitches, Kratz cited Stephen Vogt’s experience catching Gray with the Athletics. “Remember to ask Stephen Vogt when he comes on (the show) next time, what it was like to catch Sonny Gray in Oakland,” Kratz said. Story continues below advertisement “(Vogt said), ’It was it was a guessing game, because there would be times where I’d call a sinker, and he’d throw a cutter, and (I’d be) like, ‘Why on Earth did you throw a cutter?’” Apparently, Gray oftentimes changes his mind on a pitch during the middle of his motion. Gray told Vogt, “You know man, sometimes I just get to the top of my motion, and I’m like, ‘No, I think I’m gonna do this instead.’” Story continues below advertisement Kratz described how the Yankees sort of messed with Gray’s approach by not allowing him to do that, which made Gray more uncomfortable on the mound. “And so when he goes over to New York, they kind of took away some of that (flexibility) … it was more of like a strict (plan) … like, ‘this is what works,’” Kratz said. “And if you go look at his usage while he was there, it didn’t work as well as it was working (before). And everybody’s real quick to play the narrative of … ‘the pressure got to him.’ I was there watching him. It wasn’t the pressure of the market. We were sitting in the bullpen in the playoffs, and he’s like, ‘I just want to throw how I want to throw. I’ve had success. Why do they want to change me?’” Story continues below advertisement Hopefully, the Red Sox won’t try to change Gray like the Yankees did. Entering his 14th season, Gray will pitch for the sixth team when he takes the mound wearing a Red Sox uniform. He has 125 wins, 102 losses, an ERA of 3.58 and 1,925 strikeouts in his career thus far, and he’ll be looking to bolster those numbers even further in Boston.