BALTIMORE — Move the walls back, make them higher. It doesn’t matter to Aaron Judge. The Yankees slugger hammered his longest home run of the season Friday night over the pushed-back left-center field wall at Camden Yards. He hit a second, and the Yankees needed every inch of his 901 combined feet of homers to hold off the Orioles, 7-6.
The Yankees (65-30) snapped a two-game losing streak and won their first game after the All-Star break. They improved to 31-15 in the American League East, where they hold a double-digit lead. The Orioles (46-47) were playing their first game after the break.
Judge, who took the long view after the Yankees dropped both games of a doubleheader against the Astros in Houston Thursday, had his eighth multi-home run game of a season. That’s tied with Gleyber Torres (2019), Alex Rodriguez (2007), Mickey Mantle (1961) and Babe Ruth (1927) for the most multi-homer games in a season in Yankees history.
Judge’s second shot went 465 feet, his longest this season. His first went just 436 feet. The Orioles’ new left-field wall, which was moved 26.5 feet further back from home plate and the wall was raised from 7 feet, 4 inches to 13 feet this winter, was no match for Judge. It was the 24th multi-home run game of his career, his eighth against the Orioles and the fourth in Camden Yards.
Joey Gallo hit his 12th homer of the season, a solo shot in the sixth which gave him his 24th RBI. Jose Trevino doubled in a run and Isiah Kiner-Falefa singled in another.
Clay Holmes came in for an emergency four-out save after Michael King left mid at-bat in the eighth with an apparent injury. Holmes picked up his 17th save of the season.
After managing seven runs in 18 innings over the two games in Houston Thursday, the offense was a welcome sight. It was also needed, because Jameson Taillon put the Yankees in a hole early.
“I felt like for that month where it wasn’t as dynamic as obviously the first two months of the season, it was just mistakes that were getting him,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “I still think there was mostly good in a lot of those outings. He was missing some spots where guys were hitting the ball out of the ballpark. It really cost him. Obviously, he was able to limit that and his last start, and I thought he threw the ball really well and hopefully he can pick up from that last one and keep going.”
The right-hander was chased after just 2 2/3 innings for his shortest start of the season. After walking 12 batters in his first 18 starts of the season, and at most two in a game, Taillon walked the first two he faced Friday night. He ended up walking a season high three. Taillon allowed two earned runs on four hits. He struck out two.
After a solid start to end the first half — six one-run, two-hit innings against the Red Sox — the Yankees were optimistic that he had gotten over his slump.
Friday night, however, was evidence that he’s still searching for fastball command. He threw 67 pitches, 38 for strikes, getting just eight swings and misses, including four on his slider.
Over his last six starts, Taillon has allowed 23 earned runs in 29 2/3 innings pitched. He has walked six and struck out 24.
That is another red flag raised on the Yankees pitching.
With Luis Severino out with a strained lat muscle, the Yankees tried Domingo German in his spot Thursday to give Taillon an extra day rest. Both turned out to be bad ideas. German got hit hard and Taillon clearly was not sharp.
It’s an issue the Yankees can still address before the trade deadline in 12 days. Another may be what to do with their bullpen. After a clean inning in Houston Thursday, former closer Aroldis Chapman was hammered again. Chapman gave up a leadoff single to Cedric Mullins, issued a one-out walk to Trey Mancini and Anthony Santander crushed a three-run homer off the lefty to the second deck in left field.
Also concerning was the way King hurried off the field in the eighth. The right-hander looked to be injured as he walked off the mound mid at-bat after throwing a pitch to Ramon Urias.
