Credit: Brad Penner-USA TODAY Sports
Aaron Judge reached 60 homers when he led off the ninth inning with a drive to the left field bleachers, and the milestone blast sparked a five-run rally that gave the York Yankees a 9-8 victory over the visiting Pittsburgh Pirates on Tuesday.
Giancarlo Stanton hit a game-ending grand slam off Wil Crowe (5-10), who also served up Judge’s blast.
Judge joined Babe Ruth (60 in 1927) and Roger Maris (61 in 1961) as the third AL player to reach 60 when he drove a 3-1 sinker about halfway up the left field bleachers. The Yankees won it four batters later when Stanton blasted a 2-2 changeup from Crowe (5-10) into the left field seats.
Judge reached 60 in New York’s 147th game. Anthony Rizzo followed with a double, Gleyber Torres walked and Josh Donaldson singled to right to set up Stanton’s winning shot.
Judge took a curtain call for the 430-foot drive, which came after the Pirates scored four in the eighth off Jonathan Loaisiga and Clay Holmes to take an 8-4 lead. Bryan Reynolds hit a tying homer in the seventh off Lou Trivino, then gave the Pirates a 5-4 edge with an eighth-inning single off Loaisiga.
Rodolfo Castro followed with a three-run homer off Holmes that put Pittsburgh ahead 8-4, but Aroldis Chapman (3-3) tossed a 1-2-3 ninth to set it up for New York’s 15th walk-off win.
Judge went 1-for-4 with a walk, reaching base for a 19th straight game.
Before Reynolds came through, Harrison Bader enjoyed a productive New York debut after missing nearly three months due to right foot plantar fasciitis.
Bader, acquired from the St. Louis Cardinals at the Aug. 2 trade deadline, had an RBI single in the fifth, scored on Jose Trevino’s single in that inning and then hit a two-run single in the sixth.
Jason Delay hit a two-run single and Greg Allen lifted a bases-loaded sacrifice fly for the Pirates, whose losing streak reached five games.
Pittsburgh’s Luis Ortiz allowed two runs (one earned) on three hits in five innings during his second career start. He struck out five and walked two.
New York’s Nestor Cortes gave up one run on five hits in five innings. He fanned four and walked two.
–Field Level Media