Yankees’ 10,000th win clinches American League playoff berth

The New York Yankees picked up the 10,000th victory in franchise history with a 4-1 win over the Boston Red Sox on Thursday night at Yankee Stadium in the Bronx. With the win, the team clinched an American League Wild Card berth, earning their first playoff appearance in three seasons.

At 87-72, the Yankees are guaranteed to finish ahead of the Minnesota Twins (82-76), and with the Angels (83-75) battling the Texas Rangers (86-72), one of the Halos or Texas are guaranteed to finish with 76 losses, assuring the Yankees of finishing ahead of them for a Wild Card spot.

Carlos Beltran opened the scoring on Thursday with a home run in the second inning, a two-run frame. Greg Bird added some insurance with a solo shot of his own in the seventh inning, his 11th of the season in just 43 games.

Rob Refsnyder added to the lead with a solo home run in the eighth.

CC Sabathia allowed a run and six hits in five innings for the win, but it was Adam Warren who was the pitching star with three scoreless innings in relief to hold the lead.

With 10,000 wins, the Yankees are the winningest American League team in history, and their .569 all-time winning percentage is the best at the time of their 10,000th win, ahead of .540 when the San Francisco Giants reached the milestone, per the Elias Sports Bureau. The five-digit milestone has been reached by seven teams in the National League, which was founded in 1876, 25 years before the American League.

The Yankees will play either the Astros, Angels, Twins or Rangers in the American League Wild Card Game, which will be played on Tuesday, with the opponent and location (likely in New York) still to be decided this weekend.