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High Priced Pitchers Square Off

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BRONX – (Wire Service Report) – Max Fried and Garrett Crochet lived up to expectations in sparkling debut seasons as No. 1 starters for the New York Yankees and Boston Red Sox.

Now it gets real.

Crochet (Red Sox) and Fried (Yankees) delivered after being acquired in the offseason to become staff aces at the center of baseball’s most historic rivalry, and the left-handers find themselves front and center as Game 1 starters in the American League wild-card series starting Tuesday night at Yankee Stadium.

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The AL East archrivals fight it out in the wild-card round for the first time and best-of-three series winner advances to the division series.

Sox Beat Tigers: Will They Be Back?

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BOSTON – (Wire Service Report) – The Boston Red Sox defeated the Detroit Tigers sealing the Tigers’ fate as the No. 6 seed in the American League Postseason while the Sox will hold the No. 5 and play at the Bronx against their longtime rival, the New York Yankees. The Toronto Blue Jays took the American League East title.

Boston now plays New York on Tuesday, Sept. 30, Wednesday, Oct 1 and, if necessary, Thursday, October 2. The winner of the Boston vs. New York wild card will face the No. 1 seed Blue Jays.

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To close out the season today, Boston spot starter José De León pitched a career-high 6 2/3 innings in his first outing in two years. Red Sox DH Masataka Yoshida and second baseman David Hamilton homered to give the Boston Red Sox a 4-3 victory. The Tigers’ loss gave the AL Central title to the Cleveland Guardians.

After each team wrapped up a playoff berth during the final series of the regular season – the Red Sox on Friday and the Tigers on Saturday – they both sent out lineups for the regular-season finale that allowed some regulars to rest. That included Red Sox third baseman Alex Bregman.

De León, called up from Triple-A so the Red Sox could line up their starters for the AL Wild Card series, allowed three runs on eight hits and three walks. He struck out eight. Greg Weissert pitched the ninth for his fourth save. Detroit starter Chris Paddock suffered his 12th loss against five victories on the 2025 season.

Detroit lost 13 of their final 16 and 22 of their last 31 regular season games to allow Cleveland to grab the Central title. Coincidentally, Detroit will travel to Cleveland for their best-of-three game Wild Card series, with the winner to play the Seattle Mariners.

 

 

Red Sox Clinch AL Wild Card

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor of Digital Sports Desk

BOSTON – Break out the swimming masks and the snorkel gear. Pop the bottles of Korbel. The Boston Red Sox will be playing postseason baseball in 2025.

On June 6th, the Red Sox lost a 9-6 game to the New York Yankees and fell to 30-35 and 10.5 games out of first place. On September 26, the Red Sox fell behind the Detroit Tigers, 3-0, in the 4th inning. It looked as though they’d need a win on Saturday or Sunday, the final day of the Major League Baseball regular season, to secure the Wild Card berth that hung like a slow curve ball, only because the Houston Astros dropped six of their last 10 games.

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That put the Red Sox in control of their own destiny as the Friday night lights shined upon Fenway and a season-ending three game set against the Tigers began.

Detroit had spent all but six days of the season tied or in sole possession of first place in the American League Central Division. The club went 59-34 in their first 93 games of the season which took them to July 8. They’ve gone 27-40 ever since, including the fact they’ve dropped 12 of their last 14 games and 21 of their last 29 games.

That opened the door for the red hot Cleveland Guardians to grab honors atop the Central as Toronto and New York battle it out for honors atop the AL East. Seattle holds first place and had already cliched a bye along side of the East division champ. All the others, minus Houston will play with a deck filled with wild cards.

Boston earned the postseason berth when centerfielder Ceddanne Rafaela cracked a ball off the center field wall, just over the outstretched glove of Tigers centerfielder Parker Meadows. One more inch, and we’d be reading and writing about Saturday.

Boston will see Postseason play for the first time since 2021, not all that long ago. But, Friday night’s big win in front of a sold out crowd of 37.052 at Fenway marked the first time since at least 1920 that the club earned a playoff berth via a walk-off RBI, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

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Instead, Boston’s Romy Gonzalez rounded the bases to score, giving the Red Sox a 4-3 “walk-off” victory. The hit marked Rafaela’s third walk-off RBI of the 2025 season and the 12th walk-off RBI for the Red Sox this season. Gonzalez had singled to start the one-out rally in the bottom of the ninth.

