Aaron Judge hits MLB-best 53rd homer, Yankees open 3-game AL East lead with 5-2 win over Red Sox

NEW YORK (AP) — Aaron Judge hit his major league-leading 53rd homer, and the New York Yankees beat the Boston Red Sox 5-2 on Sunday to open a three-game AL East lead over second-place Baltimore.

Judge, whose 132 RBIs also top the major leagues, homered twice in three games followed a career-high 16-game homerless streak and helped Carlos Rodón get his career-best 15th win.

New York (87-63) took three of four from the Red Sox and headed on the road for a seven-game trip to Seattle and Oakland on the verge of clinching a postseason berth after failing to reach the playoffs last year for the first time since 2016.

Tyler O’Neill hit a two-run homer for the Red Sox (75-75), who dropped 4 1/2 games behind Minnesota (79-70) for the final AL wild card spot.

Wearing No. 21 on Roberto Clemente Day, Judge hit a two-run shot in a three-run third off Kutter Crawford (8-15) on an 0-1 fastball. The 445-foot drive soared off the glass of the center-field restaurant that serve's as the batter's eye and fell onto the netting above Monument Park behind center field for a 4-0 lead.

After Boston manager Alex Cora admitted before the game Brayan Bello tried hitting Judge on purpose in the sixth inning Saturday on a pitch that was behind the slugger, Judge carried his bat about halfway down the line before dropping it as he approached first base.

“It’s a big homer,” Judge said. “We’re playing the Red Sox. This is a big rival, big games, big moment. So I’m just having some fun with the moment.”

Judge joined Babe Ruth (1921, 1927), Roger Maris (1961), Mickey Mantle (1961) as Yankees with at least 53 homers through New York's first 150 games.

“It’s been an amazing season and you’re not going to keep him off the board long even though I guess it’s long by his standards,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “That ball he hit today that ball is cleaned out off the restaurant out there.”

“For him it’s pretty normal,” Rodón said. “Not many guys take that pitch out to center like that.”

Gleyber Torres also homered off Crawford, a drive into the short porch in right to start the third. According to Statcast, Torres’ drive would have been a homer only at Houston and Yankee Stadium.

“Whatever he can do right now, I’m glad to see it in person,” Torres said about Judge.

Giancarlo Stanton had an RBI single along with a sacrifice fly as the Yankees won for the seventh time in 10 games.

Rodón allowed two runs and six hits 5 1/3 innings, surpassing his 14 wins with San Francisco in 2022.

Five relievers combined for 3 2/3 scoreless innings. Clay Holmes stranded a runner in the eighth and Tommy Kahnle got a double play on Jarren Duran to finish his first save this season.

Kahnle became the eighth pitcher to get a save for the Yankees this year. He needed only four pitches to get Duran to bounce into his second double play of the game.

Crawford has allowed a major league-high 33 home runs. He gave up four runs and six hits in 4 1/3 innings and lost his sixth straight start.

Rafael Devers singled ahead of O’Neill’s homer in the fourth, went 1 for 3 and is homerless in 17 straight games.

“It’s getting tougher and tougher,” Cora said after his team went 0 for 9 with runners in scoring position.

Second baseman Romy Gonzalez’s error led to Boston’s major league-high 91st unearned run.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Red Sox: OF Rob Refsnyder (right wrist discomfort) missed his third straight game and is still experiencing soreness. … RHP Tanner Houck, who was scratched from Friday’s start because of shoulder fatigue and last pitched on Sept. 4, is scheduled to pitch Wednesday in Tampa Bay.

UP NEXT

Red Sox: Start a three-game series at Tampa Bay on Tuesday on Tuesday.

Yankees: RHP Luis Gil (13-6, 3.18 ERA) opposes Mariners RHP Bryan Wood (8-2, 2.38) in the opener of a three-game series on Tuesday night.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

New York Yankees designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton hits a sacrifice fly during the seventh inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) celebrates with Jasson Dominguez, second from left, Juan Soto, second from right, and Aaron Judge, right, after a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees center fielder Aaron Judge, right, celebrates with Juan Soto, front, and Jasson Dominguez (89) after a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge stands on first base that is commemorated for Roberto Clemente Day during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees starting pitcher Carlos Rodon walks off the field during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Boston Red Sox manager Alex Cora, left, walks out to take Kutter Crawford (50) out during the fifth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Boston Red Sox's Masataka Yoshida reacts after flying out during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Boston Red Sox's Trevor Story reacts after striking out during the sixth inning of a baseball game against the New York Yankees, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Clay Holmes pitches during the eighth inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

Boston Red Sox starting pitcher Kutter Crawford reacts after giving up a two-run home run to New York Yankees' Aaron Judge during the third inning of a baseball game Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge reacts after hitting a two-run home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge watches his two-run home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Gleyber Torres, right, is congratulated by Aaron Judge, left, after hitting a home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge reacts after hitting a two-run home run during the third inning of a baseball game against the Boston Red Sox, Sunday, Sept. 15, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Adam Hunger)

NEW YORK (AP) — The Puerto Rican superstar Bad Bunny has redefined what it means to be a global giant — and he may once again make history at the 2026 Grammy Awards.

The artist born Benito Antonio Martínez Ocasio is up for six awards at the Feb. 1 show, becoming the first Spanish-language artist to be nominated for album, song and record of the year simultaneously. His critically acclaimed album, “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” is only the second Spanish-language record to be nominated for album of the year. The first? Well, that also belonged to Bad Bunny, 2022’s “Un Verano Sin Ti.”

