The day began with past greats gathered at Monument Park, but as usual, the real star on Saturday afternoon was Aaron Judge, who powered the Yankees to their third straight win over the awful Royals, 8- 2, in the Bronx.
It was just another day for the slugger, who continued his record-setting pace with his 42nd homer of the MLB season and 200th of his career.
Only Philadelphia’s Ryan Howard reached the 200 home run mark faster, getting there in 658 games, compared to Judge’s 671.
Saturday’s home run, Judge’s ninth in nine games, was a two-run laser into right field off right-hander Jonathan Heasley, who, like the rest of the Royals, looked overmatched.
Néstor Cortés, not at his peak, limited the Royals to two runs in five innings.
It all followed a baffling senior day at the Stadium, missing a game as well as Mariano Rivera and other Yankee greats.
Aaron Judge rounds the bases after his home run against the Royals on Saturday Corey Sipkin
The Yankees (69-33) hit Heasley in the bottom of the first, with the first four batters reaching base, and two of them scoring.
DJ LeMahieu led off with a home run to right-center, his 10th home run of the season.
Judge, who entered with eight home runs in his previous eight games, singled to left and Andrew Benintendi walked.
Gleyber Torres then sent a booming double into right-center to score Judge and send Benintendi to third before Josh Donaldson grounded out for the first out.
Matt Carpenter walked to load the bases for Aaron Hicks, a notoriously bad hitter with the bases loaded, even though he had walked in the same situation Friday night in the Yankees’ win.
This time, Hicks came back to form and grounded into an inning-ending double play on a 3-2 pitch to keep it a two-run game.
Cortés got out of a jam in the second. After a leadoff walk to Hunter Dozier and a single up the middle by Vinnie Pasquatino, Michael A. Taylor’s fly ball to right moved Dozier to third.
With runners on the corners, MJ Melendez hit a slow chopper to Cortes, who got Dozier on a third-and-home run and threw him out.
Cortés followed with a point from Maikel Garcia to end the threat.
After Judge’s home run in the second made it 4-0, Cortes gave up a single to Nicky Lopez and a double to Whit Merrifield to start the third.
Matt Carpenter hits a home run against the Royals on Saturday. Corey Sipkin
He struck out Bobby Witt Jr., but Salvador Perez crushed a single to left-center, where it hung long enough for Hicks to catch the warning track for a sacrifice fly.
Cortes then struck out Dozier.
He wasn’t so lucky in the fourth, the lefty’s third consecutive inning with multiple base runners.
Taylor singled with one out and Melendez walked. A base hit by Garcia drove in Taylor to make it 4-2.
But Lopez followed with a hard drive to first, and LeMahieu started a nice 3-6-3 double play.
Néstor Cortés reacts during the Yankees over the Royals on Saturday. Robert Sabo for the NY POST
The Yankees added two more runs in the fourth, thanks to more brutal play by the Royals.
First, Garcia tried to catch an Isiah Kiner-Falefa popup with one out and dropped it. Kansas City was seemingly on the verge of a bailout when Jose Trevino dropped to third for an easy double play, but Merrifield dropped Lopez’s throw.
LeMahieu hit an RBI single and after Judge walked, a Benintendi sacrifice made it 6-2.
The Yankees scored again on another Kansas City error in the sixth. Kiner-Falefa stole second and Perez threw the ball to left field on the play, allowing Kiner-Falefa to come home.
Carpenter’s 15th home run of the year, and second since July 17, gave the Yankees an 8-2 lead in the seventh.
Clarke Schmidt pitched three innings to finish the game and pick up his second save.