Yankees Clinch Record 61st Postseason Berth as Judge Homers

The New York Yankees locked in a record 61st postseason berth — and their ninth playoff trip in 10 seasons — on a night Aaron Judge finally found the seats again. ESPN reported that New York beat the Minnesota Twins 8–3 in Minneapolis on Sept. 14 after learning midgame that Toronto’s loss to Detroit had already assured at least an American League wild-card spot.

CBS Sports, citing the Associated Press, said Judge capped a six-run eighth with a 415-foot, three-run homer off A.J. Minter — his first since May 24 and his 18th of the season. The captain had returned the previous week from a right rib stress fracture that cost him 84 games and had been 3-for-20 with 11 strikeouts before the drive into the second deck in left.

José Caballero homered earlier and singled to help ignite the eighth, Ben Rice added a two-run bloop, and Cody Bellinger reached on an infield hit before Judge’s blast pushed the lead to 7–2. Austin Wells homered in the ninth. Will Warren worked 5⅔ innings with six strikeouts in his fourth straight strong outing; John Schreiber finished 1⅓ hitless innings for his second save.

For Minnesota, Josh Bell homered and Emmanuel Rodriguez tripled in two runs as the Twins dropped their eighth loss in 11 games while fading from contention. Dean Kremer limited New York to two hits over 5⅔ innings before the late collapse. New York improved to 87–63, a season-high 24 games over .500, and sat 3½ games behind AL East-leading Tampa Bay, which had already clinched a postseason berth.

The clinch lands as the Yankees manage a battered roster — ESPN noted 18 players have landed on the injured list, including Jazz Chisholm Jr. with a sprained thumb — while chasing a first World Series title since 2009. With Wild Card Series play scheduled to open Sept. 29, New York’s immediate task is finishing the AL East race and lining up healthy arms for October.

Judge’s timing mattered as much as the milestone. A franchise that spent much of the summer without its three-time MVP finally got a signature swing on the same night the standings math made the playoffs official, turning a road win into a double celebration for a club that has lived in October for most of the past decade.