How Soon Could the Red Sox Clinch a Playoff Spot This Weekend?

The Red Sox open a three-game series against the Rays on Friday at Tropicana Field, and the earliest they could clinch a postseason berth is Saturday.

Where things stand

Boston (83-70) holds the second AL Wild Card spot, six games behind the Yankees for the top wild-card position. Tampa Bay (93-59) leads the AL East by five games with 10 games remaining and has its own magic number of six to clinch the division.

What could happen Saturday

Saturday is the first date on which Boston’s playoff berth could become official. The available reporting doesn’t spell out the exact combination of Red Sox wins and other results around the league that would need to line up for that to happen — so if you’re tracking it in real time, check MLB.com or the Red Sox’s official channels for the live scenario as the weekend unfolds.

What’s happening around the series

• Boston’s pitching has been a strength this season — third in MLB with a 3.61 ERA, led by Sonny Gray’s AL-leading 17 wins.
• The offense has been shakier lately: Roman Anthony is batting .200 in September, and Jarren Duran has a .618 OPS on the year.
• Catcher Willson Contreras and closer Aroldis Chapman are both listed as day-to-day.
• Tampa Bay comes in on a six-game home winning streak, with a 2.99 ERA from its starters in September and offensive help from Chandler Simpson, Jonathan Aranda, and Junior Caminero. The Rays did just lose setup man Tyler Wells for the rest of the regular season.

After this series

Once the Rays series wraps up, Boston closes out the regular season with three games each against the Guardians and the Cubs. Tampa Bay heads into a four-game series at the Yankees, starting with a doubleheader on Tuesday.

Since this is a fast-moving situation with the standings changing daily, it’s worth checking the latest standings and clinching scenarios directly before making weekend plans around it.

Sources / Learn more

• MLB.com