Yankees beat Mariners and reduce magic number in the playoffs to one

SEATTLE — The Yankees don't have a chance to clinch a playoff spot until Wednesday night, in what they hope will be the first of two crucial decisions this month.

Tuesday night felt like a prelude to the party.

The Yankees had a tough nut to crack with right-hander Bryan Woo, who was knocked out of the game in the fifth inning and won 11-2 against the Mariners in front of 31,668 spectators at T-Mobile Park.

Fueled by a strong night from the top players in their batting lineup – Gleyber Torres, Juan Soto and Aaron Judge combined to go 7-for-10 with three walks, six RBIs and seven runs scored – the Yankees (88-63) won their eighth victory in their last 11 games and reduced their magic number to one to secure a playoff spot.

With a win on Wednesday, they can become the first team in the American League to reach a playoff spot.

With Tuesday night's loss to the Orioles, the Yankees extended their lead at the top of the AL East to four games – their largest since June 6 (when it reached a season-high 4 ½) – with 11 games left to play.

“Blinders on,” manager Aaron Boone said before the game. “We know we're not even close to where we want to be. The work isn't done yet.”

But the Yankees came ever closer to their first goal by mounting a surge in offense that cooled down the Mariners (77-74), who had won eight of 11 games before the series and were fighting for their playoff spots.

This also helped take the pressure off Luis Gil, who struggled with his control but managed five one-run innings before Marcus Stroman – in his first relief appearance of the season after being taken out of the rotation – threw the final three innings, allowing a solo home run and getting the save.

Torres had a strong night on both sides of the ball, going 3-for-4 with a double and making three sharp defensive plays at second base.

With a single hit in the fourth inning, Soto (2 for 2, two walks) hit his 40th home run of the season and the 200th of his career, in the 30th and last current MLB stadium in which he had not hit a home run.

And Judge cleared the traffic in front of him, going 2-for-4 with a walk and four RBIs, giving him 136 runs on the season.

Jasson Dominguez also hit his first home run of the season, giving the Yankees a 7-1 lead in the fifth inning and knocking Woo out of the game. Austin Wells added a three-run double in the sixth inning to win the game.

Meanwhile, the Mariners – and Victor Robles in particular – played a big part in Gil avoiding early trouble.

With a 2-0 lead, Gil Robles hit his hand with his first pitch of the night and then managed two 3-1 walks to load the bases with one out.

He got Luke Raley to hit a pop-up for the second out, but then fell behind 3-0 against Justin Turner and clearly didn't have a good feel for the strike zone when he went to the back of the mound to pick up the rosin bag.

Robles had a big lead in third place, but suddenly took off running when Gil threw the rosin bag back on the ground.

When Gil realized Robles was running quickly enough, he threw the ball home in time for Wells to fend off the ball and somehow end the inning without allowing a run.

From then on, the Yankees continued to apply pressure, and Soto hit a home run against Woo in the fourth inning, making it 6-1 with a two-run shot.

With Soto's achievement of this milestone, he and Aaron Judge became only the third pair of Yankees teammates to hit 40 home runs in the same season – the first since Roger Maris and Mickey Mantle in 1961.

Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig have already done this in three different seasons.