Red Sox Ceddanne Rafaela, streaky during season, is walk-off hero, again; ‘He loves the moment’

BOSTON — The Red Sox had never led Friday night, but with the game tied in the ninth inning, Jarren Duran figured his team was in the perfect position.

“I felt like we were in the green uniforms, we’re chasing (the opponent) and Ceddanne Rafaela is walking up to the plate,” Duran said. “How many times has that happened this season?”

If you’re keeping track, twice before. And now it’s three.

Rafaela, who hit a walk-off two-run homer against Tampa Bay on July 11 and another against the Los Angeles Angels on June 4, had to settle for a triple this time. But that was all the Red Sox needed to post a dramatic come-from-behind 4-3 win over the Detroit Tigers, lifting the Sox into the postseason for the first time since 2021.

The Red Sox will begin the 2025 postseason on the road Tuesday, against an opponent still to be determined.

But they’ve wrapped up a postseason berth for the first time in four years and they have Rafaela to thank.

“I want him up there in that spot every time,” said shortstop Trevor Story. “He’s a special player. We all know that. He loves the moment. Every time the moment’s coming around, he’s going to rise to it. Baseball’s hard, man. That’s not an easy spot to be in. To do it at such a young age is special. You could feel his vibe. He knew he was going to get enough. It just shows what he’s capable of.”

Throughout the season, Rafaela was mercurial. For better than two months after the All-Star break, he didn’t contribute much at all at the plate, batting below .200 for an extended stretch. His torrid streak in mid-season, until recently, felt like a long time ago.

In recent weeks, he’s shown signs of life at the plate again. Since Sept. 19, he’s hitting .423 with a 1.118 OPS, heating up as the season came to a close.

But as he demonstrated several times during the season, whether he’s hot or not doesn’t mean much when the game in on the line.

The walk-off victory was a major-league best 12th of the season for the Red Sox. Not all of them were the result of a big Rafaela hit. It just seemed like that at times.

“There’s no pressure (in those situations),” said a champagne-soaked Rafaela in a raucous Red Sox clubhouse. “I want to be in those moments. I want to be there. I want to be the guy at the plate.”

Rafaela took a first-pitch changeup from Detroit reliever Tommy Kahnle, and then, somewhat improbably, got another which he golfed to straightaway center.

His manager, Alex Cora, thought the ball was headed for the bleachers for another patented two-run homer. Instead, it hit halfway up the center field wall, just beyond the valiant leap of Tigers center fielder Parker Meadows.

As teammate Romy Gonzalez, running from first, sped around the bases, Fenway erupted in an explosion of noise, and Rafaela kneeled down at third base and kissed the ground before being mobbed by delirious teammates.

Recalling that two years ago this weekend, he was at Fenway, being honored as the organization’s Defensive Player of the Year, Rafaela reflected on his personal journey.

“Even back then, I wanted to be here, on this team,” said Rafaela. “It’s an amazing feeling right now.”

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