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| Date | September 30, 2013 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Venue | Rangers Ballpark in Arlington | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| City | Arlington, Texas | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Managers | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Umpires | Tim Welke (crew chief),Jeff Kellogg,Bruce Dreckman,Chris Guccione,Tom Hallion,Ron Kulpa | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 42,796 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Television | TBS | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| TV announcers | Brian Anderson,John Smoltz andJoe Simpson | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio | ESPN | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Radio announcers | Jon Sciambi andChris Singleton | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The2013 American League Wild Card tie-breaker game was aone-game extension toMajor League Baseball's (MLB)2013 regular season, played between theTexas Rangers andTampa Bay Rays to determine the second participant in the2013 American League (AL) Wild Card Game. It was played at theGlobe Life Park in Arlington on September 30, 2013. The Rays defeated the Rangers, 5–2, and advanced to the AL Wild Card Game against theCleveland Indians atProgressive Field, which they won 4–0; the Rangers failed to qualify for the postseason.
The tie-breaker game was necessary after both teams finished the season withwin–loss records of 91–71 and thus tied for the secondWild Card position in the AL. The Rangers were awardedhome field for the game, as they won the regular season series against the Rays, 4–3. The game was televised onTBS.[1][2][3] It was thefourth tie-breaker in MLB history for a Wild Card spot, although it was the first when MLB used the format of two Wild Card teams playing in aWild Card Game from 2012 to 2021. The tie-breaker counted as the 163rd regular season game for both teams, with all events in the game added to regular season statistics.
In Major League Baseball from 2012 to 2021, the two teams with the best record in each league who do not win adivision played in theWild Card Game. A number of teams were in competition for these Wild Card spots, along with their divisional competition. The Rangers spent over 80 days leading theAmerican League West and shared the lead as late as September 4.[4] The Rays spent only a few days leading theAmerican League East, but held a share of the lead as late as August 24.[5] The Cleveland Indians did not lead theAmerican League Central after July 2 but remained close throughout the season and ultimately finished just a single game back of the Central championDetroit Tigers.[6]
Although other teams including theKansas City Royals,Baltimore Orioles, andNew York Yankees had vied for a Wild Card spot, the Indians, Rangers, and Rays all remained in contention until the end of the season. Entering the final day of the scheduled regular season, on which all three teams played, the Indians had a 91–70 record while both the Rangers and Rays had 90–71 records.[2][3] These were the best non-division-leading records in the American League.[7] Thus, the possibility existed (had the Indians lost and the Rays and Rangers won) for a three-way tie for the two Wild Card spots, which would have required several tie-breaker games to settle.[8] However, all three teams won, leaving the Indians definitively in the Wild Card Game at 92–70 and the Rays and Rangers tied at 91–71 for the second spot.[9]
The Indians finished the season strong, winning their last 10 games to clinch their wild card berth.[6] The Rays were 16–12 in September, winning 8 of their last 10.[5] The Rangers were just 12–15 in September, although they also won eight of their final 10 games.[4] The Rangers was awarded home-field advantage for the tie-breaker game, as they had won the season series against the Rays 4–3.[10][9][3]
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E | |||||||||||||||||||||
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| Tampa Bay Rays | 1 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 7 | 0 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Texas Rangers | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 7 | 1 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| WP:David Price (10–8) LP:Martín Pérez (10–6) Home runs: TB:Evan Longoria (32) TEX: None Attendance: 42,796 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Desmond Jennings opened the first inning with a single, but was thrown out at second base trying tostretch the hit into a double.Wil Myers then walked, advanced to third base on singles byBen Zobrist andEvan Longoria, and finally scored on asacrifice fly byDelmon Young. Rays starterDavid Price struck out leadoff batterIan Kinsler, then allowed a walk toElvis Andrus but picked him off and finished the inning by retiringAlex Ríos. The score remained 1–0 until the top of the third inning, when Jennings drew a walk and scored on a home run byLongoria to give the Rays a 3–0 lead. The Rangers struck right back in the bottom half, asCraig Gentry led off the inning with a single. After advancing to second on aLeonys Martín groundout, he scored on a single to right field by Kinsler. The Rays scored again in the sixth, as Longoria doubled to lead off the inning, and advanced to third base on a groundout by Young. The next batter,David DeJesus, hit a double to right field that scored Longoria and put the Rays ahead, 4–1. RangersrelieverAlexi Ogando entered the game with one out and recorded the final two outs to end the inning.[11]
After a single and a stolen base from Andrus, Ríos doubled in the bottom half of the sixth to cut the score to 4–2. A small controversy arose in the top of the seventh inning. Longoria and Myers were on first and second base respectively with two outs when Young hit aline drive to center field. Replays showed that the ball bounced into Leonys Martín's (the Rangers'center fielder) glove after hitting the ground, making it atrap and therefore should have been a hit.[12] However, the umpires ruled the play an out, ending the inning without a run scoring. Ultimately, the issue did not affect the outcome. The Rays added onto their lead in the ninth inning whenSam Fuld stole third and a scored on a throwing error from Rangers relieverTanner Scheppers, extending their lead to 5–2. Price closed the game in the ninth, recording three straight outs and finishing off acomplete game.[11]
The Rays' win clinched the team's fourth post-season berth in franchise history. The Rays advanced to theAL Wild Card Game, in which they defeated theCleveland Indians. They would then lose theALDS to the eventual World Series championBoston Red Sox, 3 games to 1.
The game counted as a regular season game inbaseball statistics. For example,Evan Longoria's third-inning home run brokeStan Musial's record for the most home runs in the last game of the season, setting the mark at seven.[13] He went 3-for-4 with a double, a home run, and twoRBI in the game overall. This left him 11-for-19 with seven home runs and ten RBIs in season finales from 2009 to 2013.[13][14]