Alex Cora admits Red Sox were ‘a little hungover’ on Saturday

With a postseason berth clinched, Boston elected to let loose a little bit on Friday night.

The Red Sox made sure to celebrate their playoff clinching win on Friday night. (AP Photo/Greg M. Cooper)

The Red Sox had plenty of reason to celebrate on Friday night, officially clinching their spot in the MLB postseason.

Apparently, that celebration might have had a lingering affect on the team heading into Saturday’s matchup with the Tigers. With the regular season ending on Sunday and nothing meaningful to play for, Boston’s manager didn’t seem to mind playing at less than 100 percent for a day.

“We [were] able to celebrate yesterday, but they did a good job. They turned the page,” Cora said before the game. “They’re hungover, that’s the reality of it. But show up today and we’ll try to kick their ass.”

Boston ended up losing 2-1 to the Tigers, who clinched a playoff spot of their own with the win. The Red Sox and Tigers are still jockeying for playoff positioning as well; if the Red Sox beat the Tigers on Sunday, it will lock them into the No. 5 seed. Another loss could put them in the No. 6 seed.

That aspect of the standings doesn’t seem too important to Cora, though.

“We’re going to play on the road regardless,” Cora said of the team’s seeding. “They’re all good teams. We know who’s pitching Game 1 for us, so we’ll take our chances.”

Red Sox manager Alex Cora was asked if getting the five or seed seed mattered to him: “We’re going to play on the road regardless. Yeah, I mean, they’re all good teams. We know who’s pitching Game 1 game for us, so we’ll take our chances.”

— Christopher Smith (@SmittyOnMLB) September 27, 2025

Garrett Crochet being on the bump does give Boston a chance to beat just about anybody. He’s been a top two pitcher in the American League all season along with Tarik Skubal. Considering Boston will have to play its entire wildcard series on the road, having Crochet start Game 1 should be a welcome advantage for the Red Sox.

As for who the Red Sox will face in the wildcard, that is still yet to be determined. It will either be the Blue Jays, Yankees, or Guardian,s depending on if the Red Sox are the No. 5 or 6 seed, and also depending on how the Blue Jays and Yankees position themselves during the final games of the regular season.

But before October officially arrives, Boston will play game No. 162 against the Tigers on Sunday at 3:05 p.m.