Sep 14, 2026; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; New York Yankees right fielder Aaron Judge (99) celebrates after the New York Yankees clinch a playoff spot at Target Field. Mandatory Credit: Jesse Johnson-Imagn Images
Ho-hum, the Yankees are in the postseason again, extending their MLB record to 61 times on Monday night when the Toronto Blue Jays lost to the Detroit Tigers moments before New York clinched an 8-3 victory over the Minnesota Twins.
“It’s exciting to be in this position,” slugger Aaron Judge, who hit his first home run since May 24 on Monday night after an 84-game injury lay-off, said. “You don’t get to do it too many times. We know the ultimate goal.”
That ultimate goal has eluded the Yankees for 17 years, especially during the Judge era. They’ve made the World Series just once in 2024 and were handled quite easily by the Los Angeles Dodgers in five games.
Last season, they finished second in the AL East behind the Blue Jays, squeaked past the Boston Red Sox in three games in the Wild Card Series at Yankee Stadium, but then were dominated by Toronto in five games in the ALDS.
As things stand, the Yankees are facing an eerily similar scenario in the final stretch of the regular season.
Entering Tuesday night’s action, the Bronx Bombers trail the Tampa Bay Rays for the AL East lead by 3.5 games. They’re firmly entrenched as the No. 1 Wild Card in an embarrassingly mediocre American League, and are on a collision course to face the Red Sox again in the Bronx in the Wild Card Series.
Whether or not manager Aaron Boone will go all out to try and catch the Rays over the final 12 games remains to be seen.
“It’s an uphill battle without question,” Boone said. “Tampa’s obviously playing great. But baseball’s a funny game. We’re winning a lot of games. So are they. But we’re just going to keep playing and keep trying to put our best foot forward every day and try and get another win tomorrow and keep it simple as that.”
If the Yankees could catch the Rays, they would be the No. 1 seed in the American League, have home-field advantage through at least the first two rounds of the postseason, and have a fully rested and sorted starting rotation for the ALDS — something they did not have last season in their October clash with Toronto.
“Even going back to our series last year against the Blue Jays, they were rested and ready to go,” Judge said. “They lined up their starters however they want. So, that’s that. But we’re in the postseason. So, if we punch our ticket, with the group we have, you get us in there, anything can happen. I like our chances.”
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