The 2018 Yankees are going in the record books.

When Luke Voit hit his 10th home run of the season in pinstripes on Thursday against the Red Sox, he became the 12th player on the team to surpass double digit home runs. A new MLB record.

Smashing homers. Smashing records. pic.twitter.com/yD6cRmFv6L

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The Yankees (93-58) finish their series with the Red Sox (103-49) on Thursday at 7:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yankees are 3-2 on their nine-game homestand, the final homestand of the regular season. ... A combination of 2 Boston wins or Yankees losses would eliminate the Yankees from the AL East race. ... Yankees batters have hit 245 HR this season, tying the franchise's single-season home run record set in 2012 ... is tied for the eighth- highest HR total in Major League history, the most since Baltimore hit 253HR in 2016... are on pace to hit 263HR (the MLB record is 264HR by Seattle in 1997).

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter | For nearly half a season, the Yankees played with an underlying sense of excitement and expectation, because the team knew that it could be in the midst of a special year.

That feeling has since fizzled, even inside the executive offices of Yankee Stadium, where injury and losses have contributed to a more resigned -- if still hopeful -- vibe. But over the past several days, a series of developments signaled yet another shift.

It is rare in baseball for one series to carry any broader meaning, but this has been an exceptional week. The Yankees might be clicking again, in significant ways and at the perfect time...

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives: When the postseason arrives, the Yankees will have a choice to make among their five outfielders. For most clubs this type of decision would be somewhat easy as the fourth and fifth outfielders are typically clear bench types. That's not that case for the Yankees, who sport one current All-Star, three former All-Stars and another player in the midst of a breakout season.

One thing is certain -- if healthy, Aaron Hicks and Aaron Judge will man center field and right field, respectively. Hicks is the aforementioned breakout player, who owns an .814 OPS (124 wRC+ in 551 plate appearances) with 24 home runs, 72 RBI, 83 runs and 11 stolen bases, plus an above-average defensive presence. As for Judge (.933 OPS, 153 wRC+, 26 HR and 61 RBI in 455 PA), you might know about him and the mammoth home runs, great eye at the plate, and above-average defense.

Let's review the qualifications of the three options remaining to man left field (in alphabetical order)...

Yankees LHP Justus Sheffield has waited his entire baseball life to finally live what happened on Wednesday night in the Bronx. And he left his Major League debut how any rookie would want: smiling.

Sheffield was called out of the bullpen in the top of the ninth to close out a 10-1 rout of the Red Sox. Being the Yankees' No. 1 prospect, he wanted to make a good first impression in his first game donning the pinstripes, and that included his run in between innings to warm up on the mound. 

"My legs felt like jello," he told YES Network after the game. "The first thing I was thinking was, you know, don't trip running to the mound. Just don't trip. Once I got out there, I felt like when I got on the mound everything was just going to settle down a little bit. But the nerves and adrenaline was pumping. I'm glad I got to go out there and get my first one in."

The Yankees got to Red Sox LHP David Price once again on their way to a 10-1 beatdown in the Bronx on Wednesday night. >> Box score

1) Price kept the Yankees' bats at bay last time he faced their lineup, but his normal struggles against the pinstripes came back again. It was Miguel Andujar who tacked on the first run with a solo shot to right in the second. Then, after an error brought home two runs to make it 3-0, Luke Voit hit the first of two homers to right field in the fourth. A two-run shot came later in the sixth that knocked Price out of the game. 

2) Speaking of Voit, he had his first career four-game tonight. Also with multiple-hit games were Aaron Hicks and Andujar. Hicks tied Voit with a team-high three RBI night. 

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

Yankees officials have begun discussing in earnest who will start the wild card game next month, and Aaron Boone made an interesting admission on Wednesday: That a potential division series meeting with the Red Sox could factor into which starter the team chooses.

This is a logical way to think, but teams are usually too superstitious to plan for a matchup that might never happen. Single-elimination wild card games are like Word Series game sevens -- the only thing that matters is survival, no matter how you achieve it.

