Aaron Judge could not hit an historic 61st home run but the New York Yankees claimed a 5-4 walk-off win over the Boston Red Sox to clinch their postseason berth on Thursday.
Judge walked three times and came agonisingly close in the ninth inning with a fly out to center-field, meaning his 2022 season home-run tally remains at 60, equal with Babe Ruth and one behind Roger Maris for the American League (AL) record.
With scores locked at 4-4 in the ninth inning, Judge fell a few feet short of his historic 61st home run for the season, caught at deep center-field by Enrique Hernandez.
But there was plenty for the fans at Yankee Stadium to get excited about, with Josh Donaldson's 10th-inning RBI single getting Marwin Gonzalez home for the walk-off win. Donaldson hit a bouncing ball to the left side past third baseman Rafael Devers from Kaleb Ort for the game-winning run.
Earlier, Giancarlo Stanton headlined a four-run seventh-inning rally after trailing 3-0 with a two-run blast.
The victory means the Yankees clinch a playoffs berth for the sixth consecutive year, with an AL East-best record of 91-58 this season.
Wong's career-first three-homer game
Kolten Wong had a career game as he blasted three home runs out of the five-spot as the Milwaukee Brewers won 5-1 over the Cincinnati Reds.
Wong crushed a second-inning two-run blast to open the scoring, before backing that up with another two-run homer in the sixth inning to provide some insurance.
In the eighth inning, Wong homered again over right-field, bringing up his 15th blast of the season and his maiden three-homer game and first five-RBI game in his career.
Rookie's immaculate inning in Cubs win
Rookie Chicago Cubs pitcher Hayden Wesneski registered the first immaculate inning for the franchise since 2004 in their 3-2 win over the Pittsburgh Pirates.
In just his second start, Wesneski struck out Jack Suwinski, Zack Collins and Jason Delay across nine second-inning pitches.
Wesneski finished the game with six strikeouts and two walks, allowing two runs on five hits, having turned in six-and-one-third innings.
New York Yankees designate struggling OF Aaron Hicks for assignment
The New York Yankees have decided to cut ties with struggling outfielder Aaron Hicks.
The Yankees designated Hicks for assignment on Saturday before their game against the Cincinnati Reds.
Through 28 games this season, Hicks is slashing just .188/.263/.261 with one home run, two doubles and five RBIS.
Among the 315 major league hitters with at least 75 plate appearances, Hicks' .524 OPS ranks 299th.
It is a costly decision for the Yankees, as Hicks' contract runs through 2025 and the team will be forced to eat nearly $30million remaining on the seven-year, $70m contract he signed in 2019.
The sides agreed to that deal after Hicks enjoyed a career year in 2018, when he hit 27 homers and drove in 79.
In almost four-and-a-half seasons since then, however, the 33-year-old Hicks has managed just 31 home runs while batting .218.
In a corresponding move Saturday, the Yankees selected the contract of outfielder Greg Allen from the minors.
The 30-year-old Allen was acquired in a trade from the Boston Red Sox on Friday and is beginning his second stint with the Yankees after appearing in 15 games for them in 2021.
Astros activate star 2B Altuve for season debut
Jose Altuve will return to the Houston Astros’ lineup for Friday’s game against the Oakland Athletics after the team activated the 2017 American League Most Valuable Player from the injured list.
Altuve has yet to play this season due to a fractured right thumb he sustained while playing for his native Venezuela in the World Baseball Classic on March 19. He underwent surgery on March 22 and was given an eight-week timeline to return.
The eight-time All-Star prepped for his 2023 debut by playing five minor league rehab games over the past week, though he went just 2 for 22 at the plate.
Altuve finished fifth in voting for last season’s AL MVP after finishing with a .300 average, 28 home runs, 103 runs scored and 18 stolen bases in 141 games for the World Series champion Astros.
The 33-year-old’s career .307 batting average ranks third among active players with at least 1,000 plate appearances, trailing only 2022 AL batting champ Luis Arraez and fellow Venezuelan Miguel Cabrera.
Altuve will be counted on to provide a spark to a Houston offense that’s averaging just 4.44 runs per game, 15th in the majors. The Astros currently stand two games behind division-leading Texas in the AL West with a 24-19 record.
Rays pound Cease as Paredes drives in career-high five, Ohtani falls short on cycle bid
The Tampa Bay Rays re-discovered their free-scoring ways as Isaac Paredes managed a career-high five RBIs in a 14-5 victory over the slumping Chicago White Sox on Thursday.
The Sox fall to their eighth straight loss, even with Dylan Cease on the mound, pounded for seven runs from nine hits across four innings, with only three strikeouts.
Paredes started it off with a second-inning RBI single, grounded out to third to score Randy Arozarena in the fifth, before a three-run double in the sixth opened up an 11-2 lead.
Brandon Lowe maintained his excellent early season hitting with a 358-foot third inning homer along with a two-run single in the fifth. Lowe's solo shot took his season tally to seven homers.
Shane McClanahan (5-0) allowed two runs and struck out five across five innings, while Luke Raley went three-for-five with three RBIs including a ninth-inning homer, and moved from the outfield to the mound in the ninth.
The Rays, who started the season 13-0, had been beaten and shut out in consecutive games by the Houston Astros, 1-0 and 5-0 on Wednesday and Tuesday respectively.
Tampa Bay delivered 16 hits for the game and ended their scoreless run at 20 innings.
Ohtani's mixed game as Angels edge home
Shohei Ohtani responded after a shaky start on the mound to lead the Los Angeles Angels past the Oakland Athletics 8-7.
Ohtani (4-0) earned the win, although he gave up five runs in a rough fourth inning, with three-run blasts to Brent Rooker and a two-run homer to Shea Langeliers. He had thrown three perfect innings to that point and finished with eight strikeouts, allowing three hits across six innings.
The Japanese two-way star went three-for-five with the bat, including a triple, double and single, scoring two runs, with an eighth-inning shot caught by Esteury Ruiz on the warning track in center field.
Brandon Drury delivered a 409-foot three-run home run over left-center field in the first inning, with Ohtani scoring after his prior double.
Keller fans 10 as Pirates continue fine form
Mitch Keller matched his career-high 10 strikeouts as the Pittsburgh Pirates downed the Los Angeles Dodgers 6-2.
Keller improved to 3-0, giving up two runs on five hits across six innings, as the Pirates continued their excellent run having won nine of their past 10, moving to an 18-8 record.
Pittsburgh rallied from an early 2-0 deficit, with three runs at the bottom of the first inning, before Connor Joe's two-run blast followed by Rodolfo Castro's 414-foot homer in the sixth.
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