With an 11-6 win over the Boston Red Sox on Friday, the New York Yankees clinch home field advantage in the 2018 AL Wild Card game.
- New York Yankees 11 (99-61)
- Boston Red Sox 6 (107-53)
- AL East, Final, Box Score
- Fenway Park, Boston, Massachusetts
The New York Yankees took care of business on Friday night against the Boston Red Sox, guaranteeing that New York will host the Oakland A’s in the Wild Card game on Oct. 3.
It was all Yankees from the start. The Bombers jumped out to an early 8-0 lead with J.A. Happ dominating the Red Sox through the first five innings.
Boston made the game interesting with a Steve Pearce grand slam in the home half of the sixth inning. However, New York tacked on two runs in the seventh on a Luke Voit smash and one more in eighth when Aaron Judge drilled a homer to center.
Luke Unit: Yankee legend. ? pic.twitter.com/gQUrtBqqWn
— MLB (@MLB) September 29, 2018
Dellin Betances and Zach Britton gave up a run each in lackluster performances, but in the end, the Yankees got the 11-6 win and home field for the upcoming Wild Card game.
This is the second straight year the Wild Card game has found its way to the Bronx. The Yankees topped the Minnesota Twins in the 2017 contest, kick-starting a playoff run that took New York within one game of the World Series.
The Bombers also tied two records on Friday night.
Miguel Andujar tied the legendary Joe DiMaggio for most doubles by a Yankees rookie, hitting his 44th two-bagger of the year in the top of the fourth inning.
Judge’s home run in the eighth inning was the Yankees’ 264th bomb in 2018, tying the record set by the 1997 Seattle Mariners.
2️⃣6️⃣4️⃣
The @Yankees and 1997 @Mariners now share the all-time single-season HR record. pic.twitter.com/bLXpGmwRUS
— MLB Stat of the Day (@MLBStatoftheDay) September 29, 2018
New York hit four home runs in the game, with Gary Sanchez and Aaron Hicks adding the other two.
There are just two games left in the season, but it would be a major surprise if the Yankees don’t hit at least one more dinger to claim the team home run record.
