NEW YORK - Late Monday night, long after the Red Sox left Yankee Stadium, they were officially eliminated from the playoffs when the Houston Astros beat the Mariners in Seattle.
For months, of course, that had been a foregone conclusion, even with the team's turnaround over the last two months, during which they've gone 33-22.
The Sox dug themselves too deep a hole with their poor first half, and had too many teams over which to climb.
But being eliminated doesn't mean the Red Sox have stopped caring about the results. Or that they don't take some secret pleasure in making others miserable, too.
So, on Tuesday, the Red Sox acted as if nothing had happened regarding their chances. They merely came out, scored six runs in the top of the first, and keep on the gas all the way to a 10-4 win over the New York Yankees, which also served to delay the Yanks from celebrating a spot in the playoffs.
And, not incidentally, the win was Boston's fifth in a row -- all against contending teams -- making for, modest as it is, its longest winning streak of the season.
"It's something we're really proud of,'' said Torey Lovullo. "We're not shutting down. We're not backing down from situations, we're finishing games and doing what we're supposed to do. We're playing the way the Boston Red Sox are supposed to play baseball. We're all very, very proud of that.
Boston Red Sox
"The starting pitchers have set the tone and it's a good little run we've had. I think it's been five runs that they've given up in the last five games. I think the key in a lot of these is we're scoring early and we're playing downhill baseball.''
Lovullo said a handful of players were aware that of the elimination late Monday, but that didn't change their approach.
"I think we knew we were a long shot,'' said Lovullo. "We officially have an 'E' next to our name, but you can see what we did today. We responded in a very positive way. We scored six runs in the top of the first inning off a guy (New York starter Michael Pineda) who's been very tough against us. So I think we answered the question if we're going to be ready for the remainder of the season.''
"We're playing the game the same way we've been playing every day,'' shrugged Mookie Betts, who had a homer, a double and a walk.''
With Tuesday's win, the Red Sox are within three games of .500 for the first time since May 25.
Betts insisted a break-even record isn't necessarily a team goal.
"I don't think that's something we're thinking about,'' he said. "I think it would be nice to be .500, but we're just going to go out and play and do whatever we've been doing. That seems to be working. We're just going out and playing the game, no matter the circumstances, and just enjoying it.''
Still, if the Red Sox run the table over their last five games, they could finish with a winning record. If they take four of the last five, they could be even at 81-81.
That's not nearly enough for a team with their resources, but it would be a nice way to end the year.
"I'd love that,'' said Blake Swihart, who belted two homers and knocked in five runs, both career highs. "I think that's something, the last couple of weeks, that we've been talking about. We want to get there. It's like our little goal we have.''
Regardless of record or final place in the standings, the Sox like how things have turned around.
"We're still playing for each other and going out there and having fun,'' said Swihart. We're going out and having fun and playing the game the right way. We're coming together as a team and we're having run. We all want to establish ourselves. We've got something to prove. We all want to represent the Red Sox the right way.''
"They have goals in mind,'' said Lovullo. "I know we're doing exactly what we set out to do this last month of the season and these guys are playing it through.''