Judge halts longest HR drought of career with go-ahead grand slam to lift Yankees over Red Sox 5-4

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge ended the longest home run drought of his career with a go-ahead grand slam in the seventh inning that rallied the New York Yankees past the Boston Red Sox 5-4 on Friday night.

The star slugger had gone 16 games and 75 plate appearances without a longball before launching a clutch drive into the lower left-field seats off reliever Cam Booser (2-3) for a 5-4 advantage.

New York won its third straight and extended its AL East lead to three games over Baltimore, held hitless for 8 2/3 innings by four Tigers pitchers in a 1-0 loss at Detroit. It is the Yankees' largest cushion since they led by 3 1/2 games before a June 15 defeat at Boston that started a 4-14 slide.

“Hopefully nobody's looking at the standings,” Judge said. “I'm certainly not.”

The fading Red Sox (74-74) are 4 1/2 games behind Minnesota for the league's last wild card.

Mark Leiter Jr. (4-5) got four outs in relief of starter Clarke Schmidt for the win. Luke Weaver struck out five in two scoreless innings to earn his second career save.

“Just got to keep it rolling,” Judge said. “Everybody’s doing their job.”

Judge’s eighth career slam and second this season sent the Yankee Stadium crowd of 45,292 — and jubilant players in the New York dugout — into a jumping, dancing frenzy. The 6-foot-7 team captain popped out of the dugout for a curtain call.

“Tonight was rocking, especially in that seventh inning,” Judge said. “Kind of felt like a playoff atmosphere there in the seventh inning as we were kind of rallying. So, we've been waiting for that, that's for sure.”

It was the 52nd homer of the season for Judge, who also leads the majors with 130 RBIs. He hadn’t gone deep since Aug. 25, when he homered twice against Colorado.

Judge hit nine homers in 10 games before the drought.

The 2022 AL MVP set a career worst when his homerless streak reached 16 games Thursday night against Boston.

Emergency starter Richard Fitts pitched five shutout innings for Boston after Tanner Houck was scratched less than an hour before the first pitch due to right shoulder fatigue.

“I think the team did everything they needed to do," Booser said. “I think this is solely on me. Didn’t do my job.”

Masataka Yoshida snapped a scoreless tie when he connected for a two-run homer that chased Schmidt with two outs in the sixth.

Trevor Story hit a two-run shot off Leiter in the seventh for a 4-0 lead, his first home run this season after returning last weekend from a dislocated left shoulder that had sidelined him since April 6.

“It’s a tough one. No getting around it," Story said. "Tough game. That kind of stuff can happen in the big leagues.”

Zack Kelly walked the bottom two batters in New York's lineup starting the seventh and was removed after an RBI single by Gleyber Torres. Juan Soto drew a four-pitch walk from Booser before Judge connected on a 2-0 fastball.

“I think this probably might be my most memorable win of my career so far here. I think just the magnitude of that homer,” said Schmidt, who made his second start since since recovering from a strained right lat muscle.

“It was like everything clicked. It was a perfect moment. Just really special. The whole team's kind of a part of it.”

TRAINER’S ROOM

Red Sox: OF Rob Refsnyder (right wrist discomfort) remained out of the starting lineup, but manager Alex Cora said he hopes Refsnyder can start Sunday against left-hander Carlos Rodón. ... RHP Liam Hendriks said he still hopes to pitch for the Red Sox this season despite a small setback in his rehabilitation from Tommy John surgery — but that will largely depend on whether they remain in the pennant race. Hendriks will receive a cortisone injection in his right elbow Monday in Boston and then be shut down for about three days before he resumes throwing.

Yankees: Manager Aaron Boone said Judge will probably be the designated hitter Saturday to give him a bit of a breather.

UP NEXT

Red Sox RHP Brayan Bello (13-7, 4.70 ERA) faces Yankees ace Gerrit Cole (6-4, 3.36) on Saturday.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Yankees' Clarke Schmidt pitches during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge, center, Alex Verdugo, left, and Juan Soto, right, celebrate after a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees relief pitcher Luke Weaver reacts after the final out of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Cam Booser reacts after giving up a grand slam to New York Yankees' Aaron Judge during the seventh inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge reacts after hitting a grand slam during the seventh inning of a baseball game at bat Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge reacts after hitting a grand slam off Boston Red Sox relief pitcher Cam Booser during the seventh inning of a baseball game Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge hits a grand slam during the seventh inning of a baseball game at bat Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge hits a grand slam during the seventh inning of a baseball game at bat Friday, Sept. 13, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Taiwanese company Gold Apollo said Wednesday that it authorized its brand on the pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria but that another company based in Budapest manufactured them.

