close
close

Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Volpe hit home runs and the Yankees beat the A’s

Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Volpe hit home runs and the Yankees beat the A’s

OAKLAND, Calif. — In their final series at the Coliseum, the Yankees spent Saturday throwing a few final souvenirs into the stands.

Aaron Judge, Giancarlo Stanton and Anthony Volpe all hit monster shots that totaled 396 yards to spark an offensive surge.

In a stadium that has long served as a football field, the Yankees scored a touchdown and kicked a field goal and moved ever closer to winning the AL East with a 10-0 victory over the A’s.

Aaron Judge hits a solo home run, his 54th of the season, in the seventh inning of the Yankees’ 10-0 win over the A’s on September 21, 2024. Cary Edmondson-Images

With that win and the Orioles’ loss the previous Saturday, the Yankees (91-64) regained their five-game lead at the top with seven games remaining and reduced their magic number to secure the AL East title to three.

The Yankees’ 15th game of the season with double-digit scores was more than enough run support for Carlos Rodon, who maneuvered through some crowding and pitched six scoreless innings.

The left-hander managed five hits and a walk, continuing his solid run into October and lowering his ERA to 3.98 in his 31st start of the year.

Judge’s home run was his 54th of the season, a 425-foot solo hit in the seventh inning that gave the Yankees a 7-0 lead.

Eleven years after taking batting practice with the Yankees at the Coliseum as a 21-year-old freshly selected in the first round of the draft, Judge continued his historic season.

Along with Babe Ruth, he was only the second Yankee to hit at least 54 home runs in two seasons.

Anthony Volpe looks skyward after hitting a solo home run in the Yankees’ win. Getty Images

Volpe and Stanton’s home runs, meanwhile, were encouraging signs for two of the team’s most inconsistent hitters. There’s often no middle ground between good and bad for the duo, but when the Yankees get going with the likes of Stanton and Volpe at the same time, their lineup becomes all the deeper and more dangerous.

Entering this series, Volpe had gone just 5 of 44 (.114) without extra-base hits in his last 13 games.

But he hit three on Friday and stayed hot on Saturday, hitting a 421-foot solo home run in the second inning — the longest of his career — to give former Yankees left-hander JP Sears a 3-0 lead. It was Volpe’s first home run since Aug. 3 after going 41 games without hitting one.

Giancarlo Stanton rounds the bases after hitting a solo home run in the third inning of the Yankees’ win. Cary Edmondson-Images

Stanton had been just as cold lately.

After suffering a double play in the first inning on Saturday (which brought in a run from third base), he is 5-for-42 in his last two games, including six strikeouts.

But in true Stanton fashion, he managed to get out of his slump and hit a 441-foot three-run shot against Sears in the third inning to make it 6-0.

Carlos Rodon, who pitched six scoreless innings, picked up his 16th win of the season. ary Edmondson-Images

The Yankees gave Rodon an early lead by scoring two runs in the first inning.

Singles by Gleyber Torres and Juan Soto were followed by a nine-pitch walk by Judge to load the bases for Stanton, who hit a ground ball into a double play that allowed Torres to score home from third base.

Jasson Dominguez was next, hitting a single down the left side to make it 2-0.

After Judge hit a home run off right-handed reliever Brandon Bielak in the seventh inning, the Yankees scored three more runs to reach double digits. Volpe scored a run on a fielder’s decision before Torres hit a two-run single to give them a 10-0 lead.

Eight of the nine Yankees in the starting lineup scored at least one hit, while all reached base safely.

Mark Leiter Jr. relieved Rodon in the seventh inning and threw two perfect innings with three strikeouts before Tim Mayza ended the inning in the ninth inning.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *