Modest on a run in history that now has him tied with Babe Ruth, Judge got a moment much rarer than one of his long balls — a curtain call. “I really didn’t want to do it, especially since we’re losing. It’s a solo shot,” he said, recalling how his ninth-inning home run cut the Yankees’ deficit to three runs. Eleven minutes later, Judge and the Yankees felt free to let it loose. Giancarlo Stanton followed Judge’s drive with a game-ending grand slam, capping New York’s stunning five-run, ninth-inning rally to beat the Pittsburgh Pirates 9-8 on Tuesday night. “I kind of lost my mind,” said Judge, who is shy of tying Roger Maris’ AL single-season record. I had a good front row seat to this one. I think the whole team lost their minds and the stadium went wild.” Judge homered on a 3-1 pitch by Will Crowe (5-10) to tie Ruth’s total since 1927, which was the major league record until Maris broke it 34 years later. Judge is on pace for the AL’s first Triple Crown in a decade, leading in home runs, RBIs (128) and batting average (.316). He dropped his bat near the plate—he never turns—and when his pull was over, he exchanged a high-five with Anthony Rizzo, a hug with Gleyber Torres and a slap with Josh Donaldson. The umpire walked up and down the dugout to receive congratulations and then exited the dugout steps and briefly gave his helmet to his fans. “I was kidding Matt Carpenter earlier in the year, I think he had two homers in one game or something and it was a curtain call for him,” Judge said. “Dude, I’ve been here six years and I only have one curtain. So I guess you need to hit 60 to get another one.” Rizzo doubled, Torres walked and Donaldson singled to load the bases. Stanton, mired in a 9-for-72 slump, sent a half-dozen pitches into the left-field seats, capping a 19-pitch streak that would be repeated for a long time and spark a raucous celebration among what was left of the crowd of 40,157. . Roger Maris Jr. and Kevin Maris, sons of the former player, were both on hand. “He hit 60 tonight, and it’s like nothing happened. He has more work to do,” said Stanton, who hit 59 for Miami five years ago. Crowe’s great, great uncle, Hall of Famer Red Ruffing, was a teammate of Ruth’s with the Yankees in the 1930s. Crowe visited Ruffing’s plaque in Yankee Stadium’s Monument Park before the game. “He did what he had to do with it,” Crowe said, “count 3-1, I’m not going to put him. I felt like chasing him. Started away, came back. He made a good move on a bad pitch.” Aroldis Chapman (3-3) pitched a 1-2-3 ninth. Bryan Reynolds tied the game 4-4 with a seventh-inning home run off Lou Trivino and had a walk-off single off Jonathan Loáisiga in the eighth for his fourth hit. Rodolfo Castro — the player suspended for one game by Major League Baseball last month after a cell phone flew out of his pocket during a head slide — followed up with a triple with Clay Holmes. Holmes, an All-Star who has slumped in the second half, played for the first time against his former team. Harrison Bader had a pair of singles and drove in three runs in his Yankees debut. First baseman Anthony Rizzo made a base error leading into the eighth inning for the already shutout Pirates. Reynolds also had a three-base error on a grounder down the middle, one of two errors by a team that leads the major leagues with 108. FUNKY Nestor Cortes walked twice on a double with Reynolds at third, but gave up a single to center. FAMILY IS IMPORTANT Former Yankees 3B Charlie Hayes, who caught the final out of the 1996 World Series, threw out a ceremonial first pitch to his son, Pirates 3B Ke’Bryan Hayes. UPWARD MOVEMENT Pittsburgh promoted six players to Triple-A Indianapolis after the season ended at Double-A Altoona: RHPs Quinn Priester and Colin Selby, 2B-C-OF Endy Rodriguez, INF Aaron Shackelford, 3B Malcom Nunez, OF Matt Gorski. “Now we have 10 more at-bat days that we can get them,” manager Derek Shelton said. “The loss of 2020 was so vital for organizations like ours. The more reps we can do them, the better it is.” COACH ROOM Yankees: RHP Frankie Montas received a second cortisone injection in his ailing right shoulder and went on 15-day IL, retroactive to Saturday. … LHP Zack Britton (Tommy John surgery) gave up a single hit for Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre in his eighth rehab outing. RHP Miguel Castro (strained shoulder) pitched a perfect inning for the RailRiders. NEXT New York RHP Luis Severino (5-3, 3.45) starts Wednesday after recovering from a lat strain that has sidelined him since July 13.