Boston scored single runs in the 7th, 8th and 9th inning to earn the victory.

Masataka Yoshida continued his hot-hitting ways as the team’s designated hitter. He went three-for-four with an RBI single in the 4th inning and a run scored in the 7th. Left fielder Jarren Duran slapped an RBI single in the 8th inning, scoring Nate Eaton who had pinch-run for Carlos Narvaez who singled and allowed Boston to tie the game at 3-3.

Boston spotted Detroit a three-run lead in fourth inning of this September night. Starting pitcher Kyle Harrison had held Detroit scoreless for three innings, striking out six Tigers batters. But he allowed five consecutive batters to reach base in the 4th inning, via four hits and a walk. Harrison gave way to Justin Slaten and he retired three of the four batters he faced to put the fire out.

Sox manager Alex Cora used six pitchers in relief of Harrison. Closer Aroldis Chapman (5-3) earned the victory after blanking Detroit in the top of the 9th inning, striking out the final two batters he faced.

Detroit’s reliever, Tommy Kahnle (1-5) took the loss, the fifth walk-off loss of the season coughed up by the Tigers. Detroit is now 6-16 (.272) in the month of September as they fight off the law of averages and steep competition in the postseason, most likely as the 6th seed and final Wild Card berth in the AL.

Boston has won seven of their last 11 games, and 13 of their last 23. The club went (6-5) in their Fenway Green uniforms, but each of the six victories came in “walk-off” fashion.

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You just might wonder if they’ll wear them on the road in the Wild Card round of the Postseason?

Playoff Picture On Line at Fenway

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BOSTON – (Wire Service Report) – The American League playoff picture will be in full focus as the Boston Red Sox host the Detroit Tigers in a regular season-ending, three-game series beginning on Friday night.

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The teams holding the final two wild-card spots had opposite Thursday results, with the Red Sox (87-72) missing an opportunity to officially clinch their first postseason berth in three years via a three-game sweep of the Toronto Blue Jays, losing 6-1 in the series finale. Their magic number is still one; a win or a Houston Astros loss to the Los Angeles Angels would do the trick.

“Just one of those nights,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “We’ve put ourselves in a good position, yet we know what we have to do and it’s going to be at Fenway Park.”

Detroit (86-73), meanwhile, snapped an eight-game skid with a 4-2 win over the Cleveland Guardians, leaving the two teams tied atop the Central entering the weekend after the Tigers had a double-digit lead in the division as recently as Sept. 3.

After winning their first two games in Toronto by a combined 11-2 score, the Red Sox were hitless until the seventh inning on Thursday. Jarren Duran doubled and scored the lone Red Sox run on a Trevor Story single.

Story is four RBI away from his first 100-RBI season since 2018 and just the second of his career.

On the mound, Kyle Harrison (1-1, 3.58 ERA) looks to continue making his case for October when he makes his third appearance and second start with Boston on Friday.

The 23-year-old southpaw, who was part of the Rafael Devers trade in June, pitched six innings of one-run ball last Saturday against the Tampa Bay Rays. Cora called it an “amazing” debut start with the club.

“His strike-throwing with the fastball is legit. And when he’s around the zone, he’s tough to hit,” Cora added. “He was under control.”

Prior to last weekend, Harrison had not pitched since a three-inning relief outing on Sept. 10 against the Athletics. He has never faced Detroit.

“I’m just glad they had the confidence in me, and I was glad that I was able to deliver in that moment,” Harrison said.

The Red Sox are trusting Harrison in a key situation against Detroit, which scored five runs in its previous three games before tagging Cleveland lefty Parker Messick for three homers in four innings out of the gates on Thursday.

Solo shots by leadoff-hitting Jahmai Jones and Wenceel Perez made it 2-0 in the first, while Riley Greene added his team-leading 36th homer of the season in the fourth.

“Look, everybody needs to see a little positivity in the game,” Detroit manager AJ Hinch said. “We’re human. We feed off a ton of things, including the good things. Of course I think everyone took a collective breath and said, ‘Here we go.’”

