Aaron Judge ties Maris’s American League record of 61 home runs in a season

Baltimore loss means Jays’ playoff-clinching number for AL wild card drops to one

Aaron Judge sent his long-awaited, historic 61st home run bounding right into the Blue Jays bullpen Wednesday on a memorable night inside Toronto’s Rogers Centre.

Blue Jays fans didn’t get to see their team clinch a playoff spot just yet, as the Yankees beat the Jays 8-3, but they did get to witness the Yankees slugger pulling level with Roger Maris for the American League single-season home run record, a mark set 61 years ago.

However, with Baltimore’s loss to Boston, Toronto’s number to clinch a playoff spot is one game.

Judge had been stuck on No. 60 for seven games, including the first two in this three-game set against Toronto. But he snapped that homerless spell in Wednesday’s series finale in the seventh inning, when he hit a pitch off reliever Tim Mayza into the first deck in left field, and the ball dropped below into the Jays bullpen.

The Yankees dugout cleared, and Judge was met with a parade of boisterous hugs from his team. His mother was in Toronto to witness it, so was Roger Maris Jr. The Rogers Centre crowd of some 37,000 – although most pulling for the Jays – stood for a long while to applaud him.

Judge moved past the 60 home runs Babe Ruth hit in 1927, which had stood as the majorleague mark until Maris eclipsed it in 1961. All three stars reached those huge numbers playing for the Yankees.

Barry Bonds holds the bigleague record of 73 for the San Francisco Giants in 2001.

This was the Yankees’ 155th game of the season, leaving them seven more in the regular season.

Judge’s big night came a day after the Bronx Bombers clinched the AL East title in Toronto on Tuesday, as well as a bye through to the AL Divisional Series. The Yankees had celebrated that, too – in the visitors’ clubhouse at Rogers Centre, and spilled onto Toronto’s field for a jubilant team photo. With the division in hand, locked into the No. 2 playoff seed, the Yankees gave several stars the night off, including Anthony Rizzo, who got to play manager for the night.

Judge was in the lineup, though. He was the biggest story all series, also contending for the Triple Crown, the league lead in batting average, homers and RBIs. In this series, he’d been walked a bunch, even prompting some boos from the Toronto crowd, many eager to witness history.

Mitch White, making his eighth start Wednesday as a Blue Jay, allowed three runs in the first inning, kickstarted by backto-back walks, the first to Judge, followed by a couple of hits. It was a rocky start for a Jays team hoping to bounce back after a 5-2 loss the night before that had its sloppy mishaps.

With the Yankees rocking through their batting order, White faced Judge at the plate three times in just under four innings. The Yankees slugger also flew out on a pop fly to shallow right field, and he lined out to third base.

The game was at first dull and the building was quiet. New York starter Gerrit Cole retired the first 15 Blue Jays batters he faced, simply dominant through five innings. Then the Jays came charging in a fascinating sixth inning.

Toronto’s Danny Jansen broke up Cole’s no-hitter by crushing a solo homer to finally put the Jays on the board. Whit Merrifield, Jackie Bradley Jr. and Bo Bichette all hit too, as the Jays pulled within a run.

The home crowd sprung to life, and grew very loud. Suddenly Cole committed a balk. Bradley scored, and the Jays tied the game 3-3.

Then Judge hit his homer, and fortunes flipped New York’s way again and stayed that way.

The Blue Jays have six games remaining and still need to clinch. They are off Thursday before finishing this final homestand of the regular season with three against the Boston Red Sox, starting Friday. The Jays will conclude with three in Baltimore.

The Rogers Centre crowd of some 37,000 – although most pulling for the Jays – stood for a long while to applaud him.