The AL MVP race is heating up between Aaron Judge and Cal Raleigh
USA TODAY Sports’ Gabe Lacques breaks down the AL MVP race between Yankees’ Aaron Judge and Mariners’ Cal Raleigh.
The Boston Red Sox host the Detroit Tigers for a three-game set at Fenway Park, the final contests of the 2025 Major League Baseball regular season with both teams fighting for a spot in the playoffs.
Detroit – which once led the American League Central by 14 games – has melted down in September and enters Friday tied atop the division, but will lose the tiebreaker against the Cleveland Guardians if the teams finish even.
Boston’s magic number to secure an AL wild card berth is one and will clinch a spot in the postseason with just one win over the Tigers or a Houston Astros loss against the Los Angeles Angels. The Tigers enter Friday with a one-game lead over the Astros for the final wild card spot and can clinch a postseason trip with any combination of two wins and two Astros losses over the weekend.
USA TODAY Sports will provide updates and highlights from Friday night’s Tigers-Red Sox game:
Tigers — 3Red Sox — 0
Through the top of the fourth inning.
The Tigers scored three runs in the fourth inning, and chased Red Sox starting pitcher Kyle Harrison in the process.
After Andy Ibáñez opened the inning with a walk, Dillon Dingler and Parker Meadows hit back-to-back singles. A Javier Báez single scored Ibáñez. A double by Jahmai Jones plated Dingler and Meadows. At that point, Red Sox manager Alex Cora had seen enough and pulled Harrison for right-hander Justin Slaten. Slaten inherited runners on second and third, got two outs but walked Wenceel Pérez to load the bases in the process. Right-hander Justin Slaten came in to close out the inning and prevent further damage.
The New York Yankees and Toronto Blue Jays entered Friday night’s play tied atop the AL East (though, the Blue Jays own the tiebreaker).
Through three innings, the Blue Jays are tied with the Tampa Bay Rays, 2-2.
Over at Yankee Stadium, New York grabbed a 6-3 lead over the Baltimore Orioles in the botton of the third. The Yankees clinched a playoff berth on Tuesday, Sept. 23.
Masataka Yoshida opened the bottom of the second inning with a single to right. After Romy Gonzalez struck out and Ceddanne Rafaela popped out, Nathaniel Lowe hit a ball that bounced off the top of the Green Monster for a double. But, with Yoshida on third and Lowe on second, Wilyer Abreu’s hard-hit ball found Tigers second baseman Gleyber Torres, who threw Abreu out at first.
The Tigers escaped the inning to keep the game scoreless.
The Texas Rangers opened the game at Progressive Field by scoring four runs in the top the first inning and lead the Cleveland Guardians, 4-2, through one inning of play.
The Guardians’ magic number to win the AL Central over the Tigers is three, with the magic number to secure a wild-card spot at two.
Tigers right fielder Wenceel Pérez nearly made a spectacular play on a foul ball off the bat of the Red Sox’s Trevor Story.
It was ruled that Pérez didn’t complete the process of the catch. He lost possession as he fell into the stands and the glove hit a seat.
The Tigers challenged the play, but were unsuccessful. The lost challenge could loom large in this pivotal game with playoff implications.
Friday’s game at Fenway Park will air exclusively on Apple TV+ with first pitch scheduled for 7:10 p.m. ET.
Watch Red Sox vs. Tigers on Apple TV+
Jarren Duran (L) LFTrevor Story (R) SSAlex Bregman (R) 3BMasataka Yoshida (L) DHRomy Gonzalez (R) 2BCeddanne Rafaela (R) CFNathaniel Lowe (L) 1BWilyer Abreu (L) RFCarlos Narváez (R) C
Starting pitcher: LHP Kyle Harrison
Jahmai Jones (R) DHGleyber Torres (R) 2BWenceel Pérez (S) RFSpencer Torkelson (R) 1BRiley Greene (L) LFAndy Ibáñez (R) 3BDillon Dingler (R) CParker Meadows (L) CFJavier Báez (R) SS
Starting pitcher: RHP Casey Mize
Entering Friday night’s games, these would be the playoff matchups:
AL Wild Card Series
AL Division Series
Seattle Mariners (2) play Guardians-Tigers winnerToronto Blue Jays (1) play Yankees-Red Sox winner
NL Wild Card Series
NL Division Series
The 12-team Major League Baseball playoffs start on Tuesday, Sept. 30 and can continue into November if the World Series goes to seven games.
Here’s a look at the postseason schedule:
Wild Card Series (best-of-three): Tuesday, Sept. 30 through Thursday, Oct. 2*Division Series (best-of-five): Saturday, Oct. 4 through Saturday, Oct. 11*Championship Series (best-of-seven): Sunday, Oct. 12 through Tuesday, Oct. 21*World Series (best-of-seven): Friday, Oct. 24 through Saturday, Nov. 1*
*if necessary
Friday night’s broadcast on Apple TV between the Tigers and Red Sox at Fenway Park will feature a first: Live game footage shot directly from an iPhone camera.
From MLB: “For the final Friday Night Baseball showdown of the year on Apple TV+, the broadcast will feature live game footage captured on the new iPhone 17 Pro. It will be the first time an iPhone will be used publicly in the live broadcast of a professional sporting event.”
There will be four iPhone 17 Pros set up at Fenway Park (including one inside the Green Monster) to capture the crucial late-season clash with American League wild-card implications.
Major League Baseball’s drive to expand the playoffs was, of course, about generating gobs of television revenue thanks to the additional TV inventory. And it also served a secondary purpose: Creating greater relevance through the month of September.
Ten of the 15 final three-game series have some connection to either playoff qualification or seeding, with several head-to-head matchups affecting both teams. — Gabe Lacques