At the start of July, the Boston Red Sox were 3.5 games back of a Wild Card spot and 14.5 games behind the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays. Fifteen straight wins later, Boston has sole possession of the final Wild Card spot and trails the Rays by just six games.

The Cubs’ postseason began with a nail-biting 1–0 win over the Giants at Wrigley Field. In a scoreless game in the eighth inning, a young Javier Báez stepped in against veteran pitcher Johnny Cueto.