Yankees to Host Wild Card Series Starting Sept. 29
The short version
- Yankees clinched AL No. 4 seed and will host the Wild Card series starting Sept. 29
- Red Sox are the likely opponent, holding a three-game lead for the No. 5 seed with five to play
- Aaron Judge is back on the Injured List and unlikely to play in the Wild Card series
- An ALDS matchup against Tampa Bay would not include home-field advantage for New York
New York clinched the No. 4 seed in the American League and will host the best-of-three Wild Card series, most likely against Boston.
The New York Yankees have clinched the No. 4 seed in the American League and secured home-field advantage for the best-of-three Wild Card series, which begins Tuesday, Sept. 29 at Yankee Stadium. Despite holding the second-best record in the AL, New York was mathematically eliminated from the division title.
The Boston Red Sox are the most likely opponent. Boston held a three-game lead with five games remaining in the race for the No. 5 seed. The Chicago White Sox and Cleveland Guardians remain in contention for the AL Central, which affects the final bracket. The Yankees went 7-6 against the Red Sox during the 2026 regular season.
Aaron Judge returned to the Injured List this week and is unlikely to appear in the Wild Card series. The Yankees played close to 100 games without him this season and still clinched the top wild card spot, aided by Cody Bellinger and Ben Rice at the plate and a Cy Young-caliber season from Cam Schlittler.
If New York advances, it would face the division-leading Tampa Bay Rays in the AL Division Series without home-field advantage, hosting only Game 3 and a potential Game 4. A potential ALCS appearance would open the path to the World Series, which is scheduled to begin Friday, Oct. 23.