A handful of relievers clinched the much-needed win behind rookie Troy Melton, who lasted 3 2/3 innings. Will Vest struck out the side in the ninth.

It was Tigers’ first triumph since Sept. 14 and just their fifth in 20 September games.

“It felt like a weight was lifted off our shoulders and we’re back on track,” Melton said. “We know we’re a good baseball team.”

Despite the team’s September struggles, Casey Mize (14-6, 3.91 ERA) has gone five innings and allowed no more than three runs in each of his four starts. The first two were wins.

Mize has a pair of eight-strikeout efforts this month and has 14 outings with five or more this season, which was his total across 5 2/3 Sunday innings against the Atlanta Braves.

“The opportunity’s still in front of us, as bad as it’s been,” Mize said after his last start.

Mize, a 2025 AL All-Star, is 0-1 with a 4.29 ERA in four career starts against Boston.

-Field Level Media

Crochet Goes 8 Innings; Beats Jays

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TORONTO – (Wire Service Report) – Boston’s ace starter Garrett Crochet pitched eight scoreless innings, Carlos Narvaez hit a three-run home run and the visiting Red Sox defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 7-1 on Wednesday night in Canada.

Crochet (18-5) allowed three hits and no walks while striking out six to lower his ERA to 2.59.

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Masataka Yoshida added a solo homer and an RBI double while Trevor Story contributed three hits to help the Red Sox (87-71) to their second straight win to open the three-game series. Romy Gonzalez had two hits and two RBIs.

Isiah Kiner-Falefa homered for Toronto in the ninth against Payton Tolle.

The Blue Jays (90-68) have lost six of their last seven games and have now fallen into a tie for first within their division. They began the day with a one-game lead over the New York Yankees in the American League East.

The Red Sox have won four of five as they close in on a postseason berth. The Blue Jays have clinched a playoff spot.

Boston scored three runs in the first inning against Max Scherzer (5-5). Story looped a single to left and took third on Alex Bregman’s single to right. Yoshida dumped an RBI double into the right-field corner and Gonzalez knocked a two-run single to left.

Crochet pitched around Ernie Clement’s double in the bottom of the first.

Yoshida led off the fifth with a blast to right on an 0-1 fastball for his third homer of the season.

Scherzer allowed four runs, 10 hits and no walks while striking out five in five innings before Brendon Little took over to toss a perfect sixth.

Toronto’s Jose Berrios entered in the seventh to make his first relief appearance since being sent to the bullpen from the starting rotation in a move looking forward to the postseason. Berrios started his first relief appearance since 2017 with a perfect inning with one strikeout.

In the eighth, however, Berrios allowed a single to Gonzalez, a walk to Ceddanne Rafaela and the 15th homer of the season by Narvaez, a shot to right with two out.

Toronto’s Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was ejected in the bottom of the seventh for arguing about a called third strike. Hitting coach David Popkins was also ejected.

Toronto’s Anthony Santander returned to the lineup for the first time since late May after missing nearly four months with left shoulder inflammation. He was 0-for-3 with two strikeouts.

–Field Level Media

Red Sox Win Big Game vs. Jays

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TORONTO – (Wire Service Report) – Nathaniel Lowe and Carlos Narvaez had two RBIs apiece and the visiting Boston Red Sox defeated the Toronto Blue Jays 4-1 on Tuesday night.

Both had key hits in Boston’s three-run sixth inning that broke a 1-1 tie in the opener of the three-game series.

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The Red Sox (86-71) are trying to secure a playoff spot, while the Blue Jays (90-67) confirmed their postseason berth with a win on Sunday that ended a four-game losing streak.

The Blue Jays had their lead over the New York Yankees in the American League East cut to one game. The Yankees beat the Chicago White Sox 3-2 on Tuesday.

Boston had a 9-3 advantage in hits and took a 1-0 lead in the second against Kevin Gausman (10-11). Masataka Yoshida led off with a double into the right-field corner and scored on Lowe’s two-out single to left. Boston further threatened when Wilyer Abreu blooped a double down the left-field line, but Narvaez lined out to right.

