Yankees 12-3 Brewers: Judge homers again, offense totals 36 runs in series

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New York Yankees 12-3 Milwaukee Brewers

The New York Yankees closed out their first series of 2025 with a commanding 12-3 victory over the Brewers on Sunday, sweeping the defending NL Central champions and putting the rest of baseball on notice. With four more home runs in the finale, the Yankees tied the 2006 Tigers for the most homers through a season’s first three games (15). Aaron Judge homered again—his fourth of the year—to set a franchise record for most long balls through three games, and Jazz Chisholm Jr. went deep twice to help bury Milwaukee and cap off a red-hot start to the new campaign.

The Yankees have now scored 36 runs in the first three games of the season, a staggering total that offers a glimpse of what this retooled lineup might be capable of in 2025.

Judge homers again, Jazz hits two in rout

Milwaukee struck first against Marcus Stroman, who gave up a leadoff single to Brice Turang, then walked William Contreras before surrendering an RBI single to Sal Frelick. But the Yankees wasted no time responding. Paul Goldschmidt, starting at leadoff for the second straight game, singled to left to open the bottom of the first. Two batters later, Aaron Judge crushed a 3-2 fastball 410 feet to left for a two-run shot, giving the Yankees a 2-1 lead. The captain has now homered in every game this season.

Ben Rice joined the home run parade in the second, launching a 1-1 sinker into the second deck in right for his first of the year. The Yankees are counting on Rice to fill the DH spot with Giancarlo Stanton sidelined, and his early return—paired with his strong spring showing—adds promise to the lineup’s depth.

After Jazz Chisholm Jr. hit his second home run of the season in the third inning, a two-run shot following an intentional walk to Judge, the Yankees had built a 5-1 cushion. The blast came off Milwaukee reliever Jared Koenig and showcased the early success of the so-called “torpedo bat,” a new model developed by hitting coach and former MIT physicist Aaron Leanhardt that’s being used by several Yankees hitters. Designed to shift the bat’s center of mass closer to the barrel, it appears to be making an immediate impact.

Stroman shaky in debut, bullpen solid again

Stroman’s debut in pinstripes wasn’t spotless. After retiring the side in order in the second and third, the right-hander faltered again in the fourth. Contreras singled to open the inning, and Jake Bauers followed with a two-run homer to right, trimming the Yankees’ lead to 5-3. Stroman, who saw his home run rate climb significantly last year, left the game in the fifth after allowing a single to Jackson Chourio with two outs. His final line: 4.2 innings, five hits, three earned runs, one walk, and three strikeouts on 81 pitches.

Tim Hill came on and struck out Christian Yelich to end the fifth, then delivered a clean sixth with two strikeouts.

Yankees tack on late insurance

New York added to its lead in the sixth. Judge walked to lead off, Chisholm Jr. singled, and a deep flyout from Anthony Volpe moved them up. A wild pitch from Koenig allowed Judge to score, and a hard grounder from Austin Wells plated Jazz to make it 7-3.

But the Yankees weren’t finished. They erupted for five more in the seventh. Ben Rice, Oswaldo Cabrera, and Goldschmidt opened the frame with singles, and Cody Bellinger delivered a sac fly to center. With runners on, Judge drew his third walk of the game, setting the stage for Chisholm Jr., who crushed a hanging slider from Joel Payamps inside the right field foul pole for his second homer of the day—a three-run shot that made it 12-3.

Chisholm Jr. finished the day with four RBIs and three hits. Judge reached base four times, while Rice recorded his first career multi-hit game.

Mark Leiter Jr., Fernando Cruz, and Ryan Yarbrough took care of the final three innings without incident, combining to allow just two baserunners and preserving the nine-run win.

The Yankees’ rotation remains a question mark—Stroman became the second straight starter to exit before completing five innings—but the bullpen has been dependable, and the offense is doing more than its share to carry the weight. Even without Giancarlo Stanton, the Yankees scored double-digit runs in back-to-back games.

Up next

The Yankees will enjoy a day off Monday before hosting the Diamondbacks for a three-game series beginning Tuesday. Rookie Will Warren is scheduled to make his season debut, while Arizona counters with newly acquired ace Corbin Burnes. First pitch is set for 7:05 p.m. ET on YES.

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