The Yankees (92-58) continue their series with the Red Sox (103-478) on Wednesday at 7:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yankees are currently 2-2 on their nine-game homestand. ...After their win last night, the Yankees lead the A's by 2.5 games for the first AL Wild Card spot. ...Aaron Judge went 0-for-4 in his return to the plate on Tuesday night. Aroldis Chapman was activated from the 10-day DL today. 

With the American League Wild Card game two weeks away, Yankees DH/OF Giancarlo Stanton is in the midst of a horrendous slump. 

Stanton, who went 0-4 during Tuesday night's win against the Red Sox, has hit just two homers since Aug. 19. His overall line since then is .162/.282/.273 with two homers, five doubles, 10 RBI, 17 walks, and 40 strikeouts in 26 games -- and he is on pace to strike out 216 times this season.

As a result of his slump, Stanton's line for the season is down to .263/.339/.497, though he remains on pace to hit 37 homers.

The Red Sox are still one win away from clinching the AL East title, but the banner celebrating that near-certain accomplishment showed up early.

Boston's banner -- on the way from the vendor that produced it -- wound up in the middle of a Massachusetts highway on Monday and in the hands of three local residents, according to The Boston Globe.

One of the residents, 44-year-old Louie Iacuzzi, told The Globe that they found the banner wrapped up on McGrath Highway in Somerville and pulled over to pick it up. Now, they want compensation for returning it.

Yankees closer Aroldis Chapman has been activated from the disabled list, the team announced Wednesday.  

Chapman, who had been out since Aug. 21 due to knee tendinitis, pitched in a simulated game Monday after throwing a 26-pitch bullpen session Saturday.

The 30-year-old has a 2.11 ERA (1.90 FIP) and 1.04 WHIP with 84 strikeouts in 47 innings (50 appearances) this season.

Yankees OF Aaron Judge went 0-for-4 in his return to the lineup on Tuesday night.

Judge hit second in the order and started in right field. 

"I felt like I never left," Judge said, per MLB.com. who said he still feels some pain in his wrist but that it won't affect his play. "Everything felt good. I felt like my at-bats were good. Seeing the ball well. That's all you can really ask for after missing that many weeks. So I'm excited with the start, we got the win and just got to keep that rolling." 

The Yankees' offense came alive in the seventh inning on Tuesday night when Neil Walker hit a go-ahead three-run home run to lead his team to a 3-2 victory over the Red Sox at Yankee Stadium >> Box score

1) The tone was set by Andrew McCutchen after hitting a leadoff homer to begin the game. And Didi Gregorius would add a sarifice fly to give the Yankees a nice 2-0 lead to start the game. But the bats went silent from there on. There were a few opportunities, but New York went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. 

The Yankees (91-58) will open a series with the Red Sox (103-47) on Tuesday at 7:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yankees have lost 6 of their last 10 games and are 11.5 games behind the AL East-leading Red Sox ... The Yankees are 1.5 games ahead of the Athletics for the first AL Wild Card spot ... Aaron Judge is returning to the lineup for the first time since July 26.

Yankees OF Aaron Judge continued his final steps to returning to the lineup on Tuesday, as he took part in another simulated game. 

Judge, along with Aroldis Chapman, didn't have any issues with his sim game on Monday, and that showed with his performance today. With manager Aaron Boone, GM Brian Cashman, and other team officials spectating, Judge launched a homer to right field.

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The Yankees are 23-19 since August 2, the day the season began to completely turn when they lost the first of four straight games to Boston. As the Red Sox return to the Bronx Tuesday, the Yankees are looking for the switch to flip. But despite manager Aaron Boone's optimism, time is running out for the club to get it all together.

Meanwhile, they might have to watch the Red Sox celebrate the division title on their home field as they work for a chance to exact revenge in the ALDS.

The Yanks, whose descent goes back to July 12 (30-27 record since then) have a handful of issues that need to be resolved. And the chances that all of them will be remedied before the wild card game are not great...

The Yankees officially announced they have promoted left-handed pitchers Justus Sheffield and Domingo German. Clint Frazier was also transferred to the 60-day DL.

