By Brendan Kuty, Mitch Bannon and Chris Kirschner
NEW YORK — The ball hung in the air, and for a moment, Yankee Stadium was a place frozen in time. When it finally clanked high off the left-field foul pole, the Bronx erupted. Aaron Judge’s three-run home run had just tied the game in the fourth inning, the final step in erasing a five-run Blue Jays advantage over the Yankees.
It was the biggest moment in Judge’s postseason career, and it led to his team tacking on a few more runs, Toronto melting down on defense and the Yankees staving off elimination and a sweep Tuesday with a 9-6 victory in Game 3 of the best-of-five American League Division Series.
Yankees’ bullpen holds up
David Bednar and Austin Wells celebrate the Yankees’ Game 3 win. Bednar recorded the final five outs. (Ishika Samant / Getty Images)
David Bednar and Devin Williams were the heroes of the Yankees’ relief effort, but all five relievers used by the Yankees were vital, holding the Blue Jays scoreless after starting pitcher Carlos Rodón lasted just 2 1/3 innings.
Williams worked four outs — the first time he pitched more than one full inning all season. Bednar got five outs for the save. The other contributors were just as clutch. Fernando Cruz, who took over for Rodón, notched three of his four outs via strikeout. Camilo Doval went a full inning and Tim Hill went 1 1/3 frames. None of their pitch counts were extravagant. Each should be available for Game 4.
Aaron Judge has his October moment
The ball hung in the air for 5.7 seconds. It felt like 16 years inside Yankee Stadium, the last time the Yankees won the World Series.
The Yankees were five innings away from elimination and a long offseason when Judge stepped into the batter’s box and changed the game, and potentially, New York’s season.
One of the biggest criticisms Judge has faced in his historic career is coming up small in the biggest moments of the postseason. In Game 1, Judge struck out with the bases loaded on a Kevin Gausman splitter out of the zone. That at-bat could have changed the series.
But Judge had a shot at redemption in Game 3. With the Yankees trailing 6-3 in the fourth inning and two runners on base, Judge turned on an 0-2 fastball from Blue Jays reliever Louis Varland.
The 99.7 mph heater was in on his hands, but Judge was somehow able to square up the pitch, hitting it high off the left-field foul pole at 103.1 mph. The moment Judge’s ball ricocheted off the pole, Yankee Stadium went into a frenzy with hot dogs, popcorn and beer flying in the Bronx sky.
If the Yankees go on to win this series and advance deeper into October, this home run could be the most impactful moment of Judge’s career.
AARON JUDGE OFF THE FOUL POLE!
TIE GAME!!! #ALDS pic.twitter.com/rplPnEsRoH
— MLB (@MLB) October 8, 2025
Toronto’s fielding fails them
Addison Barger stared at the sky, bolting to his right as Austin Wells’ fly ball fell. Barger reached out, attempting to snare the ball at the last second, but it ultimately bounced off his glove and down to the grass in the fourth inning. Wells reached second base on Toronto’s second error of the game. After a Trent Grisham walk, it sent Judge up to meet the moment. The Bronx slugger didn’t let it pass, turning Barger’s error into a game-flipping mistake.
Two of New York’s first six runs were unearned. The Yankees capitalized on Isiah Kiner-Falefa’s botched handling of a groundball in the first, as well. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. whiffed on a bouncing groundball in the fifth and Anthony Santander allowed a double to slip under his diving glove in the sixth. The dismal defense expedited Toronto’s bullpen melt-down, as the Jays’ first four relievers allowed runs. It burdened a relief group that will be turned to again in Game 4 for a bullpen game.
For three seasons, defense has been the Jays’ identity. They ranked fourth in MLB in Defensive Runs Saved this year. With a stranglehold on a series clincher, the fielding failed them. The Jays’ defensive blunders allowed the Yankees back into Game 3, leading to the eventual defeat. If the miscues continue, they’ll allow the Yankees fully back into this series.
Guerrero has found playoff greatness
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. connects for his third home run of the series. (Al Bello / Getty Images)
In three games, Guerrero entirely flipped the narrative. He entered October without a single postseason highlight to his name. In 20 innings, he built a complete reel. Guerrero homered for a third straight game in Tuesday’s first inning, silencing the New York crowd with a 427-foot blast to snatch the Jays an early two-run lead.
As Guerrero’s Game 3 homer cleared the left-centre wall, Ernie Clement stood with his mouth open in Toronto’s dugout, amazed at the tear Guerrero is on. He entered this postseason with a .136 playoff average and one extra-base hit. The franchise first baseman then notched seven hits in his first 10 at-bats in this postseason, including three homers. When Guerrero came up in the third inning with a base open, the Yankees elected to intentionally walk him.
“Vlad is not one we worry about,” general manager Ross Atkins said ahead of October. “He’s been one of the best players in the game. Will continue to be. He’s going to be a force for us in the playoffs.”
Guerrero has done nothing but prove his GM right this fall. If this version of Vlad continues to flash in October, the Blue Jays’ offense can match any in baseball. A playoff-performing Guerrero will be crucial for Toronto to fend off New York’s late push.
The Yankees fell asleep in the field
The footage captured by Fox’s cameras perfectly encapsulated the Yankees’ third inning. After Daulton Varsho’s RBI single gave the Blue Jays a 3-1 lead, Jazz Chisholm Jr. was spotted on the field yawning.
— FOX Sports: MLB (@MLBONFOX) October 8, 2025
Chisholm was part of the reason Toronto scored its third run. Varsho blooped a single into left field after Cody Bellinger could not come up with the sliding catch, which would have ended the inning because Davis Schneider, who had doubled, was far off second base. As the ball squirted away from Bellinger, Trent Grisham grabbed it and threw to Chisholm at second base. Chisholm did not know Schneider, after rounding third, had taken off for home. Instead of turning around to face the infield, Chisholm stared into the outfield for a couple of seconds, which allowed Schneider to score.
Bellinger then could not throw out Guerrero at home on Clement’s RBI single, which allowed Varsho and Clement to advance a base. Santander then hit a two-run single, scoring Varsho and Clement.
And that doesn’t include Rodón failing to cover first base on Clement’s infield single in the second inning, nor the Yankees running out of challenges three innings into the game, nor Judge getting tagged out in between third and home on a contact play in the fourth inning.
The Yankees had mostly corrected their poor fundamental mistakes since the trade deadline, but in the most important game of the season, several miscues helped put New York in a deep early deficit.
Rodón rocked
The Yankees needed Rodón to step up. Instead, he fell flat on his face, giving up six earned runs on six hits, one walk and two strikeouts.
Guerrero continued to own Rodón. Entering the night, Guerrero was 10-for-17 versus the left-hander. It may have been embarrassing for Rodón to intentionally walk Guerrero with a runner on second and no outs in the third inning, but it was the right move.
The Blue Jays never let Rodón get into a groove. They fouled off 20 of his 67 total pitches. After spending so much of the regular season learning to mix his pitches, Rodón went back to his old one-two combo of fastballs (61 percent) and sliders (24 percent).
Max Fried and Rodón, the Yankees’ two top starters, allowed a combined 13 earned runs over just 5 1/3 innings between Games 2 and 3. If someone had told you that was going to happen before the series started, you would have expected a Blue Jays sweep. But somehow, the Yankees are still alive.
