Judge’s walk-off homer keys Yanks win
NEW YORK — Aaron Judge hit his third walk-off homer this year, his major league-leading 39th home run of the season, to lift the New York Yankees over the Kansas City Royals 1-0 on Thursday night.
New York was held to one hit before Judge drove a first-pitch fastball from Scott Barlow (4-3) into the Kansas City bullpen with one out in the ninth, a 431-foot drive that gave the Yankees their 12th walk-off win this season.
Judge sent the crowd of 43,836 into a frenzy, joining Mickey Mantle as the only Yankees with three walk-off home runs in one season. Tommy Henrich had two in 1949 plus another off Brooklyn’s Don Newcombe in the World Series opener.
Barlow walked off with his head down as Judge’s teammates mobbed him at home plate.
Judge had never hit a big league walk-off homer before May 10 against Toronto’s Jordan Romano, then hit another on June 26 off Houston’s Seth Martinez.
New York had not won a 1-0 game on a walk-off homer since Ruben Sierra connected off the Blue Jays’ Vinnie Chulk on April 22, 2004.
Judge had been 0 for 2 with a pair of strikeouts and a walk before the homer. He also stole his 10th base, a career high.
Andrew Benintendi went 0 for 4 with one strikeouts in his Yankees debut, facing Kansas City one day after the Royals dealt him to New York for three minor league pitchers.
Clay Holmes (5-1) worked around two walks in a hitless ninth, combining on a four-hitter with Jameson Taillon and Ron Marinaccio.
New York has an AL-best 67-33 record but had lost 10 of its previous 15 games, getting swept this week in a two-game Subway Series at the NL East-leading Mets and losing both games of a doubleheader last week at AL West-leading Houston.
Taillon struck out a season-high eight and allowed four hits in six innings. Rookie Ron Marinaccio got six outs with two hitless innings and has not allowed a run in 19 innings. Batters are 1 for 57 against him in that span.
Brady Singer allowed one hit in seven innings, a two-out single in the fourth by Gleyber Torres. Kansas City, last in the AL Centrl, dropped to 39-60.
MARLINS 7, REDS 6
In Cincinnati, Miami pitcher Daniel Castano was hit on the forehead by a 104 mph line drive off the bat of Donovan Solano in the first inning of the Marlins’ win over the Reds.
Miami said Castano showed mild concussion symptoms and was bruised, and a CT scan was normal.
Miami earned a four-game split by overcoming a 5-4, ninth-inning deficit. Pinch-hitter Jesús Sánchez homered off Hunter Strickland (2-3), Joey Wendle hit a go-ahead double against Buck Farmer and Jesús Aguilar followed with sacrifice fly for his fourth RBI.
Zach Pop (2-0) threw a perfect eighth. Tanner Scott allowed Tommy Pham’s RBI single and struck out Joey Votto with two on for his 14th save.
DODGERS 13, ROCKIES 0
In Denver, Tyler Anderson and two relievers — including infielder Hanser Alberto — combined on a seven-hitter, and Los Angeles routed the sloppy Rockies for its seventh shutout of the season.
Trea Turner had three hits for Los Angeles, including a three-run double. Gavin Lux also had three hits, and Will Smith finished with two hits and three RBIs.
The MLB-leading Dodgers scored two runs in the first and four in the second against José Ureña (1-3). L.A.’s 10th win in 12 games extended its NL West lead to a season-high 12 games over San Diego.
Anderson (11-1) allowed four hits and struck out four against his former team, the only club he has lost to this season.
BLUE JAYS 5, TIGERS 3
In Toronto, Matt Chapman hit two home runs, Yusei Kikuchi came off the injured list to pitch five solid innings and the Blue Jays beat the Tigers for its 10th victory in 12 games.
Chapman hit a two-run homer off left-hander Tyler Alexander in the fourth and a solo shot off Angel De Jesus in the sixth, the ninth multi-homer game of his career and first this season. He has 18 homers this season.
Jonathan Schoop and Willi Castro each hit a solo homer for the Tigers, who have lost five of eight since the All-Star break.
Kikuchi (4-5) walked one and struck out five to win for the first time since beating Tampa Bay on June 30. Jordan Romano wrapped it up for his 22nd save in 25 chances.
Alexander (2-4) allowed three runs, two earned, in four innings.
RED SOX 4, GUARDIANS 2
In Boston, Xander Bogaerts hit a three-run homer in the sixth inning, and the Red Sox beat Cleveland for its fifth win in 20 games.
Guardians starter Triston McKenzie took a one-hit shutout into the sixth before putting two on with one out for Bogaerts, who hit an 0-2 slider out to turn a one-run deficit into a 3-1 lead.
Boston scored another when Bobby Dalbec’s drive off the Green Monster plated Franchy Cordero, who led off the seventh with a double.
McKenzie (7-7) allowed six hits and walked one in seven innings in his first loss since June 27.
Jake Diekman (2-0) retired all four batters he faced in relief of Boston starter Kutter Crawford. His allowed a solo homer by José Ramírez in the fourth. Garrett Whitlock pitched two innings for his third save.
ASTROS 4, MARINERS 2
In Houston, Alex Bregman hit a two-run homer early, and his tiebreaking RBI double in the eighth inning led the Astros over Seattle, snapping a three-game losing streak.
Bregman was shaken up in a collision while scoring the Astros’ final run in the eighth, but remained in the game.
The game was tied at 2 when Andrés Muñoz (1-4) hit Yuli Gurriel to start Houston’s eighth. Gurriel stole second with one out, and Bregman, who homered in the first, doubled off the wall in left-center field for a 3-2 lead. Bregman scored on a two-out wild pitch, colliding with a diving Muñoz as the reliever tried to make the tag.
Rafael Montero (4-1) got four outs without allowing a hit for the win and Ryan Pressly earned his 21st save in 24 chances.
Ty France and Carlos Santana had an RBI each for the Mariners, who were coming off a sweep of the Rangers.
ORIOLES 3, RAYS 0
In Baltimore, Trey Mancini hit an eighth-inning, inside-the-park home run in what may have been his final home plate appearance with the Orioles in a win over Tampa Bay.
Jordan Lyles (7-8) allowed three hits in 5⅔ innings. Lyles and Mancini both could be dealt by Tuesday’s trade deadline.
Anthony Santander doubled home a run in the third off Ryan Yarbrough (0-6). Félix Bautista retired four batters for his third save.
PHILLIES 8, PIRATES 7
In Pittsburgh, Kyle Schwarber hit his NL-leading 32nd homer and Zack Wheeler pitched seven strong innings as Philadelphia built a large lead and held on to edge the Pirates.
Schwarber’s three-run shot off Zach Thompson (3-8) in the sixth inning gave the Phillies a 7-0 lead. In the seventh, rookie Cal Mitchell ended Wheeler’s shutout bid with a two-run homer.
The Pirates scored five times in the ninth inning. Tyler Heineman doubled in two runs and Kevin Newman hit a two-run triple off Jeurys Familia. Seranthony Dominguez replaced Familia and earned his sixth save in seven chances.
Nick Castellanos had three of the Phillies’ 15 hits. Schwarber, Rhys Hoskins, Alec Bohm and Matt Vierling added two each for Philadelphia, which won for the third time in four games.
Wheeler (9-5) allowed two runs on three hits, striking out eight and walking three. Thompson allowed seven runs and 11 hits in 5⅔ innings.