Sheffield last pitched on Sept. 2, when he tossed 2 1/3 innings of scoreless relief. The Yankees moved Sheffield to the bullpen at the tail end of the minor league season and he made four consecutive relief appearances. He also appeared in relief on June 27, pitching six innings.

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives: Talk of Sheffield's potential promotion began in July and the fact that it took this long is either related to the Yankees' belief that the young lefty was not effective enough to be a factor for the big league club or they mismanaged the chances to determine his potential impact...

Tuesday's Yankees vs. Red Sox game at Yankee Stadium has been moved from 1:05 p.m. to 7:05 p.m. due to inclement weather forecast in the area for the afternoon.

The series-opener pits J.A. Happ against former-Yankee Nathan Eovaldi.

With a win, the Red Sox would clinch the AL East title. 

Yankees OF Aaron Judge and LHP Aroldis Chapman took part in a simulated game Monday at Yankee Stadium, the team announced.

Judge took 11 live at-bats against RHP A.J. Cole, RHP Chance Adams, and LHP Phillip Diehl during his game, while Chapman threw 22 pitches against INF Tyler Wade and C Kyle Higashioka. 

Judge and Chapman both finished their sessions without any issues coming up, which makes this another successful step toward returning to the club. On Judge specifically, manager Aaron Boone noted Sunday that there is a chance he could be a full participant for the Yankees' upcoming series with the Red Sox. 

On Friday night, we reported that Aaron Boone held a brief team meeting after the Yankees' dreary Wednesday night loss to Minnesota. This was but a teensy weensy scoopie, notable not so much for what happened, but for what it said about how the embattled manager handled his first major crisis point.

Then, the reaction by numerous Yankees fans on Twitter through the weekend made clear that I hadn't made my point clearly or effectively enough.

As the Yankees dropped a pair of games to the gutted Toronto Blue Jays, losing another series to a second-division team, the reaction to our Boone story was generally along the lines of "this didn't age well," "this lasted one game," and "Boone knew enough to hold the meeting before Tanaka started."

Yankees reliever Dellin Betances blew his third save of the season and lost his sixth decision of the year in Sunday's 3-2 loss to the Toronto Blue Jays at Yankee Stadium.

Betances (4-6) allowed two runs and four hits in the eighth inning, surrendering a game-tying single to Rowdy Tellez and a go-ahead RBI double to Randal Grichuk as New York lost for the fourth time in its last five days.

"We've got to play a little better, and this one's on me," Betances said, according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. "I'll take the blame on this one."

After scoring two runs in the first, the Yankees' offense couldn't muster anything else as they fell to the Blue Jays, 3-2, at Yankee Stadium. >> Box score

1) The tone was set by Andrew McCutchen after hitting a leadoff homer to begin the game. And Didi Gregorius would add a sarifice fly to give the Yankees a nice 2-0 lead to start the game. But the bats went silent from there on. There were a few opportunities, but New York went 0-for-4 with runners in scoring position. 

Yankees OF Aaron Judge made a cameo appearance in the outfield since coming off the 10-day DL, but he has yet to make one at home plate. However, manager Aaron Boone said that could change during their next series with the Red Sox. 

Speaking before the series finale against the Blue Jays, Boone noted the "possibility" of Judge being fully active for a crucial series with Boston. 

"I would say it's a possibility," Boone told MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. "I don't think we're there. That's potentially in the timeline, but I wouldn't say we're there to make that call yet. I'd say around that time, he could be close. I would think by some point on this homestand, assuming everything continues to progress, he should be active."

The Yankees (91-57) play the rubber game with the Blue Jays (66-82) on Sunday at 1:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yankees comeback fell short against the Jays last night in a 8-7 loss. The Yankees are still 13-5 against Toronto this season. ...CC Sabathia is the Yankees' nominee for the 2018 Roberto Clemente Award due to his work with his PitCCh Foundation, which has hosted numerous events for charity this year. 

