The Boston Red Sox beat the Chicago Cubs 4-3 at Fenway Park on Friday and, with it, settled the last open question in the American League bracket: they are the No. 5 seed, and they are going back to the Bronx.
Boston will face the No. 4 New York Yankees in a best-of-three Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium, starting Tuesday, with Wednesday and, if needed, Thursday to follow. It is a rematch of last year's first round, which the Yankees won in three games.
A comeback in a game moved up for the weather
The doubleheader opener had been pulled forward from Sunday because of an approaching nor'easter, and Boston spent most of it behind. The Red Sox trailed by three before Adley Rutschman's two-run single in the fifth brought them level, and Connor Wong's double in the seventh put them in front for good.
Roman Anthony was the engine: three hits — two doubles and a triple — plus a walk, and three runs scored. It was the first game of his career with three extra-base hits.
Reliever Jake Bennett worked 3⅔ scoreless innings for the win, closing out a rookie season with a 3.65 ERA.
The four runs are worth a second look for what they say about the shape Boston is in: they matched the team's total from the previous four games combined. The Red Sox then won the nightcap 2-0 to complete the sweep.
Where the bracket stands
The playoff field has filled in quickly. The Rays and Brewers hold the No. 1 seeds in their leagues, the Dodgers are No. 2 in the National League and the Braves No. 3. Boston clinched a berth on September 20; the Cubs took a wild card on September 24, the same day the White Sox, Guardians and Padres punched their tickets.
The regular season ends Sunday — the Red Sox finish game 162 in Florida — and the postseason begins on September 29.
The rivalry, again
A Yankees–Red Sox first-round series is the outcome the schedule has been drifting toward for weeks, and it is the seventh postseason meeting between the two clubs. Boston arrives having just scored more runs in one afternoon than in the preceding four days, which is either a sign of life or a reminder of how thin the margin has been.
Reporting from The Boston Globe, WJAR and MLB.com.
