CLEVELAND � Via his Instagram account, Aaron Judge offered a public statement.
"The regular season is over, it's time to turn the page and get back to business and play for a World Series. This is what it's about, nothing else matters!"
On his first swing Tuesday night, the Yankees slugger put deed to words by slamming a two-run homer off 2020 AL Cy Young Award shoe-in Shane Bieber.
That stunning, first-inning sock to the jaw was followed by a steady stream of hits and runs, allowing Yankees ace Gerrit Cole to fill the strike zone against the Cleveland Indians.
By the late innings, Game 1 of a treacherous best-of-five AL Wild Card Series had become a giddy romp for the visitors at Progressive Field.
"Everyone who's saying we only play good at Yankee Stadium, it's a bunch of BS," Luke Voit said before the Yankees' 12-3 win played before a handful of select family members from both clubs.
Judge hadn't homered since coming off the injured list (strained calf) Sept. 16 before connecting in Game 1, following DJ LeMahieu's leadoff single.
And the Yanks were a pedestrian 11-18 on the road this year, having lost six of their last eight games overall entering postseason.