The Yankees hit three home runs in an inning, including a grand slam, but it wasn't enough to overcome the Blue Jays' offense in an 8-7 loss on Saturday afternoon at Yankee Stadium. >> Box score

1) CC Sabathia gave up five runs -- including three home runs -- and New York was forced to go to their bullpen after just 2 1/3 innings. It was the shortest outing of Sabathia's season and marked the second time in three starts that he did not complete four innings.

Yankees LHP CC Sabathia allowed five runs in a span of two innings against the Blue Jays on Saturday afternoon in what was his shortest start of the season.

After pitching a scoreless first, Sabathia ran into trouble in the second when Randal Grichuk launched a solo home run to left center, putting the Blue Jays on the board. Sabathia then gave up a pair of RBI singles later in the inning to make it 3-0.

In the third, Grichuk went deep yet again and Kevin Pillar followed up with a solo blast of his own, putting an end to Sabathia's day.

The Yankees (91-56) continue their three-game series with the Blue Jays (65-82) on Saturday at 4:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yankees went 4-5 on their nine-game road trip, but started off their nine-game homestand with a win last night. They shut out the Blue Jya 11-0 thanks to stellar pitching from Masahiro Tanaka. Andrew McCutchen hit his first homer as a Yankee as well. Aaron Judge also returned to the field for the final two innings. ...The Yankees are 13-4 against the Blue Jays this season, 7-1 at home.

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

Following a disheartening road trip, the Yankees won big on Friday night -- and as it turns out, the bounceback came after a relatively rare Aaron Boone team meeting.

As the Yankees were preparing to leave the visitors clubhouse at Minnesota's Target Field on Wednesday night after being one-hit into the eighth inning by the Twins, Boone gathered his players in the locker room and addressed them for several minutes, according to people in the room. Normally on a getaway day, a team simply dresses and trickles out to the bus, but on this occasion, the manager felt a need to speak.

Boone's demeanor was described as even-keeled but firm, and his message was that the Yankees were a good team, and would be successful again if they simply remembered that and started playing that way. He did not shout, and the players came away appreciating the way he handled it.

The Yankees jumped out to a 5-0 lead and never looked back as they easily defeated the Blue Jays, 11-0, in their return to Yankee Stadium on Friday night. >> Box score

1) Aaron Hicks hit an RBI single to put the Yankees on the board during what would become a five-run first inning. Gleyber Torres also had an RBI single and Luke Voit added a two-RBI double in the inning. In the third, Gardner drove in Gregorius and Giancarlo Stanton plated two runs with his single.

Andy Martino, SNY.tv | Twitter |

Immediately before Aaron Boone met the media on Friday afternoon, Yankees media relations VP Jason Zillo dropped a stunner on reporters, announcing that the team would activate Aaron Judge before the game.

This move, of which there had been no prior warning, initially seemed like great news for the Yanks, who have desperately missed their superstar. But almost immediately, Boone added another surprise, explaining that the team was activating a player who could not yet hit.

The Yankees (90-56) open a three-game series with the Blue Jays (65-81) on Friday at 7:05 p.m. at Yankee Stadium.

Yankees notes

The Yanks are 4-4 in their nine-game road trip at the moment. They are also 6-7 in their last 13 games. ...The Yankees lead the A's by two games for the first Wild Card spot. They are also nine games behind Boston for the AL East lead. ...The Yankees own the best record in the MLB (57-9) when their starter goes at least six innings. 

Yankees OF Aaron Judge will be activated before Friday night's game but is not ready to be used as a hitter, manager Aaron Boone said.

"If there's a spot to get him in somewhere to run the bases," the Yankees will do it, Boone added, noting he could also be available to play defense.

Judge took batting practice and threw to home plate and third base from right field on Tuesday, with that BP session marking the second time in as many days that he hit on the field. 

The Yankees have the third-best record in the majors, but for a franchise with 27 rings and World Series expectations nearly every year, that's not good enough for Mike Francesa.

Sure, New York sits 10 1/2 games back of the Red Sox in the AL East race, but the WFAN host took his criticism of the Yankees another step further on Thursday.

