About Last Night: Yankees 8, Twins 1

by Derek McAdam

September 16, 2026

***

The New York Yankees defeated the Minnesota Twins last night by a score of 8-1, improving to 89-63 on the season. Here’s a quick recap of last night’s game.

Quick Stats: W: Max Fried (5-4): 7 IP, 6 H, 1 ER, 6 K

                     L: Bailey Ober (7-6): 5.1 IP, 9 H, 3 ER, 2 BB, 3 K

HRs: NYY: Cody Bellinger (16), Spencer Jones (10)

The Big Story: The Yankees clinched a playoff berth with a victory on Monday night, and were looking to take the series with a win last night. And it did not take the Yankees long to get going.

Ben Rice led off the game with a single into right field before Bellinger hit a two-run home run into the right field seats to give the Yankees a quick 2-0 lead.

The Yankees also had an opportunity in the 2nd to tack on more runs, with runners on first and second with one out for Jose Caballero, Volpe stole third base to put runners at the corners, but Caballero popped up to shallow center field to keep the runners at their respective bases. Rice then came up with two outs, who also popped up to center field to end the inning.

But in the bottom of the 2nd, after Royce Lewis reached on an infield single that George Lombard Jr. fielded cleanly, Emmanuel Rodriguez hit a two-out RBI single to score Lewis and make the new score 2-1. However, Rodriguez would be picked off first base by Fried to end the inning.

In the top of the 3rd, with runners on the corners, Lombard hit an RBI single through the right side to score Heliot Ramos, making the new score 3-1 Yankees. After Volpe worked a walk to load the bases, Ali Sanchez flew out to center field to end the inning.

In the 6th, the Yankees were able to add a few runs to give Fried even more of a cushion. After Rice reached on an error and Bellinger walked, Ramos hit an RBI double to score Rice and give the Yankees a 4-1 lead. After Luis Garcia Jr. hit into a force out, Jones hit a three-run home run into the right-field seats to give the Yankees a commanding 7-1 lead.

In the bottom of the 7th, Fried gave up a leadoff triple to Kody Clemens, but managed to escape the inning unscathed after Lewis flew out to shallow center field and and Brooks Lee and Victor Caratini struck out to end the inning. Fried ended up finishing the 7th inning, making it his longest outing since April 22 against the Boston Red Sox.

In the 9th, Caballero hit an RBI single to score Lombard from second, giving the Yankees an 8-1 lead. Ryan Yarbrough, who came in relief for the final two innings, was able to get the final six outs to secure the Yankee victory.

Player of the Game: I’ve got to give this to Fried. He looked like the co-ace the Yankees signed in free agency last night and really had a bounce back game after only pitching 3.1 innings his last time out.

Notable Performances: Every Yankee recorded a hit last night, so they all deserve some recognition for that accomplishment.

Better to Forget: The Twins team cannot be too pleased with how things have gone recently. They were in a Wild Card position on August 1, but have really sunk over the past six weeks.

My Take: As I said last week, no matter what the Tampa Bay Rays are doing, the Yankees need to focus on their own game and just try and go out and win every game. And there were several aspects to this game that I enjoyed seeing.

First off, this was Fried’s best performance in a very long time, as he was able to hold the Twins to only one run (which you could argue wasn’t even his fault). But he was able to give the Yankees some length, although their bullpen was in good shape. As I mentioned above, it was his longest start since April. The Yankees are going to need Fried for the post-season, and not only that, but they will need his length, especially since Gerrit Cole seems to be a bit questionable right now on the mound.

Offensively, the Yankees were able to take advantage of several scoring opportunities, Five of their eight runs came via the home run, but they were still able to push runs across the board without the home run, which is something I always hope to see this team do more of.

Jones continues to absolutely crush left-handed pitchers, as his home run came off of a left-handed reliever. It is actually the best in the MLB amongst left-handed batters, as he is hitting above .400 against them. He has been on a hot streak over the past few weeks and is proving that he deserves to be the everyday starter in centerfield. It has been extremely fun to watch him play.

And notably, the Yankees did not have Aaron Judge in the lineup last night. While having Judge in the lineup definitely seems to give this team a boost, he is likely still providing that boost on the bench. This team will absolutely need him over the next few weeks, so hopefully these rest days are doing him good.

Overall, this was a nice win for the Yankees, as they continue to beat up on the Twins. They need to take the series today and enjoy the off-day tomorrow before the interesting series coming up this weekend out west.

What’s Next?: The Yankees will go for the sweep today before enjoying an off-day before as the travel to Arizona for a three-game series with the Diamondbacks. Carlos Rodon is scheduled to take the mound for the Yankees, while Zebby Matthews is scheduled to start for the Twins. First pitch is scheduled for 1:40 p.m. EST.