Rafaela’s walk-off triple sends Red Sox to playoffs
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BOSTON —
Gonzalez, who held up to make sure it wasn’t caught, raced around to score as his teammates streamed out of the dugout and nearly beat him to the plate.
Masataka Yoshida had three hits for Boston. Closer Aroldis Chapman (5-3) pitched the ninth for the win. Tommy Kahnle (1-5) got just one out in the bottom of the ninth.
The Red Sox missed a pair of two-run homers by about two feet. Nathaniel Lowe hit a line drive off the Green Monster in the second inning, just missing the top of the wall. Rafaela also settled for a double with his liner off the top of the 37-foot wall in the seventh.
It was Boston’s major-league-leading 12th walk-off win of the season. That’s tied for the second most in franchise history. The Red Sox won on their last at-bat 13 times in 1940.
LHP Connelly Early (1-1) will start for Boston Saturday. The Tigers had not named a starter.
Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.
