Judge still looking for 61st homer, Yankees clinch playoffs

NEW YORK (AP) – Aaron Judge fell a few feet short of a record-tying 61st homer, hitting a 404-foot drive caught just in front of the center-field wall, and the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 5-4 Thursday night on Josh Donaldson’s 10th-inning single. New York clinched its sixth straight playoff berth. Judge had walked three times and struck out once before he came to the plate with the score tied 4-all in the ninth. The crowd of 43,123 was on its feet for every pitch, and Judge drove a 2-2 fastball from Matt Barnes just to the right of straightaway center. The ball left the bat at 113 mph, and fans waited in anticipation as Judge jogged toward first base. But they groaned in unison as Kiké Hernández made the catch a step in front of the fence. Giancarlo Stanton hit a two-run homer for the Yankees. Clay Holmes (7-4) got the win. Triston Casas and Reese McGuire homered for Boston. Kaleb Ort (0-2) got the loss. CARDINALS 5, PADRES 4 SAN DIEGO (AP) – Brendan Donovan hit a grand slam in the seventh inning, and the NL Central-leading Cardinals snapped a three-game losing streak. St. Louis slugger Albert Pujols remained at 698 career homers, although he did drive two balls to deep left field, one for a single and one for an out on the warning track. The next stop in his pursuit of the 700-homer club is Dodger Stadium, where the Cardinals open a three-game series on Friday. Manny Machado hit his 30th homer for the Padres, who had won five in a row. Nick Martinez (4-4) got the loss. Donovan’s slam made a winner of Jack Flaherty (1-1), who struck out nine in six innings. Giovanny Gallegos pitched the ninth for his 14th save. RAYS 10, BLUE JAYS 5 ST. PETERSBURG, Fla. (AP) – Wander Franco had three RBIs and Jonathan Aranda homered, powering Tampa Bay to the win in the opener of a big four-game series between playoff contenders. Randy Arozarena had three hits and drove in two runs for the Rays, who were coming off a three-game series in which they were swept by Houston and scored just twice. Ryan Yarbrough (3-8) got the win. Tampa Bay (83-67) pulled within one game of Toronto (84-66) for the top spot in the AL wild-card standings. Seattle (82-67) is in third, four games ahead of Baltimore. Whit Merrifield homered twice for Toronto, and Teoscar Hernández also went deep. José Berríos (11-6) was tagged for six runs and seven hits in two innings. PHILLIES 1, BRAVES 0 PHILADELPHIA (AP) – Ranger Suárez pitched six sparkling innings, and the Phillies continued their push toward the club’s first playoff berth in a decade. Matt Vierling knocked in the only run in the game with a second-inning sacrifice fly. Suárez allowed five hits, struck out four and walked two. Zach Eflin got five outs before José Alvarado finished the six-hitter for his second save. Philadelphia (82-67) moved within a half-game of San Diego for the National League’s second wild-card spot and remained 2 1/2 games ahead of Milwaukee for the final playoff berth. The Braves (93-57) fell 1 1/2 games behind the idle New York Mets for the NL East lead. Atlanta played without outfielder Ronald Acuña Jr., who was scratched because of back tightness. Braves starter Max Fried (13-7) struck out eight in five innings. GUARDIANS 4, WHITE SOX 2 CHICAGO (AP) – Shane Bieber pitched two-run ball into the eighth inning, and the Guardians beat the White Sox for a three-game series sweep. Cleveland opened a seven-game lead over Chicago in the AL Central with its 15th win in 18 games. The Guardians (83-67) are going for the franchise’s first division title since 2018. Bieber (12-8) earned his fourth straight win. The 2020 AL Cy Young Award winner allowed seven hits, struck out five and walked none in 7 2/3 innings.