Yankees Clinch 61st Franchise Postseason Berth

Yankees Clinch 61^st Franchise Postseason Berth with Comeback Win Over – Who Else? — the Twins, Fueled by Six-Run 8^th

^{By John Nielsen}

^{September 15, 2026}

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Photo Attribution: Stephen Brashear/Getty Images

For more than six innings Monday night, the New York Yankees and Minnesota Twins engaged in a modern-day pitchers’ duel. Neither starter—Will Warren for New York or Dean Kremer for Minnesota—figured in the decision, and neither made it through six full innings. But both did their job, giving their teams every opportunity to secure a late-season victory.

Kremer threw 94 pitches, 62 for strikes. His fastball sat at a pedestrian 92–93 mph, touching 94, but his cutter/sinker combination was deceptive, keeping the Yankees off balance well into the sixth inning. In all, Kremer worked 5⅔ innings, allowing just two hits, walking one and striking out five. His only blemish came with two outs in the third, when the ever-plucky José Caballero launched his 14th home run of the season, giving the Yankees an early 1-0 lead.

Warren, making his 28th start for New York, was equally effective. As he has been over his last four appearances, Warren was, for the most part, outstanding. His four-seam fastball and sinker both sat at 94–95 mph, and once again his changeup—and, to a lesser extent, his cutter—were effective. He protected the Yankees’ narrow lead, holding the Twins scoreless through five innings.

Then, in the sixth, the Yankee defense disintegrated, victimizing Warren and putting the Twins in front, temporarily.

Ryan McMahon and George Lombard, Jr., both committed defensive errors, putting a pair of Twins on base with two outs. Warren then made his first real mistake of the night, grooving an 82-mph sweeper that Emmanuel Rodriguez roped into the left-center field gap. What should have been an RBI double instead became a two-run “triple” when Spencer Jones misplayed the ball.

Rodriguez’s drive was the hardest-hit ball of the night for Minnesota, registering a 108.4-mph exit velocity—and it was the final pitch Warren would throw. Despite the ball's blistering exit velocity, Jones somehow overran the drive in the gap, deflecting the ball and allowing it to roll all the way to the wall. Rodriguez was generously credited with a triple rather than (a double and) having the Yankees charged with a third error in the inning.

Warren exited in favor of Michael Fulmer, who avoided further damage by retiring Victor Caratini to end the sixth. Warren finished with 5⅔ innings on 92 pitches, 58 for strikes, allowing five hits, walking two and striking out six. Both Minnesota runs were unearned. His ERA now sits at a more than respectable 3.89.

The Yankees answered decisively in the eighth—and fittingly, the two players who had been defensive culprits in the sixth helped ignite the comeback.

Lombard Jr. crushed a double off the base of the left-center field wall off Andrew Morris (L 4-8), registering an 111.8-mph exit velocity. McMahon followed with a scratch infield hit, advancing Lombard to third, and Anthony Volpe came in to pinch-run for McMahon. One out later, with the Minnesota infield drawn in, José Caballero delivered his second big hit of the night, slapping an RBI single through the middle to tie the game at 2.

The Twins then pulled Morris and summoned southpaw A.J. Minter to face the left-handed-hitting Ben Rice.  Minter would not record an out.

The Yankees immediately responded with an aggressive, perfectly timed double steal. Volpe swiped third for his ninth stolen base of the season, and Caballero took advantage of the distraction to steal his 32nd on the back end.

Rice then came through with a big blow, lining a single up the middle to score both Volpe and Caballero. The two-run knock gave Rice a team-leading 92 RBI and put the Yankees ahead to stay, at 4-2.

The rally continued.

A Cody Bellinger single brought up Aaron Judge. Perhaps a harbinger of better things to come in the weeks ahead, Judge then launched a vintage three-run tracer into the second deck in left field off Minter, turning the game into a 7-2 Yankees rout and sending Minter to the showers.

It was Judge’s 18th home run of the season—and his first since his May 24 bomb that helped the Yankees beat Tampa Bay and avoid a four-game sweep by the visiting Rays. Just a week later, Judge would go on the injured list, beginning a three-month absence that threatened to derail the Yankees’ season.

What a difference Judge’s mere presence has made in the Yankee lineup.

