It was not a good 24 hours for Boston Red Sox manager Chad Tracy.

His team was swept out of the American League playoffs in humiliating fashion, getting dominated by their biggest arch-rival, the New York Yankees.

At the center of both blowout losses were a couple of controversial pitching decisions from Tracy and when he decided to go to his bullpen.

It burned him in both games.

It also might have burned him within his own locker room.

Chad Tracy seems to have lost the Red Sox locker room

It all started in Tuesday's 9-0 loss when Tracy lifted starting pitcher Payton Tolle after just 83 pitches, when it was still only a 1-0 game.

Relief pitcher Erik Miller came in and immediately gave up a solo home run to Ben Rice, which opened the floodgates for the Yankees to roll to a 9-0 win. 

Boston still loses that game no matter what Tracy does with his bullpen, but it was still a bizarre decision to pull Tolle when he did, and the fact it immediately flopped only adds to the frustration for the Red Sox. 

But that was nothing compared to Wednesday's decision when he lifted Sonny Gray, consistently Boston's most reliable starting pitcher all season, after just 70 pitches and with it still only being a 1-0 game. 

The bullpen again imploded on its way to a 9-2 loss, and nobody in the Boston locker room seemed to be happy about it.

Gray was especially pointed with his comments, saying he would have liked to have been trusted in that spot while also referencing that he is the best pitcher in the American League when facing a lineup for the third time.

Did these decisions alone cost the Red Sox?

No. 

They were going to have to turn to their bullpen at some point, and the bullpen was clearly not up to the challenge against a superior Yankees team. Neither was the offense. Neither was any other aspect of the team. But sticking with his starters for another inning or two might have at least given them more of a fighting chance. 

The players in the locker room certainly feel that way.

Tracy took over earlier this season when the Red Sox fired Alex Cora, and it was easy for everybody to buy in when the team was winning games and playing its way back into playoff contention. The vibes are not anywhere near as good right now, and it is worth wondering if Tracy completely lost the locker room with his performance in this series.