Red Sox and Astros Capture Final Two Playoff Spots

The Boston Red Sox and Houston Astros captured the wild card spots in their respective leagues to complete the field of teams in baseball's post season.

The defending World Series champion Red Sox qualified when the Cleveland Indians lost to the Chicago White Sox Sunday afternoon, 3-1. The Red Sox 10-1 crushing of the Yankees was then rendered meaningless. The Indians had a chance to qualify for the post season but were swept by the White Sox and went home disappointed.

The Astros edged out the Philadelphia Phillies for the final spot in the National League by downing the Chicago Cubs 6-4 in their season finale. The Phillies did their part by defeating the Washington Nationals 9-3. Had the Astros lost to the Cubs, the Phillies and Astros would have held a playoff to determine the NL wild card but now that won't be necessary.

'I'm very thankful,' exclaimed Astros pitcher Andy Pettitte. 'It was some rocky roads, roller-coaster rides throughout the season.'

The Astros can only hope their ride is just beginning. They open the playoffs Wednesday against the Atlanta Braves who won the NL East for the 14th straight year.

The other NL match up has the NL West champ San Diego Padres taking on the St. Louis Cardinals, the team with the best record in baseball. That series will get underway Tuesday afternoon at 1:09 EDT.

In the American League, the AL East winning Yankees will travel to Anaheim to play the Angels. The Yankees lost home field advantage for the first round when they lost their season finale to the Red Sox Sunday afternoon. The first game of that series will be played Tuesday night at 8:19 PM EDT in Anaheim.

Meanwhile, Red Sox will take on the White Sox
with game one Tuesday in Chicago. The first pitch is scheduled for 4:09 PM EDT. The White Sox are looking to win their first playoff series since the 1917 World Series.

All four opening round series are best-of-five. Baseball’s second season is set to begin.