NEW YORK _ All rise, the Yankees are back in the championship series.
American League MVP candidate Aaron Judge shook off his playoff strikeout funk and drilled a two-out, three-run home run Monday night, and the 6-foot-7 rookie right fielder made several spectacular defensive plays behind a gritty, throwback effort from starter CC Sabathia to help the Yankees beat Houston, 8-1, and rebound from a 0-2 ALCS hole before a sold-out Yankee Stadium crowd of 49,373 rabid fans.
Todd Frazier also socked a two-out, three-run home run off Astros starter Charlie Morton, while Sabathia gutted out six scoreless innings. Adam Warren pitched two scoreless frames and Tommy Kahnle finished the game after another Dellin Betances fiasco.
The Astros still lead the ALCS 2-1 with Game 4 scheduled for Tuesday in the Bronx.
In a deja vu moment, the Bombers returned home for Game 3 of a playoff series down two games to none. The only difference was that manager Joe Girardi was cheered by the home crowd during Stadium introductions Monday, unlike before Game 3 of the ALDS, when Girardi was roasted by the Bronx faithful following the skipper's Game 2 gaffe in Cleveland, when he failed to challenge a foul tip call. The Yankees lost that game, Girardi was blistered by fans, but the Bombers ended up beating the Indians in five games.
Judge entered Game 3 of the ALCS with 19 whiffs through the first eight postseason games, and although he struck out against Morton in the first inning Monday, Judge drew a walk in the third and then blasted the homer off Houston reliever Will Harris in the fourth. Harris had just replaced Morton with two outs.
On defense, Judge made a spectacular grab of a Yuli Gurriel liner to right to lead off the top of the fourth. Judge sprinted to his left, snared the ball in mid-air and crashed against wall where the PlayStation "Greatness Awaits" advertisement is splashed across the padding _ a fitting symbol for the budding star. The ball would have likely stayed in the park had Judge not caught it, and the towering outfielder did a somersault after he landed on the ground, but he held onto the ball. Judge robbed Cleveland's Francisco Lindor of a two-run homer at the Stadium wall in the ALDS.
In the top of the fifth with a man on first, Judge laid out full extension and caught Cameron Maybin's liner to right. Later in the inning, Judge sprinted to shallow right near the foul line and caught Alex Bregman's pop fly.
While the rookie right fielder heard "M-V-P" chants during the game, Sabathia was serenaded with "C-C!" cheers starting as early as the top of the second inning. The big lefty was fired up as he walked off the field at the end of the sixth, after having just thrown out Josh Reddick at first. Reddick didn't bunt on the play _ something that Sabathia took issue with earlier this year against Boston _ but the Houston outfielder got a Sabathia verbal blast anyway. Sabathia finished with six scoreless innings and gave up just three hits while whiffing five and walking four. He threw 99 pitches total.
Morton got trouble in the second and was gone by the fourth inning. Houston manager A.J. Hinch yanked the right-hander after he had thrown 72 pitches. Morton gave up seven runs on six hits. Meanwhile, Houston's young stars _ second baseman Jose Altuve and shortstop Carlos Correa _ were a combined 1-for-8 Monday.
Frazier had to reach outside for the 1-1, 95 mph fastball from Morton, but he still socked it the opposite way into the right field stands. The Little League star raised his right index finger to the fans in right while rounding first.
