The New York Yankees booked their 16th playoff berth in 17 years in Major League Baseball, defeating Tampa Bay 4-2 twice on Wednesday while they also claimed the American League East division crown by virtue of Boston’s 6-4 defeat to Baltimore.
In each triumph, the Yankees broke a 2-2 deadlock by scoring twice in the bottom of the eighth inning, then kept the Rays scoreless in the top of the ninth.
Eduardo Nunez smacked a solo homer off Tampa Bay’s James Shields in the eighth inning in the first game to pull the Yankees level at 2-2 and Robinson Cano doubled later to score Brett Gardner and Yankees captain Derek Jeter with the deciding runs.
Panama’s Mariano Rivera stretched his own career major league saves record to 603 by pitching a perfect ninth inning for his 44th save of the season to clinch a playoff spot, giving them a chance to boost their record total of 27 World Series championships.
In the second game, Jorge Posada singled with the bases loaded to score Mark Teixeira and Greg Golson and give the Yankees a 4-2 lead they kept through the final out.
The Yankees also needed a Boston loss to Baltimore in their final home game of the season in order to claim the division crown and the Red Sox obliged by squandering a three-run lead in a 6-4 defeat between the Yankee triumphs.
The Detroit Tigers had already clinched the AL Central division title while the Philadelphia Phillies had captured the National League East division crown. Four teams from each league make the playoffs.
The Red Sox, meanwhile, were losing for the 14th time in 18 games, booed by their own fans at Fenway Park as they struggle to hold off Tampa Bay – squandering a three-run lead – and claim a wild-card playoff spot for the best division runner-up.
With a week remaining in the six-month season, Boston’s edge over the Rays has slid to just 2 1/2 games having been nine at the beginning of the month with six games remaining.
The Red Sox play three games at Yankee Stadium and three at Baltimore to conclude the regular season while Tampa Bay will face Toronto and the Yankees three times each.