Win or lose, experts say Bad Bunny's Grammy nominations mark a symbolic moment for Latinos. Just a week later, after all, he'll headline the Super Bowl halftime show.

Vanessa Díaz, associate professor of Chicano and Latino studies at Loyola Marymount University and co-author of “P FKN R: How Bad Bunny Became the Global Voice of Puerto Rican Resistance,” says Bad Bunny's nods extend beyond his own art and serve as a “very welcome recognition of Latin music that is growing.”

“Music from the Spanish-speaking Caribbean has been shaping global music tastes since the 19th century,” adds Albert Laguna, associate professor of ethnicity, race and migration and American studies at Yale. “Bad Bunny is another link in a much longer chain of the popularity of Caribbean music on a global stage.”

Much of this music — particularly Latin trap and reggaetón, the genres Bad Bunny got his start in and continues to use in his new work — has been historically criminalized in Puerto Rico, not unlike hip-hop in the United States. Reggaetón in particular, Díaz points out, “comes from the most marginalized communities in Puerto Rico. And so, the fact that Bad Bunny is receiving nominations in three main categories, and this is an artist who came up with trap … is the most groundbreaking thing about the entire situation.”

Petra Rivera-Rideau, associate professor of American studies at Wellesley College and co-author of “P FKN R,” says that element is particularly noteworthy because institutions often ignore marginalized genres — including at the Latin Grammys, a sister award show to the Grammys.

A victory in the major categories could have “profound, symbolic meaning,” she says. But with a caveat: “I’m interested to see if this is going to open doors for other people.” After all, Bad Bunny himself isn't immune to the Recording Academy’s institutional biases: He already has three career Grammys, but all have been in música urbana categories — despite the fact that he is the most streamed artist on the planet.

Across “Debí Tirar Más Fotos,” Bad Bunny and his producers weave traditional Puerto Rican folkloric styles into a hyper-contemporary context. Latin trap and reggaetón aren't abandoned but fused with música jíbara, salsa, bomba, plena and even aguinaldo, a kind of Christmas music, in “Pitorro de Coco.” While Bad Bunny’s previous albums also fused different genres — including bossa nova, mambo, rock, merengue and more — this album’s melange was more homegrown.

Laguna sees “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” as a direct challenge to the prevailing “formula for global pop stardom,” which he describes as an artist making it locally, gaining traction and then “watering down” their sound into something commercial and palatable for a global audience.

“Bad Bunny went in the opposite direction. It’s his most Puerto Rican album ever,” says Laguna. He hopes it will communicate to other artists that they, too, can look to their ancestry and history for artmaking.

“There’s so much amazing Latin music that has been overlooked and that’s part of what is so beautiful about this moment,” says Díaz. “And that's why it feels like a win for all Latinos.”

The timing of the album's release and recognition, too, feels consequential. “The U.S. has a history of othering Latinos, othering the Spanish language. … We’re in a moment where that feels extremely acute,” she continues. “For a community that is being targeted on such a deep level, it is a little bit of light, a little bit of faith that we can still carve out our place here.”

Latinos and the Spanish-speaking community in the U.S. have grown increasingly wary amid growing anti-immigrant sentiment and raids, as President Donald Trump’s immigration policies and executive actions have vastly expanded who is eligible for deportation and routine hearings have turned into deportation traps for migrants.

In an interview with i-D Magazine earlier this year, Bad Bunny mentioned that concerns around the mass deportations of Latinos factored into his decision not to tour in the continental U.S. ( Hundreds of people have been detained in Puerto Rico itself since large-scale arrests began in late January.)

“The content of the lyrics — which are so steeped in the history of Puerto Rico, political histories, tourism and gentrification — there’s so much rich political and historical content,” Díaz adds. “This album is historic even without a Grammy win.”

But if Bad Bunny does win, Díaz says, it will be “akin to Halle Berry being the first Black woman to win an Oscar. That was a watershed moment. Or Rita Moreno being the first Latina to win.”

Beyond that, Laguna says the politics of the album are not exclusive to Puerto Rican or even Latino identity — “the lyrics on this album align with global struggles,” he says. Take, for example, “Lo que le pasó a Hawaii” (“What happened to Hawaii”), a rallying cry for cultural autonomy in an era of neocolonialization.

Rivera-Rideau says one of the reasons “Debí Tirar Más Fotos” has resonated is not just the political implications of using folkloric music in addition to música urbana, but its sound. The traditional genres are “a lot more digestible” to listeners who embrace the antiquated taboos surrounding Latin trap and scoff at reggaetón's sexuality. As a result, the combination of sounds makes for an album that is “popular across generations,” she says.

But it only works because it is “musically really interesting. If it was just traditional music, and that's only what people cared about, it wouldn't have done as well as it did,” she explains. “Musically, it is super innovative and makes accessible a lot of these older genres that people in Puerto Rico listen to, but he’s been able to globalize these very local genres in a way that no one else has.”

That intergenerational appeal was a feature of Bad Bunny's landmark Puerto Rican residency, with the age and global diversity of its audience.

“A lot of people feel like this is a tense moment, it’s a difficult moment. And here’s someone giving us a sonic language in which to narrate this complex present,” Laguna says. “There's pleasure, in political critique, that the music makes possible in a beautiful way. And I think that's very much welcomed.”

The 68th Grammy Awards will be held Feb. 1, 2026, at Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles. The show will air on CBS and stream on Paramount+. For more coverage, visit https://apnews.com/hub/grammy-awards.

FILE - Bad Bunny performs during the iHeartRadio Music Awards, on Monday, March 17, 2025, at the Dolby Theatre in Los Angeles. (AP Photo/Chris Pizzello, File)