Aaron Judge’s historic 62nd home run, which broke the American League and Yankees single-season records, sailed into the first row of the left field stands at Globe Life Field in the first inning of Tuesday night’s game between the Yankees and Rangers.

A man in a gray T-shirt and wearing a baseball glove on his right hand caught the ball on a fly and raised his glove in the air triumphantly as the stadium exploded in celebration of Judge’s feat.

The fan was identified as Corey Youmans of Dallas by WFAA sports anchor Joe Trahan, who caught up with Youmans as he gleefully walked around the inside of the stadium while being cheered by other spectators.

“What are you gonna do with the ball, Corey?” Trahan asked in a video posted to Twitter.

“That’s a good question,” Youmans said. “I haven’t thought about it.”

Trahan then asked Youmans if he was “gonna keep it or you gonna give it back to Aaron?”

Before Youmans could answer he was swarmed by a group of cheering fans, including one in a Yankee cap who high-fived him.

Judge broke the record set by Roger Maris in 1961. On Oct. 1 that year, Maris hit his 61st into the right field stands at old Yankee Stadium, where it was caught by fan Sal Durante, who met Maris after the game and offered to give the ball back to the slugger.

But Maris told Durante to keep the ball and put it up for auction. A few days later, Durante was paid $5,000 for the ball by a California restaurant owner named Sam Gordon.

In 1998, the ball Mark McGwire hit for his 70th home run of the season — setting an overall MLB record before Barry Bonds hit 73 in 2001 — sold for $3 million.

It is unclear what the value of Judge’s 62nd home run ball is, but it should be significant, which explains the frenzied attempt by at least one fan in Texas to retrieve it.

About 15 feet to the right of where Judge’s home run ball ended up, a fan jumped over the railing and into the area between the outfield wall and the stands in apparent anticipation of the ball landing there. It didn’t, so the unlucky fan’s fall of what looked to be about 10 feet was all for naught.

Instead, all it took to get the ball was a glove and a whole lot of luck.

DeGrom missed more than half this season while rehabbing a shoulder injury and if there’s ever a chance to give him an extra couple of days of rest, the Mets will take it.

DeGrom responded well, striking out nine, allowing three hits and just one run in the Mets’ 3-1 win over Colorado at Citi Field. The Mets won their 80th game of the season and are now up two full games on the second-place Braves, who were off.

DeGrom threw just 87 pitches before he was taken out, raising some concerns about his health. But Buck Showalter said it was just a matter of him deciding his pitcher was done.

“Sometimes guys on a little extra rest are not quite as crisp but he was the difference in the game for us,” Showalter said, adding that he could have sent deGrom out for a few more pitches but felt like he was done.

“It’s not a pure pitch count. It’s an eye test,” Showalter said. “If it passes the eye test, he continues to pitch.”

DeGrom said he had no issues. He was also asked if he needed to increase his pitch-count as the Mets near the postseason, when his performance will be crucial in their effort to make the World Series.

“After I went to 95 in Atlanta I felt completely fine,” he said of his previous outing. “I think we’re checking off all the boxes and it’s leaning in that direction.”

Adam Ottavino picked up his first save of the season with a perfect ninth after Edwin Diaz pitched the eighth.

The Mets (80-46) returned home after going 4-6 on a 10-game road trip that included a two-game sweep by the Yankees in the Bronx. But they have the easiest schedule in baseball over the final month or so and need to take advantage of opponents like the Rockies (54-72), who are in last place in the NL West.

DeGrom was perfect for 4 ? innings until Jose Iglesias legged out an infield single up the middle. Francisco Lindor made a diving grab but by the time he got up, spun around and threw to first, it was too late.

Randal Grichuk followed with a double into the left-field corner, putting runners on second and third with one out, but deGrom got out of the inning with a strikeout and a flyball.

The Mets had gotten on the board in the bottom of the third on an RBI fielder’s choice by Lindor. Then with a runner on second and first base open with two outs, the Rockies opted to pitch to Alonso instead of walking him. On a 3-0 pitch, Alonso hit a 409-foot blast to left field that hit off the facing of the second deck.

DeGrom got into some trouble in the sixth when with one out, Ryan McMahon crushed a solo home run to right center-field before Brendan Rodgers walked. But deGrom worked out of it by fanning Charlie Blackmon with a 99-mph fastball down the middle and then getting C.J. Cron on a weak 6-4 groundout.

Up 3-1 going into the seventh, Showalter opted to lift deGrom for Seth Lugo, who walked two batters to put the tying runs on base before allowing an infield single to load them up.

