Crunch Time for Rays, Orioles, and Yankees

The race for a wild card spot is airtight.  Can one or more teams make it?

By Russ Reed

The drama to capture the A.L. East is gone as the Boston Red Sox clinched the division title this past Friday with a 6-3 win over the Blue Jays, the division cellar-dwellers.  However, the suspense to make the playoffs is ever-present for the three other teams in the division.  The Rays currently hold the top wild card spot, but only by a half-game advantage.  Meanwhile, the elimination number for both the Yankees and Orioles is down to three.  I took a look at the remaining schedules of the three contending teams in the division, and each team has a chance to make a serious run at the wild card.  However, they will need to take care of business and hope for a little bit of luck along the way.

Essdras M Suarez/Globe Staff

The Rays are in the best position to solidify their position in one of the wild card spots.  Tonight, Tampa Bay can complete a four-game sweep of the Orioles at home behind Chris Archer, a young lefty who’s had a breakout season.  Then, the Rays go on a six-game road trip to close the season out.  First, they travel to the Bronx for three with the Yankees before finishing the season in Toronto.  Tampa Bay gets to throw aces Matt Moore and David Price at New York two out of the three games.  So in short, I think Tampa Bay is in the best situation because they get four games to help bury both the Orioles and Yankees, while getting a relatively easy matchup in their last series of the season.  It also doesn’t hurt to have one of the best managers in baseball in Joe Maddon, who will find ways to push runs across early to take the pressure off of his excellent starting pitching.

In New York, it all comes down to one series at home against the Rays.  While Tampa Bay has the opportunity to put an end to the Yankees’ postseason chances, the Bombers have a chance to climb themselves up the wild card ladder by winning the series, or even sweeping the Rays.  But it certainly will not be easy.  As I mentioned earlier, New York has to face all-star Matt Moore and reigning Cy Young Award-winner David Price in two of the three games.  Yet, if they can manage to win the series against the Rays, the Yankees get three games against the pitiful Astros.  If New York takes care of business in Houston, as anything short of a sweep is unacceptable, the team will have to hope that Tampa’s offense goes cold and the potent bats in Toronto’s lineup does enough to win two games against the Rays.

If Baltimore gets swept tonight in Tampa, it will be a huge blow to their playoff chances.  However, if they get the win, they can use that momentum to close the season out strong with a six-game home-stand.  They get to throw 16-game winner Chris Tillman twice, once each in three-game series with Toronto and Boston.  The most experienced Blue Jays starter they will face is Mark Buehrle.  And even though they have to face the Red Sox, who are expected to throw Jon Lester and Clay Buchholz in the series, they took two out of three from Boston on the road before really struggling on the road against the Rays.  Buck Showalter has made quite a difference for this franchise since he took over as manager, and I know he will get his team ready to face this challenge head on.

But despite all the attention each of these teams is giving to the others, they undoubtedly have to pay attention to what teams outside of the division are doing.  The Indians currently hold the second wild card spot, and are only a half-game behind Tampa Bay from the top spot.  The Rangers are 1.5 games behind Cleveland and only two games behind the Rays for the number one wild card.  And despite the Royals being 3.5 games back of a wild card spot, they are still positioned in front of both the Yankees and Orioles, who are four and 4.5 games back respectively.  In addition, Cleveland, Texas, and Kansas City all have easy remaining schedules.  The Indians finish with the White Sox and Twins, the Rangers will play out their season in Arlington against the Astros and Angels, and the Royals end their season with a road trip against the Mariners and White Sox.

Well, the end of the regular season is almost here, and three teams in the A.L. East are fighting tooth-and-nail to earn a ticket to the postseason.  This final week of the season has the potential to be one of the most exciting finishes in recent memory, even considering the wild end to the 2011 season.  Not only will the Rays be fighting off division rivals New York and Baltimore for the right to play in October, but they will also be watching three other quality teams trying to hunt them down.  Even if you think baseball is a slow and boring game, please watch any of these teams play.  The intensity and focus you will see out on the field will be unlike anything you ever would have expected, because no one team is safe.  There’s the distinct possibility of two teams from the A.L. East making the playoffs, and there’s also a chance that none do.  To me, that’s the best part.  That’s what makes this final week of the season great.