Texas Rangers clinch first postseason berth since 2016 - ESPN

SEATTLE — It took 161 games, but the Texas Rangers, in Bruce Bochy's first season as manager, clinched a postseason berth for the first time since 2016 with a 6-1 win over the Seattle Mariners on Saturday night at T-Mobile Park.

The win assured the Rangers of at least a Wild Card spot in the American League playoffs. They hold a one-game lead over the Houston Astros in the American League West, and their ultimate fate — Wild Card or division champions — will be decided on Sunday, in game 162. Either a Rangers' win over the Mariners or an Astros' loss to the Arizona on the season's final day will send the Rangers to the AL Divisional Series, which begins Friday. If the Rangers and Astros tie, the Astros win the division by virtue of their season-series advantage over Texas.

The loss, combined with Houston's win, eliminated the Mariners from playoff contention. After two spirited wins over the Rangers in the first two games of the series, the Mariners held out hope they could pull off a miraculous run over the final week, but their hopes ended on a brisk night on their home field.

Bochy, who won three World Series titles with the San Francisco Giants in the 2010s before returning to the dugout after a three-year absence, stood in a champagne-soaked clubhouse after the game and said, «This is what I came back for.»

The lingering unknown in Phoenix made for a muted on-field celebration. The Rangers briefly bounced around behind the mound afterward, hugging and shaking hands, before heading for the clubhouse, where restraint went to die. Champagne was sprayed, and music was turned up to the threshold of feeling.

«You work too hard from spring training to pass this up,» Bochy said. «You've got to celebrate, and that's what