Daily MLB Summary: Yankees and Dodgers Secure Divisional Titles, White Sox Ward Off Direct Failure Mark
The New York Yankees were fueled by the accomplishments of Aaron Judge, who smashed a two-run homer in the seventh inning for his fifth consecutive game with a long ball against the Baltimore Orioles. This put him just one game away from joining an exclusive club of players who achieved this feat within the past decade. If he manages to hit another homer in Friday's game against the Pittsburgh Pirates, Judge would join Joey Votto, Mike Trout, and Rafael Devers as one of only four players to accomplish this in the current era.
Judge's homer raised his season total to an MLB-leading 58, making him the second Yankee in less than two weeks to reach this milestone. Giancarlo Stanton had 59 homers in 2017 as a member of the Miami Marlins, and Judge himself set an American League record with 62 home runs in 2022. Stanton, too, had a fantastic game, driving in four runs and hitting his 27th homer of the season.
The Yankees' 10-1 victory on Thursday marked the 14th time this season that Judge and Stanton hit home runs in the same game, tying the franchise record set by Mickey Mantle and Roger Maris in 1961.
The game was close at first, with the Yankees scoring their first runs in the second inning on a solo shot by Stanton. However, things really started to unravel for the Orioles in the sixth inning when Corbin Burnes was replaced by Yennier Cano, who promptly walked Austin Wells, allowing the Yankees to take a 3-2 lead. Stanton followed this up with a double, driving in three more runs. Anthony Rizzo then added two runs of his own with a line drive single, making it 7-0.
In the seventh inning, Judge extended the Yankees' lead with yet another home run, and Alexander Verdugo added another run with a solo shot in the eighth. Emmanuel Rivera finally got the Orioles on the board with a sac fly in the ninth, but it was too little, too late.
With their victory over the Orioles, the Yankees secured a first-round bye and home-field advantage in the American League Division Series.
“Coming up short last year stings,” Judge said, according to the Associated Press. “It hurts just like any other year that you don’t win a World Series, but that one hurt a little bit more. So we wanted to make a statement, come back here and put ourselves in a good position going into the postseason.”
Elsewhere, the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched their 11th National League West title in 12 seasons with a hard-fought 7-2 victory over the San Diego Padres. The Dodgers, who spent over $1 billion on contracts in the offseason and have been plagued by injury, entered the season as favorites to win the division but had to overcome significant setbacks to do so.
“They all feel sweet, but I'll tell you, man, with what we’ve gone through this year, this feels a tick sweeter,” said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts, per MLB.com. “I’m just so proud of these guys, the way that we’ve fought the adversity, stuck together and found a way to win this division again. It was hard-fought; we earned it.”
The Dodgers trailed 2-0 in the seventh inning before rallying back with a two-run homer from Will Smith and an RBI single from Shohei Ohtani. Mookie Betts then added two more runs with a two-RBI single, and Andy Pages rounded out the scoring with a two-run homer in the eighth.
It will be the first time in seven seasons that Ohtani has made the playoffs, and he was happy to be a part of it. “I’m really happy,” he said through interpreter Will Ireton, according to MLB.com. “Today, I came to the stadium really wanting to clinch, and I’m happy we did that today. This series was something special. It was something that stood out for me over the year. Obviously, to be able to clinch it is the reason I am here (with the Dodgers).”
Finally, the Chicago White Sox managed to avoid setting the modern MLB record for most losses in a season with their 7-0 victory over the Los Angeles Angels. The White Sox had been tied with the 1962 expansion New York Mets for the most losses in modern major league history, but a strong performance from starting pitcher Chris Flexen and a dominant fifth inning rally helped them avoid the infamous mark. The White Sox now have a record of 56-108 with four games left in the season.
The Chicago White Sox are just three victories short of escaping the title of the worst modern baseball team, and their remaining matches are against the Detroit Tigers, who are aiming for an AL Wild Card slot.
According to AP, interim manager Grady Sizemore mentioned, "I believe the lads are pumped up following this series. It's going to be a thrilling vibe over there. They're playing for the postseason. We're heading over to challenge them and not make it a breeze, aiming to bag wins and keep progressing."
After securing the first-round bye and home-field advantage, Aaron Judge expressed his determination to make a statement in the postseason, aiming to erase the sting of last year's World Series loss. Furthermore, in this season of extraordinary performances, Joey Votto, Mike Trout, Rafael Devers, and Judge are set to join an elite club of players who have hit home runs in five consecutive games within the past decade.
In another exciting development in the MLB, the Los Angeles Dodgers clinched their 11th National League West title in 12 seasons, with Shohei Ohtani looking forward to his first playoff appearance in seven years.
