Boston earns back-to-back AL East titles for fifirst time
BOSTON—The hard chopper bounced off first baseman Mitch More land’ s glove and high into the air. Second baseman Brock Holt jumped to glove the ball and flipped it to fifirst, where David Price was covering.
When the Boston Red Sox needed him, Pricewas there.
The one-time ace came out of the bullpen in relief of Drew Pomeranz and squelched a dangerous seventh-inning rally on Saturday, helping the Red Sox clinch the first back-to-back AL East titles in franchise history and avoid a possible tiebreaker Monday against the rival New York Yankees.
“Thatwas important: Just get it done today,” out fielder Hanley Ramirez said afterward in the Red Sox clubhouse, where music blared, the lockers were covered in plastic and players wore goggles to protect their eyes from the spray of beer and domestic sparkling wine.
With the Boston win, the Yankees were left witha wildcard spot and a one- game matchup at home Tuesday night against the Minnesota Twins for the right to play Cleveland in the best-of- -five AL Division Series.
The Astros loss meant the Indians, with the tiebreaker over Houston and 101 wins entering Saturday, clinched the best record in the AL.
Boston’s win set up an immediate rematch with the AL West champion As tr os in the ALDS, starting Thursday in Houston.
“This is a good team across the way. We’re a good team. We’ re both division champions ,” Astros manager A. J. Hinch said. “We’ll obviously see a lot of each other over the next 10 days.”
Boston leads New York by two games with one to play, the remnants of what had been a five-game lead when the Red Sox returned to Fenway Park for a season-ending homestand. Aloss Saturday — coupled with the Yankees’ 2-1 win over Toronto — would have forced Boston to use Chris Sale on the fifinal day of the season to avoid a tiebreaker on Monday.
The AL East has not had needed a one-game playoffff since Bucky Dent’s homer cleared the Green Monster to help the Yankees eliminate Boston in 1978.
“We get a chance to get a couple of days rest,” said manager John Farrell, who scratched Sale from Sunday’s start and said Hector Velazquez will pitch instead. “Chris is deserving of a couple of extra days to just get some rest.”
Mookie Betts homered and scored three times, and Pomeranz (17-6) had a two-hit shutout through six innings. With a heavy rain beginning to fall in the top of the seventh, the Astros rallied against Carson Smith and made it 5-2 before Price came in.
Being there: Farrell had said before the game that Price, who threw 24 pitches on Friday night, was unavailable. “He camein today and said, “Hey, if the situation presents itself, give me the ball,’” Farrell said.
That situation was in the seventh inning, with two in and two on, nobody out and the tying run at the plate. Price got Brian McCann on the 3-4-1 putout thanks to a fortuitous bounce, struck out Cameron Maybin and walked pinch-hitter Tyler White to load the bases.
Instead of sending pitching coach Carl Willis to the mound to discuss strategy, Farrell went himself, prompting reliever Addison Reed to run in from the bullpen, thinking hewas being called upon to pitch.
“That’s the fifirst time all year I’ve gone to the mound without making a move,” Farrell said.
Price stayed in, fanning George Springer looking on three pitches to end the threat.
Noteworthy: Pomeranz allowed one run on three hits and two walks, striking out three.