NEW YORK — Aaron Judge started the first-game comeback with his major league-leading 55th home run, Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit a go-ahead grand slam in the nightcap and the New York Yankees swept a doubleheader from the Minnesota Twins 5-4 and 7-1 on Wednesday.

Kiner-Falefa sparked a two-run 12th in the opener with a tying leadoff RBI single. He erased a 1-0 deficit in the fourth inning of the second game when he sent a belt-high slider from Joe Ryan (10-8) into the left-field seats. IKF flipped his bat after the no-doubt drive, his first slam among 19 career home runs.

Oswaldo Cabrera stopped an 0-for-25 slide with a game-ending single in the opener. The Yankees threw a team from the 90s at the Twins — as in uniform numbers usually limited to spring training — and Kiner-Falefa played third base for the first time in two years.

Gerrit Cole (11-7) struck out a season-high 14 in the night game, allowing five hits and two walks in 6 2/3 innings. Carlos Correa hit a third-inning homer, and with the crowd chanting “Cheater!” in the seventh, Correa struck out to strand two runners against Lucas Luetge, who got his second save. Aaron Hicks added a three-run double in the eighth after Austin Davis walked the Nos. 7-9 hitters.

New York (83-54) opened a five-game AL East lead over second-place Tampa Bay and clinched its 30th straight winning season despite an injury-depleted lineup. The Yankees are 114-39 against the Twins since 2002, including the playoffs.

Giancarlo Stanton, Anthony Rizzo, DJ LeMahieu, Josh Donaldson, Andrew Benintendi and Matt Carpenter were among those hurt or unavailable.

Judge (No. 99) was joined by Nos. 95 (Cabrera), 91 (shortstop Oswald Peraza), 97 (reliever Ron Marinaccio) and 90 (center fielder Estevan Florial) to give the Yankees five players with jerseys in the 90s. Greg Weissert (3-0), who won the opener, had a relatively low No. 85.

“You can see the energy they bring,” Game 1 starter Domingo Germán said through a translator. “They bring so much energy to the clubhouse.”

Cabrera also threw out Gilberto Celestino at the plat e in the 10th inning, his fifth outfield assist since his Aug. 17 debut, and made a sliding catch on Gio Urshela.

Peraza got his first four big league hits in the doubleheader, including a pair of doubles.

Judge homered for the fourth straight game, driving a change-up to left in the fourth inning, the only blemish of Louie Varland’s otherwise outstanding major league debut.

Judge set the Yankees record for right-handed hitters by surpassing the 54 homers hit by Alex Rodriguez in 2007. The Yankees’ season record of 61 was set by Roger Maris in 1961, also the AL mark and one more than Babe Ruth’s high of 60 in 1927.

BLUE JAYS 4, ORIOLES 1: Alek Manoah retired 22 of his final 23 hitters in an impressive eight-inning performance, and visiting Toronto wrapped up a successful series in Baltimore.

The Blue Jays won 3 of 4 to take a 4 1/2-game lead on Baltimore for the last wild card in the American League. Manoah (14-7) allowed a run in the first, but the Orioles didn’t manage another baserunner until the sixth.

Toronto scored three times in the fifth off Dean Kremer (6-5) and left Camden Yards with its postseason chances looking pretty good – although these two teams have six more games scheduled against each other.

TIGERS 5, ANGELS 2: Shohei Ohtani and Mike Trout homered in the same game for the eighth time this season, but rookies Kerry Carpenter and Ryan Kreidler hit back-to-back homers in the ninth inning to send visiting Detroit to a win over Los Angeles.

WHITE SOX 9, MARINERS 6: Eloy Jimenez drove in three runs with a homer and double, Chicago took advantage of three errors, and White Sox rallied to win at Seattle.

The White Sox took 2 of 3 in the series and stayed on the heels of Cleveland and Minnesota in the crowded AL Central race.

NATIONAL LEAGUE

METS SWEEP PIRATES: Jacob deGrom threw seven dominant innings and visiting New York routed Pittsburgh 10-0 to complete a doubleheader sweep that thrust them back into sole possession of first place in the NL East.

DeGrom (5-1) struck out eight and walked one to win his third straight start for New York, which rode seven strong innings from Chris Bassitt to a 5-1 victory in Game 1.

The Mets piled on Pittsburgh starter Johan Oviedo (2-2) and a handful of relievers to pound out 17 hits in support of deGrom. New York put up 15 runs on after managing four in a three-game skid that briefly dropped the team into a tie with the Braves for the division lead.

Francisco Lindor doubled twice and drove in three runs in Game 2. Jeff McNeil and Eduardo Escobar each added three hits in the nightcap. Escobar also homered earlier in the day and went 6 for 9 in the twinbill.

The Pirates are 5-20 in their last 25 games and have lost eight games this season by at least 10 runs.

Tyler Naquin hit a three-run homer to the bullpen beyond the center-field fence for his 11th homer of the season in the opener. Escobar followed with a high drive to the seats above the 21-foot high Clemente Wall in right that staked the Mets to a 5-0 lead.

PHILLIES 4, MARLINS 3: Edmundo Sosa homered for the second straight game and finished with three hits and three RBI, and Bailey Falter earned his fourth straight win as a starter, lifting Philadelphia over visiting Miami.

Jean Segura also homered for the Phillies.