"I think this might be the worst 90-win team the Yankees have ever had," Francesa said during his radio show Thursday.

Chris Carelli, SNY.TV Facebook | Twitter | About Me | Archives

The Yankees are likely on their way to playing in the wild card game, and creating a roster for the winner-take-all contest is at the forefront of their front office duties. The Yankees will have to cover all the bases in a game that now has the potential to be played on the road against the surging Athletics.

Here are five questions the Yankees will have to answer when creating its wild card roster... 

Who is the starting pitcher?

On the field, the Yankees' goal this season was to make it further than their ALCS run in 2017. For the front office, though, they had set another expectation for themselves regarding the team's payroll.

Staying under the luxury tax threshold of $197 million was the mission for managin general partner Hal Steinbrenner, GM Brian Cashman, and the rest in the Yankees' front office. And it looks like they will be able to say they accomplished that feat. 

Currently, New York's payroll sits at $192.1 million, which is an increase from the $178.8 million they had at the start of the season, according to ESPN. The increase was expected with the Yankees being active at the trade deadline, but it wasn't too much action that would have vaulted them over the threshold. 

The Yankees and A's seem destined to face eachother in the play-in Wild Card game, and Oakland is threatening to rip home field advantage away from New York.

With the Yanks going 4-6 in their last 10 games and A's going 8-2 over the same span (they're in the midst of a six-game winning streak), Oakland is just 1.0 game behind the Yanks for the top Wild Card spot, which comes with home field in winner-takes-all game.

The Yankees (90-56) and A's (89-57) both have 16 games remaining. Oakland faces the 41-104 Orioles on Thursday night, and the Yankees are off. 

Heading into Wednesday night's start against the Twins, Yankees RHP Luis Severino had the worst ERA (6.83) in the entire MLB since July 7. It has been a rough second half for the righty, but he helped diminish that number in a solid outing in Minnesota. 

Severino allowed just one run on four hits while striking out five over 5.2 innings of work. Though he allowed just one lone runner across the plate, though, he was set up for the loss with Jake Odorizzi holding a no-hit bid against the Yankees' offense. 

Severino's night started off with a Joe Mauer single, but it was quickly erased with a double play rolled in the next at-bat. From there, the 23-year-old set down 15 straight Twins as he cruised through the lineup. 

The Yankees will leave Minnesota with a sour taste in their mouths after getting two-hit by the Twins in a 3-1 loss Wednesday night. >> Box score

1) The Yankees' offense was ice cold against Jake Odorizzi, who carried a no-hit bid through 7.1 innings. Greg Bird finally broke the no-no with an RBI double that amounted to the Yanks' only offense of the night. Miguel Andujar singled in the top of the ninth for the second hit of the game, but otherwise, the Yankees just couldn't get anything going in this series finale. 

2) Luis Severino didn't go long (5.2 innings), but he only allowed one run in the sixth inning as the only hiccup of his start. He also struck out five batters in what was a good turnaround performance following his shortest outing of the season against the A's last time out. 

The Yankees (90-55) wrap up their series against the Twins (66-78) on Wednesday night at Target Field at 8:10 p.m.

Yankees notes

The Yanks are 4-4 in their nine-game road trip at the moment. They are also 6-7 in their last 13 games. ...The Yankees lead the A's by two games for the first Wild Card spot. They are also nine games behind Boston for the AL East lead. ...The Yankees own the best record in the MLB (57-9) when their starter goes at least six innings. 

The Yankees look to be getting their flamethrowing closer back. 

Manager Aaron Boone told reporters on Wednesday that LHP Aroldis Chapman will re-join the team this weekend, and there is a possibility that he will come off the DL "sometime next week," according to MLB.com's Bryan Hoch. 

The latest update on Chapman came this past weekend, where he was having catch from 90 feet. He has been out due to knee tendinitis that has been a recurring issue all season long...

The Yankees and A's seem destined to face eachother in the play-in Wild Card game, and Oakland is threatening to rip home field advantage away from New York.

