Cedanne Rafaela delivered once again for the Boston Red Sox, walking it off against the Detroit Tigers on Friday night to secure Boston’s spot in the postseason.
Rafaela, who had already provided two walk-off home runs earlier this season, came through with a game-winning triple this time. He finished the night with two hits, while Masataka Yoshida added a team-high three hits, continuing his late-season surge.
Yoshida has been red-hot at the plate, batting .433 over his past seven games with 13 hits, one home run and five RBIs. His resurgence has given Boston’s offense a needed spark heading into October.
The walk-off hit was the Red Sox’s 10th of the season, the most in Major League Baseball. Boston also now leads all clubs in total walk-off wins with 12, passing the Milwaukee Brewers. Their knack for late-game dramatics has defined much of their season and carried them to the postseason.
By clinching a playoff berth, Boston locked in the No. 5 seed in the American League. They will travel to face either the New York Yankees or the Toronto Blue Jays in the wild-card round, depending on how the final weekend plays out. The Red Sox are too far back in both the division race and the chase for the No. 4 seed to move up.
Boston will aim to carry its walk-off magic into the postseason, with Game 1 of the American League wild-card series set for Tuesday, Sept. 30. In the meantime, the Red Sox will look to spoil Detroit’s fading playoff hopes in the final two games of the regular season.