REDS 7, CUBS 1: Aristides Aquino hit two more home runs against the Cubs and helped Cincinnati win at Chicago

Aquino has hit 12 homers in 84 career at-bats against the Cubs.

CARDINALS 6, NATIONALS 5: Tommy Edman hit a two-run, two-out double to cap St. Louis’ five-run ninth inning in a win at home.

St. Louis moved 9 1/2 games ahead of Milwaukee for the NL Central lead, winning for the 20th time in its last 23 home games.

Edman doubled to left off reliever Kyle Finnegan (5-3) to cap the rally.

Jordan Montgomery turned in another strong outing with his new team. Montgomery allowed one run on three hits over 6 2/3 innings and did not get a decision. He struck out six, walked two and left with it tied 1-1.

Montgomery is 5-0 in seven starts since he was acquired from the New York Yankees for outfielder Harrison Bader on Aug. 2. The Cardinals are 25-4 since they picked up Montgomery and pitcher Jose Quintana at the trade deadline.

ROCKIES 8, BREWERS 4: Eric Lauer exited in the third inning with left elbow tightness, and visiting Milwaukee hurt its fading playoff hopes with a loss to last-place Colorado.

Recent call-ups Michael Toglia and Alan Trejo homered for the Rockies. Kyle Freeland threw six innings of one-run ball.

DODGERS 7, GIANTS 3: Trea Turner doubled in the go-ahead run and Max Muncy added a three-run homer in the eighth inning, helping Los Angeles rally past visiting San Francisco.

The NL West leaders reduced their magic number to six games.

Turner was hitless in his first four at-bats until his hit to deep left, scoring Austin Barnes, who reached on an infield single, for a 4-3 lead.

Freddie Freeman walked and Turner took third on a wild pitch by Zack Littell (2-3) to set up Muncy, whose blast into the right-field pavilion made it 7-3.

Muncy went 3 for 4 a day after hitting two homers in a 6-3 win.

INTERLEAGUE

BRAVES 7, ATHLETICS 3: Rookie Spencer Strider overcame a rough start, Vaughn Grissom and Dansby Swanson homered and visiting Atlanta won its seventh straight.

Robbie Grossman, Marcell Ozuna and Ronald Acuña Jr. also drove in runs for Atlanta, which beat Oakland for the 11th straight time dating to 2008.

NOTES

YANKEES: First baseman Anthony Rizzo went on the injured list and third baseman Josh Donaldson on the paternity list, leaving New York with a depleted lineup that already was missing Giancarlo Stanton, DJ LeMahieu, Andrew Benintendi and Matt Carpenter.

New York started three rookies in a doubleheader opener against Minnesota: right fielder Oswaldo Cabrera, center fielder Estevan Florial and shortstop Oswald Peraza.

First baseman Ronald Guzman made his Yankees debut in his first big league game since April 12 last year with Texas, left fielder Miguel Andujar played his first major league game since Aug. 16 and Isiah Kiner-Falefa was at third base for the first time since 2020. Right-hander Deivi Garcia was in the bullpen and could make his first big league appearances since May 29, 2021.

UNION: The Major League Baseball Players Association is joining the AFL-CIO in an effort to strengthen its position in the aftermath of one labor struggle and in the midst of another.

Executive director Tony Clark made the announcement alongside AFL-CIO President Liz Shuler during an event at the National Press Club, discussing the MLBPA’s attempt to unionize minor leaguers following a nearly 100-day lockout that delayed the start of the season.

Clark cited lessons learned from 2020, when minor league baseball was not played, as a major impetus for this decision.

“Over the past couple of years, our experiences have suggested now is the right time to have that conversation,” he said. “We are in a world now where strengthening our organization, strengthening our player fraternity by bringing the minor leaguers under our umbrella, as well as joining the AFL-CIO and doing so alongside our brothers and sisters that are part of the labor movement, together we’re going to navigate that chaos, and together we’re going to work through it.”

Shuler called it “an incredible moment for the labor movement.” Clark said baseball players want to strengthen their organization by supporting minor leaguers and becoming part of the AFL-CIO.

METS: The New York Mets placed pitcher Max Scherzer on the 15-day injured list with what the club described as “left oblique irritation.”

The move is retroactive to Sept. 4, the day after Scherzer left his start against Washington following five innings with discomfort in his left side. The 38-year-old missed nearly two months earlier in the season with a left oblique strain. Scherzer said this injury is different and not as severe.

A RADIO host admitted he falsely claimed agent Casey Close never informed first baseman Freddie Freeman of the Atlanta Braves’ last contract offer.

Doug Gottlieb tweeted on June 29 that “Casey Close never told Freddie Freeman about the Braves final offer.” Close and Excel Sports Management sued Gottlieb in mid-July in U.S. District Court in Manhattan, alleging defamation by libel.

Gottlieb tweeted an apology Wednesday.

“Upon further vetting of my sources, a review of the lawsuit filed against me in this matter and a direct conversation with Casey himself, I have learned that the conduct I alleged did not occur and that there is no credible basis for stating that it did,” Gottlieb wrote. “My ultimate investigation into this matter confirms that Casey Close did, in fact, communicate all offers to Freddie Freeman and the sources I relied on were incorrect, in no uncertain terms.”

“I appreciate the damage that misinformation like this can cause,” Gottlieb added, “and have been in touch with Casey Close to apologize directly. I have also deleted my original tweet.”

Close and Excel filed a notice of voluntary dismissal later in U.S. District Court in Manhattan.