Barring a catastrophic collapse and outstanding finishes by teams in the hunt, the Boston Red Sox will more than likely appear in the MLB Wild Card round this season.
After missing the playoffs for the last three years, it's about time, but nothing is certain just yet. The Red Sox have two first place clubs in their way of the postseason, and the Toronto Blue Jays and Detroit Tigers won't go down easily, especially given the Sox's latest struggles.
Unlike many of his young teammates, Alex Bregman has been in this position before. The veteran is a two-time World Series winner and perennial playoff player over his nine years with the Astros. He offered some advice after Boston's September 21 loss to the Rays.
“You can’t sit and dwell on this game, it’s way too late in the year,” Bregman said (via Ian Browne of MLB.com). "Got to keep going. Got to keep pushing forward and get a good off-day [on Monday] and get ready to go to Toronto. That's it. Plain and simple.”
Alex Bregman's advice should help a young Red Sox team push for the postseason in the final stretch
There are a few issues the Red Sox could dwell on from their finale loss to the Rays, like their struggles getting runs on the board. Boston left 10 men on base and went 4-for-11 with runners in scoring position. Nathaniel Lowe had a particularly difficult day in this regard — he struck out with the bases loaded twice, going 0-for-3 with runners on.
The Red Sox's top pitching prospects also look human. Connelly Early surrendered two runs on three hits in four innings, his shortest outing since his September 9 debut against the A's. Payton Tolle also had a rough night out of the bullpen, although he inherited a rough situation from Zack Kelly. With two runners on, Tolle walked his first batter and let up two consecutive singles and a sac fly two batters later to give the Rays a 7-3 lead.
Boston's bullpen, in general, is taxed from months of work, battling injuries and limited depth. Relying on top prospects during a playoff chase — especially Tolle, who has never played professional baseball before this season — is risky, but the Red Sox don't have any other choice.
Bregman is right that the Red Sox need to look forward. It would take incredible runs from other teams in the race for Boston to miss the playoffs, but it still won't be easy to beat the Blue Jays and Tigers. The Sox have a slight advantage because the Jays will be without Bo Bichette, their hottest hitter for weeks, and the Tigers are on the verge of collapse, but the Red Sox need to think about what they can do right. Bregman, Ceddanne Rafaela and Masataka Yoshida appear to have broken through offensive slumps, which will go a long way to lengthening the lineup against two first-place squads.