STRIDE OF THE YANKEES
After Severino gets knocked out in first inning, New York bullpen stifles Twins in wild-card game.
New York’s Aaron Judge connects for a two-run home run in the fourth inning as the Yankees overpowered the Minnesota Twins 8-4.
NEW YORK — Aaron Judge, Didi Gregorius and a brilliant bullpen rescued New York from a rugged start and lifted the Yankees to their first postseason victory in five years.
Gregorius’ three-run homer tied the score after Minnesota knocked out Luis Severino in the first inning, a pumped-up Judge showed his most emotion this season when he hit a two-run shot in his playoff debut and the Yankees beat the Twins 8-4 Tuesday night in the AL wild-card game.
Brett Gardner also homered for the Yankees, who chased Ervin Santana after two innings and once again eliminated the Twins from the playoffs.
Chad Green, David Robertson, Tommy Kahnle and Aroldis Chapman combined for 82⁄3 innings of one-run, five-hit relief, striking out 13 to tie the postseason record for a bullpen.
“It was just remarkable,” Yankees manager Joe Girardi said.
New York opens a best-of-five division series Thursday at the AL Central champion Indians.
“We’re not done yet,” Judge said. “We’ve just got to keep it rolling in Cleveland.”
The Twins lost their 13th consecutive postseason game, tying the record set by Boston from 1986 to ’95.
Brian Dozier led off the game with a home run and Eddie Rosario hit a two-run drive as the Twins burst to a quick lead and stunned the sellout crowd of 49,280 at Yankee Stadium.
But Santana was little better than Severino, going to full counts on eight of 11 batters. Gregorius erased the lead four batters into the bottom of the first, and Santana was removed after six outs and 64 pitches with the Twins trailing 4-3.
“You can sit here and try to imagine if it was 0-0 after the first what it would have felt like compared to scoring three and giving three back,” Twins manager Paul Molitor said. “It’s the exhilaration of jumping out and then the deflation of giving it back so quickly.”
Minnesota, the first team to rebound from a 100-loss season and make the playoffs the following year, has been eliminated by the Yankees in five of its last six postseason appearances and has not won a playoff series since 2002.
Judge, the 6-foot-7 sensation who set a rookie record with 52 home runs, scored three runs, hitting a single to help ignite the firstinning rally, smoking a home run off loser Jose Berrios in the fourth and walking in the seventh and coming home when Alan Busenitz walked Jacoby Ellsbury with the bases loaded.
Judge shouted in excitement as he rounded first base after the homer, his face flush with emotion.
New York had made only one postseason appearance since 2012, losing the 2015 wild-card game to Houston 3-0. only three Yankees who started that game were in the starting lineup, part of a Baby Bombers movement that purged the roster of veterans.
At 23, Severino was the youngest Yankees postseason starter since Andy Pettitte in 1995. The right-hander lasted only 29 pitches, giving up two homers.