The Boston Red Sox have grown into one of the best teams in the American League this season and their playoff candidacy is all but certain, barring a catastrophic collapse. They still haven't clinched a playoff spot, so their place in the Wild Card standings remains up in the air.
On September 9 before their season finale against the Los Angeles Angels, the Red Sox's magic number to clinch a Wild Card spot is nine. The Toronto Blue Jays and Cleveland Guardians are neck-and-neck for the third spot, but the AL Central club holds the spot as of this writing. Boston will clinch its current playoff spot when any combination of its wins and Blue Jays (or the first team out) losses reaches nine.
Despite their series loss to the Angels on September 9, the Red Sox's magic number decreased. The Blue Jays, Guardians and Texas Rangers, another team in the hunt for the third Wild Card spot, also lost that night, which can also drag the magic number down. The Red Sox could rack up some wins quickly over the remaining 15 games.
The Kansas City Royals will visit Boston for three games over the weekend. The AL Central's basement dwellers have had an ugly season with a 64-82 record following slight offensive regressions from Bobby Witt Jr. and Vinnie Pasquantino. The Royals have lost seven of their last 10 games.
Red Sox's magic number is nine with 15 games to go and a tough schedule of playoff contenders ahead
The Sox's schedule gets much tougher after the Kansas City series. Four teams in the playoff mix — the Rangers, Guardians, Tampa Bay Rays and Chicago Cubs — stand in the way of their clinching.
The Rangers sit below the Blue Jays in the standings and they've been in and out of the third Wild Card spot this season, like their top competitors. The Red Sox have a 2-1 advantage in the season series before the impending three-game matchup and Wilyer Abreu has a shocking 2.035 OPS in eight career appearances at Globe Life Field, but facing Jacob deGrom will be a test.
The Red Sox also have a 2-1 advantage in the season series against the Guardians and their playoff berth could very well be clinched before they arrive in Boston. Cleveland doesn't rank in the top 10 in the league in any offensive category besides walks, so Boston's rotation will have to have its command on lock to beat the gutsy club with a Wild Card berth in its sights.
The Rays and Cubs are the Sox's most challenging opponents remaining and they play at a crucial time in the final two weeks of the season. Again, the Red Sox could clinch a playoff spot by this time, but they'll be tough matchups, regardless — Tampa Bay has been the AL's best team nearly all season long and Chicago will bring a surging Alex Bregman back to Boston.
With the right combination of wins, losses and some luck, the Red Sox could clinch their playoff spot with over a week left in the season. Even though there are some clubs with losing records between Boston and the end of the regular season, it won't be an easy path to the second Wild Card spot.
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