Hundreds of handheld pagers exploded almost simultaneously Tuesday across Lebanon and in parts of Syria, killing at least nine people, government and Hezbollah officials said. Officials pointed the finger at Israel in what appeared to be a sophisticated remote attack. The Israeli military declined to comment.

Hezbollah began striking Israel almost immediately after Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack that sparked the Israel-Hamas war. Since then, Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire daily, coming close to a full-blown war on several occasions and forcing tens of thousands on both sides of the border to evacuate their homes.

Gaza’s Health Ministry says more than 41,000 Palestinians have been killed in the territory since Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. The ministry does not differentiate between fighters and civilians in its count but says a little over half of those killed were women and children. Israel says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

Here's the latest:

JERUSALEM — The Israeli military says four soldiers were killed in southern Gaza and five others were wounded, with three of them in serious condition.

The deaths on Tuesday came nearly a year into the war in Gaza, which was triggered by Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack. The army did not describe the circumstances, but Israeli media reported that the soldiers were killed by a hidden bomb that exploded inside a building.

One of the four, Staff Sgt. Agam Naim, an army paramedic, was the first female soldier to have been killed in combat in Gaza, according to Israeli media.

Hamas and other armed groups remain active across the territory despite months of heavy Israeli bombardment and ground operations that have destroyed vast areas and displaced most of the population.

Israel says 346 of its soldiers have been killed since the start of ground operations last October. The military says it has killed over 17,000 militants, without providing evidence.

TAIPEI, Taiwan — Taiwanese company Gold Apollo said Wednesday that it authorized its brand on the pagers that exploded in Lebanon and Syria but that another company based in Budapest manufactured them.

Pagers used by hundreds of members of the militant group Hezbollah exploded near-simultaneously Tuesday in Lebanon and Syria, killing at least nine people, including an 8-year-old girl, and wounding more than 2,000. Hezbollah and the Lebanese government blamed Israel for what appeared to be a sophisticated remote attack.

The AR-924 pagers used by the militants were manufactured by BAC Consulting KFT, based in Hungary’s capital, according to a statement released Wednesday by Gold Apollo.

“According to the cooperation agreement, we authorize BAC to use our brand trademark for product sales in designated regions, but the design and manufacturing of the products are solely the responsibility of BAC,” the statement read.

Gold Apollo chair Hsu Ching-kuang told journalists Wednesday that his company has had a licensing agreement with BAC for the past three years, but did not provide evidence of the contract.

The AR-924 pager, advertised as being “rugged,” contains a rechargeable lithium battery, according to specifications once advertised on Gold Apollo’s website before it was apparently taken down Tuesday after the sabotage attack. It could receive text messages of up to 100 characters and claimed to have up to 85 days of battery life. That’s something that would be crucial in Lebanon, where electricity outages have been common as the tiny nation on the Mediterranean Sea has faced years of economic collapse. Pagers also run on a different wireless network than mobile phones, making them more resilient in emergencies — one of the reasons why many hospitals worldwide still rely on them.

FILE - Israeli soldiers move next to destroyed buildings following Israeli strikes during a ground operation in the Gaza Strip, Sept. 13, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa, File)

Civil Defense first-responders carry a man who was wounded after his handheld pager exploded, in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024.(AP Photo)

People gather outside the American University hospital after the arrival of several people who were wounded by exploding handheld pagers, in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

Palestinians in Lebanon wave their national flags during a protest in front of the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) headquarters in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Bilal Hussein)

People gather around an ambulance carrying wounded people whose handheld pager exploded, at the emergency entrance of the American University hospital in Beirut, Lebanon, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar)

The supermoon rises behind the houses in Mas'ade, a village in the Israeli-annexed Golan Heights, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Leo Correa)

A Lebanese Red Cross volunteer collects blood donations for those who were injured by their exploded handheld pagers, Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2024, at a Red Cross center in the southern port city of Sidon, Lebanon. (AP Photo/Mohammed Zaatari)