KYLE HIGASHIOKA

The Yankees’ season keeps coming down to Gerrit Cole.

Alex Bregman hit an early three-run homer, Framber Valdez pitched seven strong innings and the Houston Astros edged the New York Yankees 3-2 to take a 2-0 lead in the AL Championship Series.

Oscar Gonzalez singled in the go-ahead run with Cleveland’s second straight bloop hit in the 10th inning, and the Guardians overcame a two-run deficit to beat the New York Yankees 4-2 and even their best-of-five AL Division Series at one game apiece.

Yankees slugger Aaron Judge is still at 61 home runs with two games left.

Aaron Judge went 0 for 2 with two walks and was hit by a pitch, remaining at 61 homers on the 61st anniversary of Roger Maris setting the American League record, and the New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 8-0.

Leadoff man Aaron Judge singled twice during a six-run first inning off Corey Kluber as the New York Yankees started with seven straight hits for the first time since 1990 and routed the Tampa Bay Rays 10-3.

Kevin Gausman tossed seven sharp innings and the Toronto Blue Jays became the latest team to shut out the New York Yankees, beating the AL East leaders 4-0.

Michael Wacha pitched seven innings in his return from a shoulder injury, and Rafael Devers homered to lead the last-place Boston Red Sox past the division-leading New York Yankees 3-0.

Carlos Santana snapped an 0-for-17 slump with a go-ahead two-run homer during Seattle’s three-run seventh inning, and the Mariners rallied to beat the slumping New York Yankees 4-3.

Jordan Montgomery blanked his old teammates over five innings and Nolan Arenado drove in the lone run as the St. Louis Cardinals beat the New York Yankees 1-0.

Luis Castillo pitched five-hit ball into the seventh inning in his Seattle debut, and the Mariners used a fast start to beat Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees 7-3.

Aaron Judge hit a grand slam for his major league-leading 30th home run and the New York Yankees routed the Pittsburgh Pirates 16-0 to split their two-game interleague series.

Come Monday, there is going to be a little more room in big league bullpens, from Seattle to Tampa Bay, and plenty of places in between.

Frank Schwindel’s eephus pitch last weekend attracted the attention of Stephen Colbert.

Matt Carpenter homered twice and tied his career high with seven RBIs, powering the New York Yankees to complete a weekend sweep of the Chicago Cubs with a 18-4 rout for their 11th win in 12 games.

Jameson Taillon took a perfect game into the eighth inning, then fell behind before the New York Yankees rallied past the Los Angeles Angels 2-1 on a clutch swing by pinch-hitter Anthony Rizzo.

Healthy for much of this season, the AL-leading Yankees are suddenly dealing with injuries to several key players.

Jose Trevino hit a game-ending single in the 11th inning, fulfilling a dream of his father who died nine years ago, and the ailing New York Yankees beat the Baltimore Orioles 7-6.

First, Albert Pujols.

Tim Anderson hit a three-run homer and then put a finger to his lips to silence the booing fans, capping a tumultuous weekend at Yankee Stadium and helping the Chicago White Sox beat New York 5-0 for a doubleheader sweep.

Luis Robert singled off Aroldis Chapman to drive in the winning run in the ninth inning and Chicago White Sox edged the Yankees 3-2, stopping New York’s five-game winning streak.

The Major League Baseball batting average this April was a lousy.

Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. shook off a bloody gash on his right ring finger to hit three home runs against the rival Yankees, including two off ace Gerrit Cole.

Josh Donaldson capped his Yankees debut with an RBI single in the 11th inning, lifting New York over the Boston Red Sox 6-5 for its first walk-off win on opening day since Yogi Berra crossed the plate in 1957.

Major League Baseball is stepping up its experimentation with an electronic communication channel for calling pitches.

Francisco Lindor wasn’t the franchise-altering shortstop the New York Mets were hoping for last season.

Gerrit Cole and the New York Yankees took a winding route into the AL wild-card game, squeezing in on the final day of a tumultuous season.

Gerrit Cole took a two-hit shutout into the sixth inning to lead the New York Yankees to an 8-3 victory over the Boston Red Sox.

Aaron Judge tied it with his second homer of the game in the eighth inning, Mets infielder Javier Báez gave away the lead with an error a few at-bats later and the New York Yankees beat their crosstown rival 8-7 at Citi Field following a stirring ceremony on the 20th anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

Anthony Rizzo is back in the Yankees’ lineup after a bout with COVID-19, and closer Aroldis Chapman also was activated before New York’s series finale against the Boston Red Sox.

Newcomer Anthony Rizzo has become the latest Yankees player to test positive for the coronavirus.

Yankees left-hander Jordan Montgomery has tested positive for COVID-19, joining fellow starter Gerrit Cole among New York players sidelined by the virus.

