Drew helps Red Sox slip past the Twins

BOSTON -- J.D. Drew skipped Boston’s wild celebration of its first American League East title in 12 years. He didn’t miss much Saturday night.

Continuing his surge at the end of a trying season, Drew hit a full-count fastball for a three-run homer in the seventh inning to help the Red Sox beat the Minnesota Twins, 6-4.

“It’s [been] frustrating for me not to perform,� he said. “Hopefully, the bat would come back around and, in a situation where you know you’re going to the playoffs, you’ve got to kind of get things straight.�

The win, combined with Cleveland’s loss to Kansas City, guaranteed the Red Sox will have the best record in the AL -- with a tiebreaker edge if they match the Indians at 96-66. That gave them the right to choose whether to start their division series at home against the Angels on Wednesday or Thursday. They picked Wednesday, and Cleveland will begin Thursday against the New York Yankees.

Drew left the ballpark after Friday night’s 5-2 win over Minnesota and wasn’t at Fenway Park when the New York Yankees lost to Baltimore, clinching the division title for the Red Sox.