BOSTON – It wasn’t as if Red Sox manager Alex Cora went into full Jim Mora “PLAYOFFS?!?” mode during his briefing with the media prior to Saturday’s game against the Yankees at Fenway Park.
But he did make a point to the questioner who asked about solidifying his platoon lineups for October.
“I think we should stop talking about October, to be honest with you,” said Cora. “There's a lot of stuff going on [in the standings], and we have to play better. I'm not saying we're in a bad spot, but I think we have to wait to see if October is part of this.”
Despite some late-game drama, the Sox got no closer to punching a ticket to the postseason in a 5-3 loss to the Yankees that ensured a series loss to their rivals. Ace Garrett Crochet will try to salvage the finale on Sunday Night Baseball.
It was the third loss in a row for Boston, dropping the team to 3-6 since star rookie Roman Anthony went down with a left oblique strain that has the remainder of his season in uncertain territory. The Red Sox (81-68) are 2 1/2 games behind the Yankees (83-65) for the top American League Wild Card seed, though they hold the tiebreaker. The surging Rangers (79-70) are 1 1/2 games out in the Wild Card standings and just two behind Boston.
Cora’s club is 5 1/2 games behind the Blue Jays (86-62) in the AL East, putting that quest into the miraculous category with 13 games left.
“We still have a lot of games remaining,” said losing pitcher Brayan Bello. “We just need to keep our head up and keep competing, and hopefully everything will be OK.”
Veterans like Alex Bregman will continue to emphasize the right approach as each game takes on more meaning.
“I feel like everyone in here knows that the most important pitch is tomorrow, first pitch of the game, and then move on to the next one,” Bregman said. “And just keep plugging along. Keep going. There's a lot of baseball left to be played, obviously. And we’ve just got to get back to executing.”
As things often do between the rivals, momentum has swung since the last meeting from Aug. 21-24, when it was the Red Sox taking three out of four in the Bronx to pull in front of the Yankees for the top Wild Card spot.
“We ran into them when we were hot, and we beat them, and they're running into us when they're hot,” said Jarren Duran, who gave Fenway a brief jolt with his first career pinch-hit homer in the eighth inning to slim New York’s once 4-0 lead to 4-3.
“It’s baseball,” added Duran. “It’s back and forth like crazy. I think we're just going to keep stepping and keep moving forward. There's [not] much else we can do.”
The biggest thing the Red Sox can do to reverse their fortunes is to improve their production at the plate, especially with runners in scoring position. Boston is 1-for-15 in that category in the first two games of this series.
The bullpen, tremendous for much of the season, hasn’t had that same level of sharpness of late.
“Obviously you could [have the temptation to] start swinging harder, trying to do more,” Bregman said. “You can start trying to throw harder and miss over the middle of the plate. I think it's just, slow it down, execute. I think that’s something we have to do a little better job of.”
There was a buzz entering this series given the nature of the rivalry and the closeness of the two clubs in the standings. But so far, that energy hasn’t translated into results for the home team.
“Over the last two days, we've been pretty amped up,” Bregman said. “Obviously we're excited. We got a packed house here at Fenway. I think, sometimes, less is more. And just try and simplify.”
Bregman, whose recent slump started right after that last Red Sox-Yankees series in New York, tried to lead Boston’s charge back when he hit a Fenway-only solo homer to right that clanged off Pesky’s Pole.
Bregman was more encouraged by his last two at-bats, which included a pair of flyouts to center that were both better struck than the homer. A rejuvenated Bregman would be big for Boston over the final two weeks.
“Keep fighting,” Bregman said. “Keep working at our craft, and our best baseball is ahead of us.”