BOSTON (Interstat) — Ceddanne Rafaela tripled off the center field wall to drive in the game-ending run in the ninth inning on Friday night, giving the Boston Red Sox a 4-3 victory over the Detroit Tigers and clinching Boston’s first postseason berth since 2021.

In front of a sold-out crowd of 37,052 at Fenway Park, the Red Sox rallied from a three-run deficit to move two games ahead of the Tigers and 2 1/2 ahead of the Houston Astros in the race for the last two American League wild-card berths, with just two games left to play.

The Tigers, who have lost 12 of their last 14 games, saw their late-season slide continue but can still reach the playoffs and even win the AL Central with help from the Cleveland Guardians.

The game was a pitcher’s duel through the first three innings, with Detroit’s Casey Mize and Boston’s Kyle Harrison trading zeros. Mize was dominant early, striking out eight over 6 1/3 innings while allowing six hits and two earned runs.

The Tigers broke through in the fourth inning against Harrison. Andy Ibáñez walked, Dillon Dingler singled, and Parker Meadows loaded the bases with a bunt single. Javier Báez then singled to right field to score Ibáñez. Jahmai Jones followed with a two-run double down the left field line, scoring Dingler and Meadows to give Detroit a 3-0 lead.

Boston responded immediately in the bottom of the frame. Alex Bregman hit a ground-rule double and scored on a single by Masataka Yoshida, cutting the deficit to 3-1.

Mize held the line until the seventh inning. Yoshida led off with a single and, after a lineout, Rafaela doubled to left field, missing a game-tying home run by about a foot off the Green Monster. Yoshida advanced to third and scored on a sacrifice fly by Nathaniel Lowe, making it 3-2.

The Boston bullpen took over from there, with Greg Weissert, Justin Slaten, Zack Kelly, and Steven Matz combining for 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief, allowing just two hits and striking out four.

The Red Sox tied the game in the eighth against Detroit reliever Kyle Finnegan. Pinch-runner Nate Eaton, who entered for Carlos Narváez after his leadoff single, scored on a single by Jarren Duran. A double play prevented further damage, but the game was knotted at 3-3.

Detroit threatened in the top of the ninth against Aroldis Chapman when pinch-hitter Justyn-Henry Malloy doubled. A groundout moved him to third, but Chapman struck out Wenceel Pérez and Spencer Torkelson to end the inning.

In the bottom of the ninth, facing Tommy Kahnle, Romy Gonzalez singled to center with one out. Rafaela then sent a 1-0 pitch to deep center field, where it caromed off the wall as Gonzalez raced around the bases to score the winning run.

Chapman earned the win, improving to 5-3. Kahnle took the loss, falling to 1-5.

The victory improved Boston’s record to 88-72, while Detroit fell to 86-74. The two teams continue their critical three-game series on Saturday at Fenway Park.