The Boston Red Sox didn't have a nice weekend in New York. That's no shocker.
Still, with the magic number at two, the Sox are in prime position to clinch a playoff spot as the AL wild card.
Any combination of Red Sox wins and Rangers losses that adds up to two over the next seven days will secure Boston's seat in the tournament. That will happen — but when? Monday night is the first chance.
When and Where
7:10 p.m. ET (NESN), Sept. 28, 2009
Fenway Park, Boston, Mass.
Records
Red Sox (91-64, 2nd in AL East)
Blue Jays (72-84, 4th in AL East)
Head To Head
The Red Sox have gotten the best of the Blue Jays this year, going 11-4 against Toronto on the season. The Sox have been perfect against Toronto at Fenway, going 7-0.
Starting Lineups
| Blue Jays | Red Sox |
| Jose Bautista, RF | Jacoby Ellsbury, CF |
| Aaron Hill, 2B | Dustin Pedroia, 2B |
| Adam Lind, DH | Victor Martinez, C |
| Vernon Wells, CF | Kevin Youkilis, 3B |
| Edwin Encarnacion, 3B | David Ortiz, DH |
| Lyle Overbay, 1B | Jason Bay, LF |
| Rod Barajas, C | J.D. Drew, RF |
| Travis Snider, LF | Casey Kotchman, 1B |
| Joe McDonald, SS | Alex Gonzalez, SS |
Starting Pitchers
Josh Beckett (16-6, 3.78 ERA) vs. Scott Richmond (7-10, 5.32 ERA)
On paper, the pitching matchup seems to heavily favor the Red Sox, though a win may not come as easy as it seems. Beckett, whose postseason importance has risen to even higher levels after Jon Lester took a liner off the leg, might be focused more on getting his work in than he is on shutting down the Jays' lineup.
Though he'll probably make another start before the season ends, his starts in the final weeks of the previous two seasons haven't been good. On Sept. 27, 2007, he gave up five runs on 10 hits in a loss to the Twins, and on Sept. 22, 2008, he gave up four runs in six innings against the Indians.
For the Jays, Richmond has a 6.43 ERA against the Red Sox in two appearances this year. He's coming off an outing against the Orioles in which he picked up his seventh win, giving up three runs over five innings.
Update: Beckett has been scratched from the start.
Stat Sheet
Red Sox
Dustin Pedroia and Jacoby Ellsbury lead the Red Sox with 148 games played this season out of a possible 155. Jason Bay (145) and David Ortiz (144) are close behind.
Bay is third in the AL with 36 home runs. He trails Carlos Pena, who is out for the year, by three and trails Mark Teixeira by two.
Bay is second in the AL in RBIs with 115, trailing Teixeira (120).
The wild-card race isn't the only one from which the Rays have faded, as Ellsbury (66) has taken a commanding lead in the AL in steals over Carl Crawford (59).
The Red Sox are 52-22 at home. In their stretch of 20 games in 20 days, they are 7-6 so far.
Blue Jays
Vernon Wells is one home run shy of tying George Bell for first in Toronto history for home runs by an outfielder. Wells is already the Blue Jays' leader in hits (1,340), doubles (288) and RBIs (704) by an outfielder.
The Jays are coming off their first winning homestand since May 29-June 7. They went 22-27 during a stretch of six consecutive losing homestands.
The Blue Jays have a winning record at home (44-37) but are 28-47 on the road.
Aaron Hill has hit 34 home runs as a second baseman. That's the most in the AL by a second baseman since Alfonso Soriano hit 35 with Texas in 2005. Hill's 102 RBIs are the most by an AL second baseman since Brett Boone's 117 in 2003.
Hill and Wells lead the Jays in games played this year with 152. Adam Lind is third with 149. Marco Scutaro had played in all but five games in the season before injuring his heel on Sept. 20.
Roy Halladay, who is schedule to oppose Tim Wakefield on Wednesday, owns a clean 2.90 ERA and a 16-10 record. He leads the team in strikeouts with 202. Ricky Romero is second with 130.
Black and Blue
Red Sox
Nick Green, who was set to be the backup infielder on the Red Sox' postseason roster, is out indefinitely with a leg issue that could stem from a disk issue.
Jon Lester could make his next scheduled start after taking a line drive to the leg on Friday night and leaving the game.
Hideki Okajima returned to the team over the weekend and could be available soon after missing time due to soreness in his right side. He had pitched three scoreless outings before the injury.
Blue Jays
Marco Scutaro could be out for the season with a right heel injury. He hasn't played since Sept. 20, but he is expected to travel with the team and could return.
Joe Inglett is day-to-day with a strained rib cage.
Scott Downs is day-to-day with a right hamstring injury.
Press Box
Red Sox
The Red Sox watched the Yankees celebrate on Sunday.
The Sox now are looking ahead.
David Ortiz provided a moment of levity in the clubhouse after Sunday's loss.
Blue Jays
The Jays ended their home season on a high note.
The Jays have a Roy Halladay fan in their ranks.
The heat is on GM J.P. Ricciardi.
MLB
The Angels' magic number stands at two.
The Rockies held close their wild-card lead.
The Braves are keeping the race close.
Outlook
The Red Sox will — in all likelihood — make the playoffs whether they win another game or not. Still, no team wants to back into the playoffs. If the Sox can take care of business with a win, it could be a night to celebrate in Boston. Just don't expect a repeat of the 2007 party — the Rangers and Angels won't get under way until 10 p.m. in the East.
