Chris Smith peeked inside the shopping bag left hanging at his locker. The contents were the clothes Smith was expected to wear, as part of the rookie hazing on the final Red Sox road trip.

"It's pink and it's not shorts," Smith said.

Not sure what Smith's role was supposed to be. Others got cheerleader outfits (sorry Jeff Bailey). Others got off easier. Devern Hansack wore a basketball uniform.

It is a silly annual tradition for the Sox and meant to keep things light.

The Sox were smiling Sunday as they headed to Logan Airport for their trip to St. Petersburg, and 3 big games with the Tampa Bay Rays.

In today's column we look at the Red Sox's race to a playoff berth and (they hope) a division title.

Here are the AL leaders:

Angels (92-57)
Tampa Bay (88-59)
Boston (88-61)
Chicago (83-65)
Minnesota (82-57)

Boston's magic number to clinch a playoff spot is eight (combination of Red Sox wins and Twins losses).

Besides the next three days, here are some other key dates:

Thursday, Sept. 18: The Sox are off and the Rays host Minnesota (Tampa Bay has played two less games than Boston. This is one of two days where the Rays play an extra game)

Tuesday, Sept,. 23: This is the likely start for Cy Young favorite Cliff Lee of Cleveland to pitch against Boston in Fenway; meanwhile, the Rays play a doubleheader with Baltimore.

Saturday, Sept. 27: Barring rain outs, this would be a scheduled start for Josh Beckett. Boston would hope to avoid Beckett pitching (unless it's an inning to stay sharp), to line him up for the first game of the playoffs (Tuesday or Wednesday).

In the minors: Stockton (A's affiliate) beat Lancaster 9-3 to win the California League title ... Three players who should be at Portland at some time next year, did well for Lancaster: shortstop Yamaico Navarro (3-for-3), catcher Luis Exposito (2-for-3) and starter Blake Maxwell (5 2/3, 8 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 7 K).

The Red Sox can now move out of the California League, where we no longer have to figure out the accuracy of the batting and pitching statistics in the windy confines of Lancaster's ballpark ... The Red Sox purchased a franchise in Salem, Va., in the advanced Class A Carolina League. They will be the Salem Sox next year.

Trenton (Yankees affiliate) won its second straight Eastern League title, beating Akron (Indians) 3 games to 1; 5-1 in Sunday's clincher. The Yankees affiliate also won the Triple-A International League.

E-mail this entry to a friend