Red Sox Clinch; Brunansky Has Big Hand in It : AL East: His ninth-inning catch preserves victory over White Sox and puts Boston in playoffs.

Tom Brunansky may not have erased the name of Bill Buckner from New England lore Wednesday night, but the camera of the mind here will forever see the catch the Red Sox right fielder made in the ninth inning of Boston’s 3-1 victory over the Chicago White Sox.

Where Buckner failed on a simple ground ball in Game 6 of the 1986 World Series, Brunansky succeeded on a twisting line drive that threatened to awaken the ghosts of previous Red Sox nightmares.

With the Toronto Blue Jays and Baltimore Orioles tied in the eighth inning of a game the Blue Jays would eventually lose, 3-2, to forfeit any chance of forcing a one-game playoff for the American League East title today, Brunansky enabled the Red Sox to crash through the division’s front door as he took a game-tying double--and, perhaps, more--away from Ozzie Guillen with a reaching, sliding catch on the warning track near the right-field foul pole.

There were two on, two out and a Fenway Park crowd of 33,637 on its feet when Guillen ripped a drive that pitcher Jeff Reardon thought was a home run.

“It was down the line and I thought it would hook around the foul pole,” he said later. “Bruno and I played together in Minnesota and I knew if it stayed in the ballpark he’d catch it because he’ll do anything to make the catch. But that’s not to say my heart didn’t stop for a while.”

Said Brunansky: “I was either going to get it or kill myself going into the wall.”

A catalyst in the final days of this race, Brunansky survived, as did his team, earning its third division title in the last five years with an 88-74 record, the third consecutive season that the Eastern division has been won with fewer than 90 victories.

There was the scent of champagne in Boston’s clubhouse, but no public display of it, as per the orders of the league president.

The Red Sox would have their private celebration in Fenway’s Diamond Club later Wednesday night, but without Roger Clemens, who will face Dave Stewart of the Oakland Athletics in Game 1 of the league’s championship series here Saturday night.

Clemens watched the Red Sox clincher via television in Toronto, having flown ahead to be rested in the event of a playoff. He stopped at Fenway Wednesday only to have his right hand iced after reportedly slugging a clubhouse door Tuesday night when management overruled his desire to keep the clubhouse locked to the media for 30 minutes had the Red Sox won it that night.

The doors were locked for 15 minutes Wednesday, after which Dwight Evans, the senior Boston player, talked about the improbability of the division title and said:

“This team has come together better than any I’ve ever been on. As I’ve said, it’s not the most talented but it has the most heart. We now have to play the best prepared club (the A’s) in baseball. It’s kind of like David and Goliath.”

The Red Sox won Wednesday with a flurry against 21-year-old Alex Fernandez in the second. Mike Greenwell doubled and scored on a single by Evans. Brunansky drilled a triple to right to score Evans, then scored himself when the White Sox botched a rundown play after guessing right and pitching out on a squeeze-bunt attempt by Luis Rivera.

Mike Boddicker, whose 17-8 record represents his most victories since he was 20-11 with the 1984 Orioles, pitched six shutout innings and escaped a two-out, bases-loaded threat in the seventh with a yield of only one run. Guillen singled it in, but third base coach Terry Bevington made a mistake by also trying to score Dan Pasqua from second as Greenwell came up throwing in shallow left, nailing Pasqua easily.

Reardon was then one out from a save in the ninth when Sammy Sosa singled and Scott Fletcher was hit by a pitch. Guillen followed with his drive that would have tied the game and might have been an inside-the-park homer if Brunansky had missed it.

“It was a helluva catch, and I couldn’t believe he made it,” Chicago Manager Jeff Torborg said. “No one shades Guillen that much toward the line.”

Brunansky said he did it because he knew Guillen would be trying to pull the ball, trying to drive it for extra bases. He called the catch pure reaction because he had just told himself what he would do if Guillen hit it his way.

“I felt I had a bead on it,” he said, “but when you leave your feet you never know.

“I was worried about hitting the wall and having the ball pop out, but the track stopped me and I knew it wouldn’t come out because it was right in my pocket.”

There was some confusion as jubilant fans climbed over the walls, but not in the White Sox bullpen where Chicago pitchers saw the catch.

Brunansky reached behind him, but only to retrieve his cap. He ran in, waving the ball at first base umpire Tim McClelland, who took it from him as the umpire was being blindsided by a fan.

McClelland later returned the ball, and Brunansky, who made three big catches and hit five home runs in the previous weekend series with the Blue Jays, called it his best catch ever considering the circumstances.

“These are the situations I live for,” Brunansky said. “A lot of people tend to put pressure on themselves, but I think it’s fun.”