Toronto loaded the bases against Lucas Giolito in the bottom of the second on two walks and shortstop Trevor Story’s second error of the game. George Springer’s shot past third base was ruled foul and then he was called out on strikes.

Toronto tied the game in the fourth. Nathan Lukes doubled to right center, took third on Davis Schneider’s single to left and scored on Andres Gimenez’s fielder’s choice grounder.

Justin Wilson (4-1) replaced Giolito in the fifth after a two-out walk. Giolito allowed one run, three hits and four walks with three strikeouts in 4 2/3 innings.

The Red Sox regained the lead in the sixth. Romy Gonzalez doubled to left with one out, stopped at third on Ceddanne Rafaela’s single to left and scored on Lowe’s single to right. Rafaela was out in a rundown between third and home on Abreu’s grounder to first. Narvaez lined a two-run double to right and Louis Varland replaced Gausman, who allowed four runs, nine hits and one walk with seven strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings.

Boston’s Garrett Whitlock pitched a perfect seventh inning with two strikeouts.

Justin Slaten took over for Boston in the eighth and pitched a clean inning.

Aroldis Chapman pitched a perfect ninth to earn his 32nd save of the season.

–Field Level Media

Sox vs. Blue Jays: Big 3-Game Series

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TORONTO – (Wire Service Report) – The Toronto Blue Jays’ postseason ticket officially has been punched. Their next goal is to win the American League East as they close out the regular season with a six-game home stand that opens tonight against the Boston Red Sox.

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The Blue Jays (90-66) clinched a playoff berth with an 8-5 victory over the Kansas City Royals on Sunday that completed a 3-4 road trip.

The win snapped the Blue Jays’ four-game losing streak during which they scored a total of three runs. It also maintained their two-game lead in the AL East over the New York Yankees, who also won Sunday.

The Red Sox (85-71) are third in the AL East, five games behind Toronto after losing 7-3 to the Tampa Bay Rays Sunday night. They will be trying to solidify their hold on a wild-card spot when they complete a six-game road trip with three in Toronto.

The Blue Jays are scheduled to start Kevin Gausman (10-10, 3.38 ERA) on Tuesday. The right-hander is 9-10 with a 4.18 ERA in 32 career games (27 starts) against the Red Sox. In his one start against them this season, he allowed one unearned run in eight innings but did not factor in the decision.

Lucas Giolito (10-4, 3.46) is expected to get the assignment for the Red Sox. The right-hander is 3-3 with a 4.63 ERA in 10 career starts against the Blue Jays. In two starts against them this season, he is 1-0 with a 2.08 ERA.

Toronto leads the season series with Boston 7-3.

The Blue Jays finished last in the division in 2024 after being swept in the wild-card series in each of the previous two seasons. This season, they are considered a surprise team and were the first AL team to clinch a postseason berth.

“I’m so happy for them,” said Blue Jays manager John Schneider. “It is hard at this level for everyone to put their egos aside and play for each other. It is so cool to see these guys genuinely happy for each other when they get the job done, no matter who it is. This is the most fulfilling team I’ve been part of.”

The resurgences of George Springer and Bo Bichette have given the offense a boost this season. Bichette, who was hampered by injuries in 2024, has been out since Sept. 7 with a sprained left knee and he will not return until the postseason.

Finishing first in the AL East and winning the top seed in the AL could be important for the Blue Jays because of the home-field advantages they bring. The Blue Jays have been two different teams this year — 50-25 at home and 40-41 on the road.

Entering Tuesday’s games, the Blue Jays are in the driver’s seat for the AL’s top seed. They have a magic number of four with the Yankees, three with the Mariners, two with the Astros and one with the other three AL teams still mathematically in the playoff chase.

The Red Sox are 39-39 on the road but are 17-10 away from home since July 23.

They missed a chance to sweep the Rays on Sunday when they stranded 10 runners despite going 4-for-11 with runners in scoring position.

Taking the series in Tampa was considered a positive step for the Red Sox, who entered Monday sitting in the second wild-card spot. They begin the final week of the regular season one game ahead of Houston and Cleveland, who are tied for the third and final spot entering Tuesday’s action.

“Every game counts,” said Boston manager Alex Cora. “We’re in a good position. I know the season didn’t end (Sunday), but we’re in a good spot.”

