Rafaela's walk-off triple sends Red Sox to playoffs

BOSTON -- Ceddanne Rafaela tripled disconnected the halfway tract partition to thrust successful the game-ending tally successful the ninth inning connected Friday night, giving the Red Sox a 4-3 triumph implicit the Detroit Tigers and clinching Boston's archetypal postseason berth since 2021.

Boston rallied from a 3-0 shortage to determination 2 games up of the Tigers and 2 1/2 up of Houston successful the contention for the past 2 American League wild-card berths, with 2 games near to play. Detroit, which has mislaid 12 of its past 14 games, tin inactive scope the playoffs and adjacent triumph the AL Central with assistance from Cleveland.

Boston tied the crippled successful the eighth inning and past Romy Gonzalez singled to halfway with 1 retired successful the ninth. Rafaela, who missed clearing the Green Monster successful the seventh by astir a foot, sent a 1-0 transportation disconnected the partition successful center.

Gonzalez, who held up to marque definite it wasn't caught, raced astir to people arsenic his teammates streamed retired of the dugout and astir bushed him to the plate.

Masataka Yoshida had 3 hits for Boston. Closer Aroldis Chapman (5-3) pitched the ninth for the win. Tommy Kahnle (1-5) got conscionable 1 retired successful the bottommost of the ninth.

Key moment

The Red Sox missed a brace of two-run homers by astir 2 feet: Nathaniel Lowe deed a enactment thrust disconnected the Green Monster successful the 2nd inning, conscionable missing the apical of the wall. Rafaela besides settled for a treble with his liner disconnected the apical of the 37-foot partition successful the seventh.

Key stat

It was Boston's large league-leading 12th walk-off triumph of the season. That's tied for the 2nd astir successful franchise history. The Red Sox won connected their past at-bat 13 times successful 1940.

Up next

LHP Connelly Early (1-1) volition commencement for Boston connected Saturday. The Tigers had not named a starter.