With the Yanks going 5-5 in their last 10 games and A's going 8-2 over the same span (they're in the midst of a five-game winning streak), Oakland is just 2.0 games behind the Yanks for the top Wild Card spot, which comes with home field in winner-takes-all game.

The Yankees (90-55) have 17 games remaining, while the A's (89-57) have 16...

The Twins scored 10 runs in a span of three innings against the Yankees on Tuesday night and held on for a 10-5 win. >> Box score

1) Happ (16-6) remained undefeated as a Yankee by striking out three batters and shutting down the Twins. In eight starts since being traded from the Blue Jays, Happ is 6-0 with a 2.70 ERA with New York.

2) Miguel Andujar, Giancarlo Stanton and Didi Gregorius each hit run-scoring doubles in a six-run seventh inning as the Yankees moved within eight games of the AL East-leading Red Sox.

The Yankees will continue their three-game set against the Minnesota Twins on Tuesday at Target Field at 8:10 p.m.

Yankees notes

The Yankees have won four of the first seven games of their road trip and are 6-6 in their last 12 games ... 16 of the team's final 25 games will be on the road ... Tuesday's game against the Twins bodes well for the Yankees, who are 23-9 against the AL Central and have beaten the Twins eight straight times.

J.A. Happ threw six scoreless innings and the Yankees scored six runs in the seventh inning to beat the Minnesota Twins 7-0 on Monday at Target Field. >> Box score

1) Happ (16-6) remained undefeated as a Yankee by striking out three batters and shutting down the Twins. In eight starts since being traded from the Blue Jays, Happ is 6-0 with a 2.70 ERA with New York.

2) Miguel Andujar, Giancarlo Stanton and Didi Gregorius each hit run-scoring doubles in a six-run seventh inning as the Yankees moved within eight games of the AL East-leading Red Sox.

The Yankees begin a three-game series against the Minnesota Twins on Monday at Target Field at 8:10 p.m.

Yankees notes

At 89-54, the Yankees are tied with the Astros for the second-best record in baseball, yet they sit 8 1/2 games behind the Red Sox in the AL East. ... New York's plus-150 run differential ranks third in the majors. ... Over his last 16 games, Giancarlo Stanton is slashing .113/.322/.210 and has just one home run and four RBIs.

Aaron Judge took batting practice on the field on Monday in Minnesota before the Yankees' game against the Twins -- hitting that goal earlier than manager Aaron Boone had predicted.

Boone said on Sunday that the hope was that Boone -- who has been out since July 26 due to a fractured wrist -- would take BP toward the end of this week at Yankee Stadium.

The Yankees and A's seem destined to face eachother in the play-in Wild Card game, and New York's lead for home field advantage is starting to shrink.

With the Yanks going 5-5 in their last 10 games and A's going 7-3 over the same span, Oakland is just 2.5 games behind them (3.0 in the loss column). 

The Yankees (89-54) have 19 games remaining, while the A's (87-57) have 18. 

The Yankees might have to face Josh Donaldson and the Indians in the playoffs, and the Bombers -- along with other teams -- are steamed over the way Donaldson was acquired.

The Indians acquired Donaldson from the Blue Jays on Aug. 31, with the Jays sending $2.7 million to Cleveland to help offset the just under $4 million remaining on Donaldson's salary. 

Now, Ken Rosenthal of The Athletic is reporting that the Yankees, Astros, and Red Sox are among the teams unhappy with how the deal went down -- with the Astros having asked the commissioner's office for an explanation. 

Though he was exiled from the Yankees rotation in July, the Yankees will start RHP Sonny Gray for Tuesday's game against the Minnesota Twins to give other starting pitchers extra rest.

Gray, who last started Game 2 of a doubleheader on Aug. 25, is 1-0 with a 1.15 ERA in his last four outings, allowing two runs, 13 hits and six walks in 15 2/3 innings. In his last start, he threw 6 1/3 scoreless innings against the Orioles.

By having Gray start Tuesday, it pushes Luis Severino to Wednesday and Masahiro Tanaka to Friday. The strategy also would allow for Severino to face the Red Sox twice as the regular season nears its end.