On September 21 in the visiting clubhouse at Tropicana Field, it finally rained champagne and beer. The Boston Red Sox clinched a playoff spot after a few delays, of sorts.
The Red Sox have lost seven of their last 11 games, going back to their early September series against the American League-worst Los Angeles Angels. Had they won a few more games in that stretch, they could've had their ceremony days ago.
Boston also lost its series against the Tampa Bay Rays before the clinch which made the experience feel slightly different. The Sox waited for the Houston Astros to lose to the Atlanta Braves before they celebrated their playoff berth.
But none of that matters because of how the Red Sox got here in the first place. The Red Sox got off to a 31-44 start through their first 75 games, but still made the playoffs. According to Sarah Langs of ESPN, that's the worst start for any playoff team in MLB history.
The Red Sox overcame so much to get to the Wild Card spot they find themselves in with two series to go. The first, and possibly most dramatic, of the pivotal events this season was the firing of Alex Cora and most of his coaching staff. On April 25, not even a full month in to the campaign, Craig Breslow dismissed the club's skipper of seven-plus seasons in favor of Triple-A manager Chad Tracy.
Red Sox celebrate long-awaited playoff clinch following one of the most polarizing seasons in recent memory
The team took some time to adjust, but it rallied around Tracy and the new coaching staff. The Red Sox went 25-28 in May and June, the first two months of Tracy's tenure, then took off in July. Boston clawed out of the basement of the American League East, going 32-5 from June 25-August 7. The Red Sox tied the franchise's best 15-game win streak. They had the best 30-game stretch in Red Sox history. And they did it without Garrett Crochet or Roman Anthony.
Players who were underperforming also found themselves as the season went on. Caleb Durbin went from one of the league's worst hitters to one of the Sox's top all-around contributors. Brayan Bello had one of the most confusing seasons most fans will ever see — from first-inning blowups (and blowups in many other innings) as a starter to one of the top relievers in the game, back to starting well again. Jarren Duran still isn't playing well enough, but he's on the verge of a 20-20 season with 69 RBI.
Much of the credit for Boston's otherworldly turnaround goes to the players, but plenty also belongs with Craig Breslow. His offseason additions — Willson Contreras, Sonny Gray and Ranger Suarez — have been some of the most stable contributors to the team all season. They kept the Red Sox afloat while few other players were doing their jobs.
Now, after all of that, the Sox are in the playoff spot no one thought they'd have four months ago. Even if they lost their series to the Rays, even if they had to wait for the Astros to lose to celebrate, Boston deserves to pop bottles and go crazy for making it to October after all it's been through over one of the most dramatic seasons we'll ever know.
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