Yankees hit season-high six home runs, blow out Chicago Cubs

NEW YORK – Aaron Judge revved up the Yankee Stadium crowd less than 15 minutes into the game Saturday night.

Before long, his teammates took their turn trying to one-up the league's home run leader.

And by the end of the night, the Bronx Bombers had folks rushing to the record book.

All told, the Yankees flexed their muscle by crushing a season-high six home runs in an 8-0 victory over the Chicago Cubs. Left-hander Jordan Montgomery allowed five hits over seven shutout innings after getting an unusual amount of run support.

"Just a great environment to play in here in Yankee Stadium," manager Aaron Boone said. "When you start hitting the ball out of the ballpark and everyone is chipping in to it, it definitely makes for an energetic and fun night in the dugout."

Judge (2-for-3, two HR's, three RBI) started the hit parade with a leadoff shot in the first inning and added his MLB-leading 24th of the season later in the night.

Giancarlo Stanton, Gleyber Torres, Jose Trevino and Anthony Rizzo all went deep as well to give the Yankees (43-16) their 10th win in 11 games.

Unfortunately for Cubs starter Matt Swarmer, it was that kind of night.

"Guys are locked in," said Montgomery, who was determined to give the bullpen a rest after a 13-inning marathon the previous night. "It's definitely fun to see them barreling the ball up like that."

The Yankee Stadium crowd serenaded Judge with "MVP" chants as he continued his chase towards Roger Maris' single-season record. Judge is currently on pace for 66 home runs and doesn't appear to be slowing down. He's now reached base in 13 straight games, while hitting .340 (17-for-50) with seven homers and 12 RBI in that span.

"Unreal. It's fun to watch," Stanton said. "I have the best seat in the house too. We all kind of laugh after he puts up nights like this."

The Yankees extended the lead in the fourth inning on back-to-back home runs by Stanton and Torres. Stanton sent a missile off the second deck in left with an exit velocity of 119.8 mph.

In the process, the Yankees' outfielder passed up Shohei Ohtani and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. with the hardest hit ball of the season and one of the fastest of the Statcast Era.

"When he hits one like that, you don't see that everyday," Judge said. "I'm lucky enough to see that stuff on a nightly basis."

Rizzo joined the party in the fifth inning to give New York its most home runs in a game since Sept. 17, 2020 against the Toronto Blue Jays.

Meanwhile, Swarmer became only the second pitcher in MLB history to serve up six solo bombs in one game, according to ESPN. (The last was Hollis "Sloppy" Thurston in 1932.)

Montgomery (2.70 ERA) had no such trouble during his longest start of the season.

"The preparation he puts in with the catcher is unmatched," Judge said. "It's fun to see him on gameday."

Catching on with the Yankees

Luis Severino admits that he didn't know much about Jose Trevino when the Yankees acquired the catcher.

At first, Severino believed the move could help the bullpen.

"When I saw that we got Trevino, I thought it was the reliever from Oakland," Severino told reporters Friday night.

Lou Trivino is still in Oakland.

Jose Trevino? All he's done is turn into a fan favorite in pinstripes.

Trevino has worked his way into regular playing time by hitting .290 with four home runs and 17 RBI in his first 38 games in pinstripes. He collected his second walk-off single of the season on Friday to complete a 2-1 win in 13 innings.

Naturally, the scouting report from Severino has changed.

"Trevino has come up huge for us," Severino said. "He's kind of made for the big situations."

The Yankees may have envisioned Trevino as the backup to Kyle Higashioka when they dealt right-hander Albert Abreu and lefty Robert Ahlstrom to Texas in April.

But instead, the Yankees have split at-bats down the middle. Part of that is due to the limited offense from Higashioka, who's hit .148.

Meanwhile, Trevino's OPS+ is not only a career-best 131, but puts him third among Yankee regulars behind Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton.

"It's awesome," Trevino said. "It's a collective unit. It's a collective group of guys that are just trying to do their job the best they can. Do nothing more than what they're supposed to do."

Related: How Jose Trevino has quickly become a key part of Yankees' scorching hot play

Winning ways: How the Yankees are finding all different ways to win these days

Behind the plate, Trevino has been lauded for his work with the Yankees' starting rotation. The Yankees have a 2.44 ERA while working with Trevino, which is the lowest for any catcher this year. (Dodger Will Smith is second, at 2.69.)

Helping matters is the fact that Trevino is an elite pitch-framer with a knack for getting outside strikes on right-handed hitters.

"(Trevino) certainly has earned being in there, but we love what we have going on with both guys," Boone said. "Obviously we want to get Higgy going a little bit at the plate, but Jose has definitely gotten more and more opportunities."

For Trevino, it's a new experience to be on a winning club after four seasons in Texas, including three in last place.

"Some guys really take to that and thrive in that," Boone said. "I think he's shown that obviously he has. He's been such a critical figure in the room and being a part of that winning culture."

Working their way back

Aroldis Chapman inched one step closer to a return on Saturday by throwing a bullpen session at Yankee Stadium.

The reports after the game were positive.

"He was excited about it," Boone said. "I didn't get to see it, but (Matt Blake) and (Mike Harkey) were both really encouraged by it. So it was important step for Chappy."

The Yankees' left-hander has been sidelined for almost three weeks with left Achilles tendinitis. Before going on the IL, Chapman made 17 appearances with a 3.86 ERA this season.

Jonathan Loaisiga (right shoulder inflammation) is expected to be back in New York on Sunday, although he has resumed throwing.

Sean Farrell is a high school sports reporter for NorthJersey.com. For full access to live scores, breaking news and analysis from our Varsity Aces team, subscribe today. To get breaking news directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter and download our app. 

Email: farrells@northjersey.com 

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This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: New York Yankees blow out Chicago Cubs with season-high six home runs