MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Twins are heading into the postseason on a high note. The Detroit Tigers, meanwhile, enter an offseason filled with uncertainty.

Jason Castro drove in three runs to help send the Twins into Tuesday's American League wild-card game against the New York Yankees with a victory. Minnesota finished with a record of 85-77, a 26-win improvement from last year.

Twins starter Bartolo Colon gave up just one run in 6 1/3 innings as the Twins beat the Detroit Tigers 5-1 in Sunday's regular-season finale.

The 44-year-old Colon walked off the field to a standing ovation from Twins fans in the seventh inning of what could be the last game of his lengthy career.

"It was amazing. For them to do that to me almost made me want to cry," Colon said through a translator. "It was a beautiful moment for me."

Colon joined the Twins in July as his 10th team of his 20-year big league career. Sunday's victory moved him to 5-6 with Minnesota. He could possibly pitch in the postseason if the Twins advance past Tuesday's game in New York, though manager Paul Molitor said he hasn't thought that far in advance just yet.

Asked about his future, Colon said he hopes to pitch again in 2018.

"That's the goal," he said. "That's what I promised my old lady and that's what I want to do."

As Colon left the field to an ovation from fans, he stopped to hug Tigers first base coach Omar Vizquel. The two were teammates in Cleveland from 1997 to 2002, and Vizquel played until he was 45 -- one year older than Colon's current age.

"He said, 'I saw you pitch for the first time and now I saw you pitch for the last time,'" Colon said. "Maybe he's talking about himself not coming back because I'm not going anywhere."

With the loss, Detroit finished the season 64-98, tied with San Francisco for the worst record in the majors. The Tigers now begin their search for a new manager as skipper Brad Ausmus will not return in 2018.

After bringing out the lineup card to the umpires, Ausmus handed the reins to veteran infielder Ian Kinsler to manage Sunday's season finale. Kinsler said they made the decision just before the game to let him try his hand at managing.

"It was definitely interesting to think about the game in a little bit different way," Kinsler said. "There's a lot of variables that you have to think about."

The only run Colon surrendered was a solo homer off the bat of Alex Presley in the third inning. Colon struck out four and gave up just three hits.

With the score tied 1-1, Castro helped Minnesota pull ahead with a two-run single. His base hit to left scored Eduardo Escobar and Byron Buxton to make it 3-1.

Before Castro's single, Buxton stole second base, his 24th consecutive stolen base. That extended Buxton's club record for stolen bases without getting thrown out.

Castro drove in another run in the sixth with a solo homer, his 10th home run of the season. He jumped on a pitch from Tigers reliever Blaine Hardy and drove it to the plaza in right field to put Minnesota up 4-1.

Chris Gimenez also homered for Minnesota as a pinch hitter in the eighth inning.

Tigers starter Anibal Sanchez took the loss. He gave up three runs and seven hits in five innings, including the go-ahead single by Castro in the fourth.

Sanchez is one of several free agents on the Tigers' roster as they enter the offseason. Along with finding a new manager, Detroit will have plenty of other personnel decisions to make as it continues to retool its roster.

"It's bitter in a sense that guys you've been teammates with for the last two, three years get traded away and you start a rebuilding process," catcher James McCann said. "But it's sweet in the sense that you get to hit a reset button. It's sweet in a sense that there's hopefully a light at the end of the tunnel."

NOTES: Twins RHP Ervin Santana will start Minnesota's game against the New York Yankees in Tuesday's wild card. Santana has faced the Yankees just once this season and gave up two runs in 5 2/3 innings in a 2-1 Twins loss. RHP Luis Severino will start the one-game playoff for New York. ... Minnesota manager Paul Molitor's contract is up at the end of the season, but he's not worried about his status with the team. "If circumstances were different and we weren't playing Tuesday, I might have spent more time thinking about it, to be honest with you," Molitor said. The 2017 season marked Molitor's third year at the helm in Minnesota.