Wild Finish to Wild Night as Rays and Cardinals Clinch Playoff Spots

How does one start to sum up the sequence of events that just unfolded this evening? Let’s stick with the most important information.
The Tampa Bay Rays, who were trailing, 7-0, heading into the eighth inning of their game against the Yankees, came back to win in 12 innings and are in the playoffs. The Boston Red Sox, who took a 3-2 lead into the ninth inning of their game against the Baltimore Orioles, had their hopes dashed and lost, 4-3, when their closer, Jonathan Papelbon, couldn’t close it out. Keep in mind, this all happened within minutes of each other.
In the National League, the Atlanta Braves saw their season come to an end in heart-breaking fashion when their closer, Craig Kimbrel, blew his third save of September in the ninth. The Braves would eventually fall to the Phillies in 13 innings, missing a chance to play the Cardinals in a one-game playoff on Thursday after St. Louis dominated the Houston Astros, 8-0, behind nine shutout innings from Chris Carpenter.
As a result of tonight’s events, the Yankees will host the Detroit Tigers and Tampa Bay will travel to Texas to play the Rangers in the A.L. division series on Friday. In the N.L., St. Louis will take on the same Phillies team that helped them get into the postseason, and the Arizona Diamondbacks will visit the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday.

orge Posada Apologizes To Yankees, Says ‘I Had A Bad Day’

NEW YORK (WFAN/AP) — Jorge Posada still has unwavering support in the Yankee Stadium stands. Now, a tumultuous weekend behind him, New York could use a few of those big hits he used to deliver all the time.
Posada apologized to the Yankees on Sunday for taking himself out of the lineup the day before, blaming the messy public spat with the team on this: “I had a bad day.”
“All the frustration came out,” said the slumping star, who met with manager Joe Girardi and general manager Brian Cashman and told them he was sorry. “It was just one of those days you wish you could take back.”
Posada was not in the starting lineup against Boston left-hander Jon Lester, but that was about strategy, not punishment. That said, the Yankees did contact the commissioner’s office during Saturday night’s blowup about possible recourse — a pursuit they’ve since dropped.
When the Red Sox went to their bullpen, Posada came off the bench. He entered as a pinch-hitter in the eighth inning late Sunday night, triggering a boisterous standing ovation, but couldn’t prevent the Yankees from losing their season-high fifth straight.