NEW YORK – On a remarkable afternoon at Yankee Stadium, Aaron Judge, along with Paul Goldschmidt and Cody Bellinger, connected for home runs on the first three pitches delivered by Nestor Cortes, setting the tone for the New York Yankees’ historic performance. Judge went on to hit two additional homers in the game, contributing to the Yankees’ record-setting nine home runs in a commanding 20-9 victory over the Milwaukee Brewers on Saturday.
Judge delivered a powerhouse display with a solo shot, his ninth career grand slam, and a two-run homer, marking his 40th career game with multiple homers and his third with three in a single contest. He finished the game with an impressive eight RBIs. He was close to making baseball history as the 19th player to hit four home runs in a game, but his sixth-inning blast landed on the right-field warning track for a run-scoring double. Later, he flied out in the eighth against Jake Bauers.
The warm 78-degree afternoon saw Goldschmidt, Bellinger, and Judge begin the first inning with a rapid succession of three home runs, a feat never before seen since pitch count tracking began in 1988. Additional home runs came from Austin Wells, Anthony Volpe, Jazz Chisholm Jr., and Oswald Peraza.
Nestor Cortes (0-1), who had been traded from the Yankees to the Brewers last December, faced a tough outing in his debut for Milwaukee, giving up eight runs on six hits and issuing five walks over two innings. The Yankees, despite their defensive struggles with five errors, equaling a May 2018 record, led to four unearned runs charged to Max Fried.
Max Fried, in his first appearance with the Yankees following his $218 million, eight-year contract, struggled on the mound. He allowed six runs on seven hits along with two walks in 4 2/3 innings. However, Yoendrys Gómez (1-0) managed to secure four outs, earning his first major league win.
The match also saw the major league debut of J.C. Escarra, a 29-year-old who formerly worked as an Uber driver and substitute teacher. He struck out in the seventh inning as a pinch hitter against fellow debutant Chad Patrick.
Yankees manager Aaron Boone provided an injury update, stating that designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton, who has been sidelined with pain in both elbows, has commenced dry swing exercises.
A key moment occurred when the Brewers reduced the deficit to 4-3 in the second inning, only for Volpe to respond decisively with a three-run homer in the bottom half. Historically, the Yankees had homered eight times in a game on two previous occasions: once against the Philadelphia Athletics in 1939 and again against the Chicago White Sox in 2007.
Looking ahead, Sunday’s series finale will feature Yankees right-handers Marcus Stroman and Aaron Civale making their first starts.