Since returning on September 8, the Yankees have scored 5, 6, 10, 6, 2, 2 and now 8 runs, averaging 5.6 runs per game while going 6-1. And that production has come with Judge still clearly finding his way at the plate. Entering Monday night, he had posted just a .399 OPS since his return, limited to three singles and a walk in 18 plate appearances.

That makes Monday’s home run more than just another three-run shot. With the first round of the playoffs now only two weeks away, getting Judge fully locked in has to sit at the very top of the Yankees’ checklist.

Monday night offered an encouraging sign.

The Yankees don't need Judge simply to be present in October. The pitching and defense have kept the Yankees afloat for half a season. To win a World Series they need the Aaron Judge who can change a game with one swing. Monday night, for at least one memorable at-bat, that Judge showed up.

The Yankees (87-63) reached a new high-water mark for the season, moving 24 games above .500 while picking up a half-game on idle Tampa Bay. Tampa Bay still holds a 3.5-game lead over New York in the American League East.

The victory also punched the Yankees’ ticket to the dance. They will be one of 12 teams competing in the 2026 postseason, marking the 61st postseason appearance in franchise history—the most in Major League Baseball. The Dodgers rank second with 40 postseason appearances, followed by St. Louis with 32. Notably, this marks the eighth time in Aaron Boone’s nine seasons as manager that he has guided the Yankees to October.

But while the Yankees have once again qualified for the playoffs, given their payroll, expectations, the profoundly weak state of the American League in 2026 and the championship window surrounding Aaron Judge and Gerrit Cole, simply getting there should be viewed as the minimum—not the measure of success.

For the Yankees, making the playoffs is not the achievement. It is just the opportunity. In baseball terms, they have merely reached first base.

Now comes the part that matters.  It’s not the 61^st postseason appearance that’s the coin of the realm; it’s that long sought-after 28^th World Series championship.

The season—and the fast diminishing Judge/Cole championship window that this team has been built around—will ultimately be judged by how far the Yankees go from here.

Who Exceeded Expectations?

The Yankees are now 19-9 in games started by Will Warren, and Monday night provided another compelling reason to believe he could play an important role in October. Warren tossed 5⅔ innings without allowing an earned run, lowering his ERA over his last four appearances to a microscopic 0.86 over 21 innings.

That is not a small-sample fluke worth ignoring. Warren has become a legitimate weapon, and he is going to make a difference in the playoffs.

And if Gerrit Cole doesn’t get things straightened out soon, Warren’s emergence could become even more important.

José Caballero and Ben Rice each collected two hits and two RBI. Caballero scored twice, while six other Yankees crossed the plate.

Austin Wells added his 12th home run of the season in the ninth, putting the finishing touch on the Yankees’ scoring.

John Schreiber closed things out, working the final 1⅓ innings to earn his second save.

Who Disappointed?

The sixth-inning defense was abysmal—and nearly cost the Yankees the game.

Tim Hill (5-2) was credited with the win, but he surrendered another home run, this one to Josh Bell, his 20th of the season. Hill’s recent struggles have become increasingly difficult to overlook, and with Clarke Schmidt apparently nearing a return to the major league roster, Hill’s place on the postseason roster is very much up for grabs.

Spencer Jones went 0-for-4 with two strikeouts, but his biggest problem Monday night came with the glove. His misplay in center field in the sixth turned what should have been a relatively harmless RBI double into a two-run triple and put the Yankees in genuine danger.

A championship-caliber team needs a center fielder who can consistently button things down in center field, particularly in October when one defensive mistake can change an entire game. Jones has enormous potential, but potential isn't enough. If he is going to be the Yankees’ center fielder in the postseason, the defensive lapses have to disappear.

Anthony Volpe also committed his first fielding error at second base after entering as a pinch-runner for McMahon and moving into the position when Caballero shifted to third.

The Yankees survived the defensive meltdown Monday night. In October, they may not get the same luxury.

What’s Coming Next?

Game two of the series with the Twins is set for Tuesday night, as the Yankees seek another series victory with southpaw Max Fried (4–4, 2.73 ERA) taking the mound for New York against Minnesota right-hander Bailey Ober (7-5, 4.28 ERA).