McAdam: Welcome back, meaningful September baseball

Share

And down the stretch they come.

There are just a little more than three weeks remaining in the regular season, and the Red Sox sit atop a suddenly jam-packed American League East, with four teams separated by a mere 4 1/2 games.

This is what they wanted. This is what they get.

After two straight last-place finishes, excursions in irrelevancy, the Red Sox are playing meaningful baseball in the closing weeks of a season for the first time since 2013. 

A year ago, they were on a quixotic -- and ultimately unsuccessful -- quest to finish at .500, a modest goal to be sure, one that was lost in the final week of the season when the Sox seemed to run out of gas and dropped their final four games.

Boston's win Wednesday night in San Diego -- coupled with Toronto's loss to New York -- lifted the Sox into first place, a spot they hadn't occupied solely since July 21.

That's more than symbolic.

It gives the Sox a position of supremacy -- however minor -- with 23 games remaining. Every one of those games is a against a team from the division. And all but three of those will be against a team very much in contention for the post-season.

And while it's true that 14 of those 23 remaining games are on the road, the Red Sox could hardly ask for more.

A spot in the playoffs -- and the division title -- is there for the taking.

It may have taken a while, 5 1/2 months into the season, the Red Sox finally have a rotation that's worthy of a playoff contender. Since July 9 - a span of 54 games, exactly one-third of the season -- the Red Sox starters have compiled a 3.31 ERA, best in the American League in that time and second in all of baseball to the Chicago Cubs.

(How much better are the Sox positioned from a pitching standpoint? It seems almost irrelevant that the Sox are missing 13-game winner Steven Wright, having adequately replaced him in the rotation with a resurgent Clay Buchholz.)

Despite some inconsistencies from time to time, the offense remains ranked first in most major categories, led by runs scored.

The only uncertainty lies with the bullpen, where 139 games in, exact roles remain in flux, thanks to underperformance and a string of injuries.

Even there, strong outings Wednesday night by both Koji Uehara and Brad Ziegler -- the best choices for the heavy lifting in the eighth inning -- merit encouragement.

A weekend showdown in Toronto for first place looms, followed by a homestand that features Baltimore and New York. After a tour through Baltimore, St. Petersburg and New York, the Red Sox return for a season-closing series with Toronto that may determine who wins the division and who has to settle for the dreaded one-game wild-card spot.

How many wins will the Red Sox need to assure themselves of a playoff appearance? Going 13-10 would give them 91 wins, and that would seem enough to, at minimum, get them a wild-card spot. Coincidentally, that would have them playing at a .565 clip the rest of the way, or a tick above the .561 ball they've played to this point.

Another win or two might get them the division.

Anything less than 13 wins, and the Sox would be taking their chances, or relying on everyone else in contention to falter, too.

The postseason is there for the taking. If they fall short, they have no one to blame but themselves.

 

Contact Us