Red Sox Standings Watch: Playoff hopes slipping away

The Boston Red Sox have fallen outside of a playoff spot

Entering the season, many projected the Boston Red Sox to finish fourth in the AL East. At the moment, it appears those predictions may prove accurate.

Well, not entirely. Some of those projections were meant to be pessimistic, going as far as to claim the Red Sox would be battling the Baltimore Orioles for a spot in the basement of the division. Boston has clearly exceeded those expectations with an encouraging bounce-back season that has them firmly in the Wild Card race. However, if the season were to end today, the Red Sox would find themselves on the outside of the postseason picture.

Boston has dropped consecutive games to fall percentage points behind the New York Yankees in the chase for the second Wild Card spot. The Bronx Bombers have had their own issues of late, losing eight of their past 10, which has kept the Red Sox in striking distance.

Boston’s 81 wins are one more than New York’s but the Red Sox also trail a game in the loss column. The Yankees .556 winning percentage edges out Boston’s .555 percentage by the slimmest of margins but for the moment, the Red Sox have surrendered their playoff spot.

Both clubs are within one game of the red-hot Toronto Blue Jays, winners of nine of their last 10 to vault into the top Wild Cad spot. Nobody is catching the Tampa Bay Rays for the AL East crown, as they still own an eight game lead over Toronto. The two Wild Card spots will most likely go to two out of the three other AL East contenders, although the Seattle Mariners (2 games back) and Oakland A’s (2.5 games) are lurking close behind.

Boston’s roster has been ravaged by COVID-19, testing their depth at a pivotal point of the season. Some of their issues have been self-inflicted though, as sloppy play and a lack of focus on fundamentals have proven costly in recent games. This has led to the Red Sox losing nine of their last 15 games .

Some of those missing players have recently returned from the COVID-IL with more reinforcements on the way, including the potential activation of Chris Sale and Matt Barnes this weekend. The Red Sox still need to shore up their defensive issues but getting these pitchers back into key roles will benefit the staff for the stretch run.

Also working in their favor is a fortuitous schedule. The Red Sox have the easiest remaining strength of schedule in the American League and second-easiest in the majors, with their opponents owning a collective .432 winning percentage. Toronto (.488 SOS) and New York (.487) are middle of the pack while Seattle (.510) and Oakland (.534) have among the most difficult remaining schedules.

The Red Sox have two more games in Seattle where they can keep the Mariners at bay, plus three more with the Yankees where they could have a chance to leap over them in the standings. Six more against the lowly Orioles should help Boston pad their record. A pair of games at home against the Mets could become even more appealing if New York falls out of the NL Wild Card race by then. The Red Sox wrap up the season with three games against the trade deadline-depleted Washington Nationals.

As discouraging as it seems to cough up their playoff spot during this rough patch, it’s important to remember that they are only one game out. It’s going to be a tight race between three division rivals battling for two Wild Card spots. A soft schedule combined with a roster that gets healthier by the day sets Boston up for a strong finish. If they can capitalize, the Red Sox can reclaim a playoff spot and build some momentum heading into October.