Incredibly, Fire still in playoff hunt

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Updated: November 24, 2011 12:24AM

Three weeks ago, the Fire’s chances of reaching the ­Major League Soccer playoffs appeared dim. That’s not the case anymore, even though the team has only four wins in 26 games.

The Fire (4-7-15) is five points out of the last playoff spot and well-rested heading into the road game Saturday against the San Jose Earthquakes. One point ahead of San Jose, the Fire has a three-game winning streak, including a victory over the Richmond Kickers in the semifinals of the U.S. Open Cup in its last game on Aug. 30.

MLS allows 10 of its 18 teams to make the postseason. The top three teams in each conference automatically qualify, and the next four, based on points, also get in. The Fire, seventh in the Eastern Conference, has eight MLS games left, along with next week’s exhibition against Mexico’s popular Chivas club and the Oct. 4 Open Cup final in Seattle.

‘‘It’s one game at a time; we don’t think ahead,’’ said interim coach Frank Klopas, who has guided the Fire to a 3-3-9 record since replacing Carlos de los Cobos. ‘‘A lot of games are coming up. It’s non-stop.’’

The Fire wasn’t completely idle since beating Richmond. Marco Pappa scored a goal for Guatemala in a 4-0 victory over St. Vincent/Grenadines, and Orr Barouch set up the only score for Israel’s under-21 team in a 4-1 loss to England.

As far as MLS play goes, the Fire has been idle since Aug. 27, and it must cope with one of the smallest fields in the league in San Jose.

The Earthquakes play their home games at Buck Shaw Stadium, the college football field that San Jose State University uses.

Klopas expects midfielders Pavel Pardo and Sebastian Grazzini to be ready for Saturday’s game. Pardo, nursing a calf injury, didn’t play in the last two games, and Grazzini departed the last one at halftime with a hamstring problem.

The Fire will have to play without left back Gonzalo Segares. He’ll be serving a one-game suspension for yellow-card point accumulations.