Boston — In the race for the last American League wild card slot, the Red Sox are behind the Minnesota Twins by four games. As the Red Sox begin a three-game series against the Baltimore Orioles, manager Alex Cora made a second admission Monday night. Cora acknowledged last month that he is constantly monitoring the standings and scoreboard to see what the teams ahead of Boston are doing. He expressed frustration that the team is unable to close the gap while other teams, particularly the Twins, are having difficulty.
“It’s one less day on the calendar, right?” Cora stated. “On the bright side, you may observe it. We remain there, and the Twins will be visiting us the next week. However, the calendar has lost one day. And additional teams are participating.”
The Orioles and Kansas City Royals lead the Twins in the wild-card race, while the Detroit Tigers and Seattle Mariners are 3 1/2 games behind for the final slot. Since the All-Star break, the Red Sox have played 46 games and are 18-28.
“We haven’t played well since (the series against the Los Angeles Dodgers in July),” Cora remarked. “And we’re paying the price right now.”
After being swept by the Royals over the weekend, the Twins take on the Cincinnati Reds and Los Angeles Angels on Monday night to start a six-game homestand. Minnesota, who is 39-30 at home against the Angels, could easily increase the pressure on Boston by winning the series.
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There are 19 games left in the regular season for the Red Sox, 16 of which are against teams from the American League East. Six series remain, three of which are against teams that have a winning record and a postseason berth going into the week. Boston needs to win the series at home against Baltimore in order to play baseball in October. This season, the Red Sox are 3-7 versus the Orioles and 33-39 at Fenway Park.
Brad Marchand of the Bruins Issues a Serious Caution Regarding Contract Talks.
Brad Marchand, a longtime player for the Boston Bruins, is entering the last season of his eight-year, $49 million contract. However, he hasn’t revealed whether he’s signed an extension.
During a media session on Tuesday, September 3, at the Bruins’ captain practice, Marchand made it clear that he doesn’t want to discuss contract negotiations publicly.
“I won’t ever talk about contract stuff in the media,” Marchand said, as reported by Amalie Benjamin of NHL.com. “I’m going to say this now and kind of leave it at that. We’ll keep everything between [GM Don Sweeney] and our group. I believe there’s enough respect between us to work it out.”
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Despite his silence on the contract details, Marchand has expressed that both he and the Bruins want him to stay in Boston long-term.
Marchand has made it clear that he’s not ready to retire yet. At 36 years old, he hopes to keep playing until he’s “at least 40,” according to Benjamin. However, if there were any issues with re-signing in Boston, he would have to leave the only team he’s ever played for.
As reported by Shawn Hutcheon of The Fourth Period, Marchand said, “As long as my body holds up and I can compete at a high level, then yes.” He added, “We’re really lucky to be able to play this game. I live my dream every day, and so do many other kids.”
Throughout his NHL career, Marchand has accumulated 1,051 penalty minutes and 929 points, with 401 goals and 528 assists in 1,029 games. He has also made 157 playoff appearances, recording 138 points with 56 goals and 82 assists. In 2011, he won the Stanley Cup.
