The Yankees’ final road trip of the regular season turned out to be the most pivotal trip of the year, as the Bombers had three games apiece against the Boston Red Sox and Toronto Blue Jays, with all three teams fighting for the two AL Wild Card Spots.
With Thursday’s 6-2 win over the Jays, the Yankees finished the trip 5-1, and are now 2.0 games up in the Wild Card standings. The Yankees can clinch at least a tie for the Wild Card spot on Friday with a win against Tampa Bay, but as Aaron Judge said, there’s more work to be done.
“We’ve still got a lot of work to do. The job’s not finished,” Judge said. “We’ve just got to keep going. These are some big games. Even if we can clinch tomorrow, we’ve still got two more at home. We want that home-field advantage.
“I wish (the road trip record) was 6-0. We really didn’t do what we came to do, but we went out there and played some tough opponents in some big, meaningful games. It wasn’t a postseason game, but it definitely had the atmosphere and the feel and everything that goes into a postseason game. So to go out there and do what we did on the road in some tough places, just all-around great job.”
Asked if Thursday’s win – which came on the heels of the road trip’s only loss – was the biggest of the year for the Yankees, manager Aaron Boone said every game at this stage is as big as they get.
“I think every day is the biggest win now. … These guys are in a great place, their focus is right, they’re having fun playing the game with each other,” Boone said. “I think they’re enjoying the competition with a lot on the line, and that’s what you sign up for, especially this time of year.”