Cora likes the way the offense is trending. “I truly believe now, the line is moving,” he said. “There were some tremendous at-bats, guys using the whole field.”

Boston outfielder Wilyer Abreu returned to the lineup on Sunday after being out since Aug. 18 with a strained right calf. He struck out four times as the DH.

–Field Level Media

Boston’s Big Ninth After Error

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TAMPA – (Wire Service Report) – Boston’s Trevor Story knocked in the go-ahead run in the club’s three-run ninth inning as the Red Sox crafted their eighth straight win over Tampa Bay, doubling the host Rays 6-3 on Saturday night.

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Tied three-all, Story put Boston ahead by singling in Ceddanne Rafaela, who reached on Junior Caminero’s second fielding error, for a 4-3 lead off reliever Jesse Scholtens (0-1).

Masataka Yoshida (single) and Romy Gonzalez (sacrifice fly) drove in runs for the three-run lead as the Red Sox (85-70) moved to 10-2 against the Rays (75-80).

Gonzalez was 2-for-2 with a run, RBI and stolen base plus a walk and a hit by pitch. Alex Bregman had two hits, and Rafaela scored twice.

Garrett Whitlock (7-3) was credited with the win. Aroldis Chapman notched his 31st save.

In his first start with the Red Sox, Kyle Harrison gave up one run on four hits in six innings. He struck out five and walked two.

Tampa Bay’s Jake Mangum was 3-for-4 with a double and an RBI. Yandy Diaz was 2-for-3 with an RBI and a walk.

Starter Adrian Houser yielded three runs on five hits in six innings. The right-hander had two strikeouts, three walks, a hit batter and two wild pitches.

The visitors used their speed to go up 1-0 in the third after Jarren Duran’s one-out single. The speedster stole his 24th base then scored when Houser spiked two wild pitches into the dirt and to the backstop.

In the fourth, Mangum doubled to left to score Brandon Lowe, who earlier had singled, to even it, but Bregman made it 2-1 by lining a single to center to send home Rafaela.

Boston took a 3-1 lead in the sixth by manufacturing a run without a hit after leadoff batter Gonzalez was hit by a Houser pitch. He promptly stole second, was bunted to third by Nate Eaton and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nathaniel Lowe.

In the seventh with Harrison out, the Rays tied it off relievers Justin Wilson and Justin Slaten on Nick Fortes’ RBI double and Diaz’s run-scoring single.

–Field Level Media

Sox Derailled as A’s Take Series

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By TERRY LYONS, Editor-in-Chief

BOSTON – Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited service from Cleveland’s Lakefront Station to Boston’s South Station is coming down the line. And, today’s 5-3 Red Sox loss to the Travelin’ A’s put the club’s neck on the tracks as Cleveland won its seventh straight game and is now only 1.5 games away from the American League’s third Wild Card slot, a berth Boston seemed sure of holding just weeks ago.

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Boston starter Brayan Bello coughed up four straight hits to start the afternoon game at Fenway Park, two being home runs (Laurence Butler) and (Nick Kurtz) to put the Sox down three before their own train left the station.

Boston has now dropped three of their last four series, dating back to September 5. The Red Sox are 5-8 in their last 13 games, 5-10 in their last 15 games at Fenway. While Boston’s 83-70 record through 153 games in their best  since 2021 (92-70), the grasp on the final AL Wild Card spot and a berth in postseason is now facing an uphill battle.

Boston now heads to the road for three-game sets at AL East rival Tampa and three games at AL East-leading Toronto before coming back to Fenway for the final home series of the 2025 season, three games against AL Central leading Detroit (September 26-28).

Bello only pitched four innings, tying his shortest outing of the season (May 23 vs Baltimore). He had allowed only three earned runs or fewer in 25 of his 28 games this season, but fell apart in possibly his most important start of the campaign. In the four IP, he allowed five hits, four runs, three earned runs, with two walks and three strike-outs. Bello is (11-8) on the season.

A’s starter J.T. Ginn had the tonic working over six innings pitched, allowing five hits, two earned runs with one walk and three strike-outs. David Hamilton’s second inning homer was the blemish and it made the score A’s 3-Boston 2, after two innings, but the club, formerly of Oakland (and Kansas City, way back when) scratched out two more runs (5-2, in middle of the seventh inning) while Boston’s offense was derailing.

