Loss to Blue Jays means Boston must wait

The Purple Sox must wait at the least one other day earlier than they’ll doubtlessly clinch a spot within the playoffs.

Boston entered Thursday with their magic quantity to safe a postseason bid down to at least one — which means that each one the Purple Sox wanted was a win over the Blue Jays or an Astros loss to the Athletics to punch their ticket to the playoffs for the primary time since 2021.

However fortune didn’t fall on Boston’s facet Thursday, because the Purple Sox fell to the Blue Jays, 6-1, at Rogers Centre — whereas Houston saved their playoff hopes alive by beating Oakland, 11-5. 

Though Boston (87-72) continues to be in good place to play playoff baseball subsequent week, Thursday stood as a step again for a Purple Sox staff attempting to at the least maintain regular because the second Wild Card staff within the American League.

With Boston shedding and each the Tigers and Astros successful on Thursday, issues received a bit tighter within the Wild Card standings. The Purple Sox are only a sport forward of the third-place Tigers (86-73) within the Wild Card, whereas the Houston Astros are actually two video games again with an 85-74 file.

The Astros are at the moment on the surface trying in on the playoff image, with Boston primarily holding a three-game cushion over Houston with three video games to go because of the Purple Sox holding the tie-breaker over them. 

Whereas Boston stays in command of its personal future so far as securing the No. 2 spot within the Wild Card, a couple of doorways did shut for the Purple Sox as results of Thursday’s slate of video games.

With each the Blue Jays and Yankees successful on Thursday, the Purple Sox can not win the AL East — nor can they overtake both of these groups for the highest spot within the Wild Card standings. 

If MLB’s common season ended at present, this could be the matchups within the American League:

Byes
No. 1 Toronto, No. 2 Seattle

Wild Card Spherical
Finest of three

No. 3 Cleveland vs. No. 6 Detroit
No. 4 Yankees vs. No. 5 Boston

So far as the playoff format goes, six groups will make the postseason in each the American and Nationwide League.

The 2 division winners with the most effective data in every league will earn a bye within the Wild Card spherical, whereas the third division winner holds onto the No. 3 seed and performs the third wild-card staff. The primary and second wild-card groups would be the No. 4 and No. 5 seeds, respectively, and play one another. 

The upper seed will host all three video games within the Wild Card spherical, which signifies that Boston would — as of now — open postseason play subsequent with a three-game collection at Yankee Stadium subsequent week.

However, it stays to be seen who the Purple Sox might play subsequent week in the event that they do clinch a playoff spot.

With the Yankees and Blue Jays now tied within the standings, Boston might return to Rogers Centre subsequent week if New York takes first within the AL East and Toronto finally ends up falling into the Wild Card.

The one purpose why Toronto (91-68) holds the sting within the standings over the Yankees (91-68) at this level is because of the Blue Jays holding the tie-breaker over New York.

The Purple Sox’s magic quantity stays at one coming into Friday’s video games. 

Boston may have one other probability to earn a visit to October on Friday night time, because the Purple Sox will host the Tigers at Fenway Park. Southpaw Kyle Harrison will face off towards Detroit righty Casey Mize in a sport that will probably be carried on Apple TV+. 

Even when Boston falls to Detroit on Friday, they’ll nonetheless advance to the playoffs if the Astros lose to the Angels in Anaheim. That matchup on the West Coast has a primary pitch slated for 9:30 p.m. 

Wednesday’s outcomes for the highest groups within the AL:

Blue Jays defeated Purple Sox, 6-1
Tigers defeated Guardians , 4-2
Yankees defeated White Sox, 5-3
Astros defeated A’s, 11-5

 

Conor Ryan is a employees author masking the Bruins, Celtics, Patriots, and Purple Sox for Boston.com, a task he has held since 2023.