The Dodgers and Giants are back at it Tuesday night, renewing their long rivalry in San Francisco with 12-game winner Julio Urias on the mound for Los Angeles against Logan Webb in the opener of a three-game series.

Held hitless into the eighth inning by Domingo Germán and looking feeble, Alex Verdugo and the Boston Red Sox suddenly erupted for five runs to shake Fenway Park and storm past the New York Yankees 5-4.

Rougned Odor’s two-run double highlighted a four-run rally in the eighth inning after his two errors helped Boston build an early lead, and the New York Yankees beat the Red Sox 4-3.

Kiké Hernández hit a two-run double that tied the game with two outs in the ninth inning, and the Boston Red Sox took advantage of a record four wild pitches by Brooks Kriske in the 10th to rally past the rival New York Yankees 5-4 on a rainy night at Fenway Park.

Eduardo Rodriguez shut down the short-handed Yankees into the sixth inning, Christian Arroyo and J.

For the first time in months, COVID-19 is creating chaos around Major League Baseball.

Gerrit Cole’s strikeouts and spin rate dropped as he pitched for the first time since Major League Baseball’s crackdown on sticky substances, and the Kansas City Royals rallied off Jonathan Loiasiga for four runs in the eighth inning to beat the New York Yankees 6-5.

Rich Hill finished May with the lowest monthly ERA in 75 years of a pitcher in his 40s, and the Tampa Bay Rays won for the 16th time in 17 games by keeping up their domination of the reeling Yankees with a 3-1 victory.

After no-hitters on consecutive nights by Detroit right-hander Spencer Turnbull and Yankees newcomer Corey Kluber, is there a pitcher on the docket who can make it three days in a row.

Gleyber Torres’ tying single in the ninth inning and a winning infield single in the 11th helped the New York Yankees overcame Max Scherzer’s commanding 14-strikeout performance to beat the Washington Nationals 4-3.

José Altuve responded to jeering fans by marking his 31st birthday with a go-ahead, three-run homer off Chad Green in the eighth inning, and the Houston Astros beat the New York Yankees 7-4 to avoid a three-game sweep.

Corey Kluber handcuffed Detroit batters to gain his 100th career win with his most dominant performance since 2018, and the New York Yankees beat the Tigers 2-0 to complete their first series sweep this season and get back to.

The last-place New York Yankees lost their fifth straight game as Yoshi Tsutsugo hit a tiebreaking double off Gerrit Cole in the seventh inning that lifted the Tampa Bay Rays to a 4-2 win and a three-game sweep.

The Minnesota Twins will see when they can next play after their COVID-19 problems wiped the rest of a series in Anaheim against the Angels.

Gerrit Cole struck out 13 and walked none over seven scoreless innings in his most dominant start since joining the New York Yankees, overwhelming the Baltimore Orioles 7-2 for his first win this season.

FILE - New York Yankees relief pitcher Zack Britton winds up during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Baltimore Orioles in New York, in this Sunday, Sept. 13, 2020, file photo. Yankees left-hander Zack Britton is not throwing because of a sore pitching elbow, was to be examined by a doctor on Tuesday, March 9, 2021, and could miss the start of the season. (AP Photo/Kathy Willens, File)LAKELAND, Fla. – New York Yankees left-hander Zack Britton needs surgery to remove a bone chip from his pitching elbow and seems certain to miss the start of the season. Yankees manager Aaron Boone announced the need for an operation following New York's 6-5 loss to Detroit on Tuesday. Boone said Britton felt soreness Sunday night following a bullpen session and had an MRI of his elbow on Monday.

FILE - In this July 9, 2020, file photo, Texas Rangers pitcher Corey Kluber throws during an intrasquad game in Arlington, Texas. The New York Yankees reached a deal with Kluber worth $11 million for one year, a person familiar with the negotiations told The Associated Press. Happ to become free agents, signed Kluber to an $11 million, one-year contract and acquired Taillon from Pittsburgh for four prospects. To drop payroll below the $210 million luxury tax threshold, Cashman traded right-hander Adam Ottavino to rival Boston, saving $7.15 million. New York enters spring training with a projected rotation of Gerrit Cole, Deivi García, left-hander Jordan Montgomery, Kluber and Taillon.

Clayton Kershaw could start Game 4 of the NL Championship Series for the Dodgers if the left-hander’s back continues to improve. Kershaw was scratched from his scheduled Game 2 start because of back spasms, and manager Dave Roberts decided to stick with left-hander Julio Urías for Game 3 against Atlanta on Wednesday night. Veteran right-hander Zack Greinke delivered six gutsy innings in a 4-3 Game 4 victory for Houston's first win of the series, and usual No. A three-time World Series-winning manager, the 76-year-old La Russa joined the Angels prior to this season as senior advisor of baseball operations. He hasn’t managed since 2011, when he led St. Louis past Texas in the World Series.