Only Trevor Story’s eighth inning home run added a tally and closed out the scoring, (5-3).

After a terrible start to the season when they lost 20-of-21 from May 14 to June 4, the A’s are now an AL-best (30-19) since July 24.

A’s DH Brent Rooker hit his 30th home run of the season and is only the seventh player in franchise history to record three consecutive 30-HR seasons. Story’s homer was his 25th of the season and he joined Jacoby Ellsbury as the only two Red Sox players with 25+ HRs, 30+ Stolen bases and 90+ runs batted in.

A’s reliever Hogan Harris notched his fourth save of the year.

Boston will throw ace Garrett Crochet in the first game of the series vs. Tampa tomorrow night at 7:35 (NESN).

 

A’s Learning to Win Down Stretch

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BOSTON – (Wire Service Report) – The Athletics are just one loss away from being eliminated from playoff contention, but they could be one heck of a spoiler down the stretch.

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Now winners of five games in a row and an American League-best 29 games since July 24, the A’s (71-80) will look to secure a series win when they visit the Boston Red Sox (82-69) for the middle contest of a three-game set on Wednesday night.

“These games are really important (in Boston’s playoff chase), and the support they’re going to get for these three games, in some way, will represent that type of (playoff) atmosphere,” Athletics manager Mark Kotsay said. “For our young guys, this is a good challenge for them, to be able to go into a pretty electric environment.”

It took until the sixth inning for Tyler Soderstrom and Brett Harris to drive in the tying and winning runs on Tuesday, and Mitch Spence and Hogan Harris did the rest over five shutout relief innings as the A’s won 2-1. Jeffrey Springs was the starter, giving up one run (none earned) over four innings.

The result was the team’s third straight road-series-opening win and its second one-run victory over the Red Sox in a seven-day stretch.

Kotsay said he believes fans should get used to watching Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson facing the likes of Boston’s Roman Anthony (though currently injured) and pitchers Connelly Early and Payton Tolle.

“(The Red Sox) have a young, impressive team that’s going to be good for a while,” Kotsay said. “I think our club is very similar. … It should be fun watching these two teams build over the next few years.”

Athletics rookie Mason Barnett (1-1, 8.53 ERA) is set for his fourth career start and will face the Red Sox for the second time. He had not pitched in Triple-A before this season.

The 24-year-old was charged with three runs on seven hits in 3 2/3 innings last Wednesday in his team’s 5-4 win over the Red Sox. This outing came on the heels of striking out eight Los Angeles Angels in five innings to earn his first career win.

The Red Sox on Tuesday managed just one run on eight hits — including three from Trevor Story, who also became just the fourth 30-for-30 base stealer in MLB’s expansion era (since 1961). Boston was 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position.

A bases-loaded, no-out opportunity went to waste, while Nick Sogard was picked off first base as a potential tying run in the eighth inning.

“We just got to make sure we slow it down, (don’t get) caught up on the score and just do your part,” Red Sox manager Alex Cora said. “I think, at the end of the day, the job is to get on base. We’ve been doing a better job the last three games … but we have to cash in.”

The return of outfielder Wilyer Abreu (calf strain) from the injured list is needed, and while not expected on Wednesday, it does appear imminent.

“Wily hit (Monday). He was a little bit sore but not tight. I think it’s more about the workload on Sunday,” Cora said. “He walked in today and said he felt better. So we’ll see what’s on the table and see where we’re at.

Boston’s Lucas Giolito (10-4, 3.31 ERA) will pitch Wednesday looking to shake off back-to-back losses for the first time this season. The right-hander took a tough-luck defeat Friday against the New York Yankees, allowing just two runs (one earned) and striking out six over the first 5 2/3 innings. The Red Sox lost 4-1.

“It wasn’t good enough. The other guy’s (Luis Gil) throwing zero after zero, I gotta match that for us to have a chance to win,” Giolito said.

Giolito is 1-1 with a 4.26 ERA in three career starts against the Athletics but has not faced them since 2022.

–Field Level Media