The 2025 Major League Baseball season is wrapping up this weekend.
Right now, three teams are vying for two spots in the American League, while two others are battling for the last spot in the National League. There’s a lot to still figure out regarding division titles and playoff seeding.
One of the most anticipated games today starts at 4:10 PM at Fenway Park, where the Boston Red Sox will face off against the Detroit Tigers. Boston dramatically secured their playoff position last night when Seddanne Rafaela hit a crucial triple off the center field wall, bringing in the winning run and pushing the team into the postseason.
Still, the Red Sox are not completely clear on their seeding situation.
Meanwhile, it seemed like the Tigers were a sure playoff contender earlier in the season, but with two games left, they are still fighting to keep their postseason hopes alive.
Let’s take a closer look at how the Tigers and Red Sox can affect each other’s playoff outcomes.
Boston’s Playoff Picture
Following last night’s thrilling win, the Red Sox are officially in the playoff mix, becoming one of two wildcard teams. If the playoffs commenced today, the 88-72 Sox would be the fifth seed in the American League, facing off against their long-time rivals, the New York Yankees.
However, the situation in the AL East is still very much undecided, and they could end up meeting the Toronto Blue Jays instead.
There’s also a chance the Red Sox could drop to the final wildcard spot—if both the Tigers and Cleveland Guardians win their last two games, it would create a scenario where Boston, Detroit, and Cleveland all finish with 88-74 records.
As it stands, the Guardians have already clinched a tiebreaker against the Tigers, meaning Cleveland would take the AL Central title. Given that Detroit has won two games against Boston this weekend, they would have the tiebreaker over the Red Sox, relegating Boston to the sixth seed.
To prevent this outcome, the Red Sox must continue to secure victories.
Tigers’ Playoff Picture
On September 11th, the Tigers had a 99.8% chance of winning the AL Central.
Now, as we enter the final weekend of the 2025 MLB season, those odds have slipped to just 30.7%.
While Detroit can still avoid a major collapse, they don’t fully control their own fate in the AL Central. As noted, the Guardians have secured a tiebreaker over the Tigers. Currently, both Detroit and Cleveland have identical records at 86-74, meaning the Tigers need to win and hope for some losses from Cleveland.
However, in the wildcard race, the Tigers do hold some leverage. They are a game ahead of the Houston Astros for a wildcard position, and they’ve already claimed a tiebreaker over Houston. Thus, a victory today against Boston or a loss for the Astros against the Los Angeles Angels would ensure the Tigers make it to the playoffs.
