Taking two out of three in Tampa Bay is a very welcome occurrence after the disastrous Toronto series, especially while watching Josh Beckett’s 20th win, Eric Gagne’s two scoreless innings, and J.D. Drew finally reaching double digits in HRs.

With the division lead at 1.5 games, let’s take a look at the final scheduled games for the Red Sox and the Yankees (while acknowledging that the division title likely has less actual importance than it does in the eyes of the fans).

The Boston Red Sox

• 9/25 vs Oakland
• 9/26 vs Oakland
• 9/27 vs Minnesota
• 9/28 vs Minnesota
• 9/29 vs Minnesota
• 9/30 vs Minnesota

In that odd two game turn with Oakland, we’ll likely see Chad Gaudin and Joe Blanton, while the Sox send Curt Schilling and Jon Lester to the hill, two guys who have pitched beautifully of late. Oakland, as a team, has been decimated with injuries this season, losing some of their key players for the year. Luckily, the Sox nearly missed Rich Harden’s return, as the fireballer decided recently to call it a season instead of trying to return to the mound.

The great news: it looks like Boston will miraculously play 4 games against the Twins while not facing Johan Santana. The uber-pitcher is scheduled to face Detroit on Wednesday, a day before the Twins arrive in Fenway Park.

The New York Yankees

• 9/24 vs Toronto
• 9/25 @ Tampa Bay
• 9/26 @ Tampa Bay
• 9/27 @ Tampa Bay
• 9/28 @ Baltimore
• 9/29 @ Baltimore
• 9/30 @ Baltimore

The pitching matchup for the game against the Jays is Jesse Litsch vs Andy Pettitte, so Toronto will have their hands full this afternoon. The Red Sox division lead will be either 1 or 2 games at the end of the day, depending on this result.

Tampa Bay is certainly not the pushover we’re used to seeing, going 16-14 in their last 30 games, but even considering this, the smart money has to be on New York taking 2 out of three. The same can be said for their three game tilt in Baltimore.

Although both AL East rivals are playoff-bound regardless of the division standings, 1st place is going to come down to the wire, something we have not seen in quite some time. Every play in every inning for both clubs will matter over the next week. Should be fun to watch, and excruciating at the same time.