But Lugo got a huge strikeout of McMahon on a 3-2 fastball up and away to end the Rockies’ biggest threat of the night.

Showalter then went to Diaz in the eighth, when the Rockies sent up their second, third and fourth hitters. Diaz got the first two outs but walked Cron and allowed a single to Iglesias to put the tying runs on again.

After blowing two fastballs by Grichuk, Diaz threw two straight sliders. One was fouled off and the other swung through for the final out, as the Rockies left their seventh and eighth runners on base over the course of four straight innings.

Anthony Rizzo has agreed to a two-year deal with the Bombers that will pay him $32 million and give him the right to opt out after the first year, according to multiple reports. The deal is pending a physical.

Rizzo a longtime Cub, was traded to the Yankees last season when Chicago decided to sell off parts and the Yankees tried to make a push for a deep postseason run. His left-handed bat is a good fit for Yankee Stadium. He struggled a bit last season with 22 HRs and 61 RBI in 141 games, but has put up big numbers for most of his career, with identical 33 HR, 109-RBI seasons in 2016 and 2017. Overall, he has 251 home runs and 814 RBI in 11 seasons.

The Yankees were believed to be in the market for first baseman Freddie Freeman, whose time in Atlanta appears to be over after the Braves signed former A’s first baseman Matt Olsen this week.

Now, the Yankees seem content to have Rizzo back at first, which is not a bad option considering the success he has had over the course of his career.

It will be the Washington Commanders, an appropriate nod to the Commander-In-Chief of the United States, who lives nearby.

“As an organization, we are excited to rally and rise together as one under our new identity while paying homage to our local roots and what it means to represent the nation’s capital,” owner Dan Snyder said.

The team made the announcement on the “Today” show Wednesday morning but it was not as much of a surprise as it could have been.

Following a slip of the tongue by franchise legend Joe Theismann during a radio interview on Monday, an NBC Washington Chopper 4 news camera zoomed in on a banner hanging inside of FedEx Field on Tuesday that clearly showed the word “Commanders” emblazoned in gold letters over a maroon background, consistent with the team’s longtime color scheme.

And the colors aren’t changing.

“We continue to honor and represent the Burgundy and Gold while forging a pathway to a new era in Washington,” Snyder said.

The NFC East rivals of the Giants have been going by the name Washington Football Team for the past two seasons, after the club dropped its previous racially insensitive name in July of 2020.

On Monday, Theismann, who quarterbacked Washington to a Super Bowl XVII win over the Dolphins in 1983, was being interviewed on CBS Sports Radio when he apparently fumbled the big secret.

“I think the Commanders is a name that is hopefully gonna be one that people will talk about going forward,” he said before going onto explain the apparent origin of the new team nickname. “Commanders is basically Washington, D.C. A lot of Commanders in Washington, D.C., the Pentagon and a lot of different branches of the service. So to me that’s certainly the way I’m looking at it, as positions of leadership when it comes to the new name.”

In a 2003 interview with USA Today, Snyder famously insisted that, “We will never change the name of the team.”

“We’ll never change the name,” he said after being pressed. “It’s that simple. NEVER — you can use caps.”

Gillies, a forward from Moose Jaw, SK, was selected by the Islanders in the first round of the 1974 draft. He played for the team from 1974 through 1986, playing in 872 games, which is fifth on the team’s all-time list. His 304 goals are fourth all-time in franchise history and his 359 assists are fifth all-time for the Isles.

“The entire Islanders community is devastated by the loss of Clark Gillies,” Islanders President and General Manager Lou Lamoriello said. “He epitomized what it means to be a New York Islander. The pride he felt wearing the Islanders sweater on the ice was evident by his willingness to do anything to win. Off the ice, he was just as big of a presence, always taking the time to give back to the local community.”

Gillies was one of 17 Islanders who won four straight Cups in 1980, ’81, ’82 and ’83.

The Islanders retired Gillies’ No. 9 on December 7, 1996 and his banner hangs in the new UBS Arena.

“The New York Islanders have four Stanley Cups because of the sacrifices he and the members of those dynasty teams made for the franchise,” Lamoriello said. “On behalf of the entire organization, we send our deepest condolences to the entire Gillies family.”

Hernandez’s No. 17 will be retired by the Mets on July 9, before a game against the Marlins at Citi Field, the team announced on Tuesday.

Hernandez spent seven years with the Mets, batting .297 with 939 hits and five Gold Gloves at first base. He also helped lead the Amazin’s to their most-recent World Series title, batting .310 with 13 homers and 87 RBI in 1986.

Since, he has become even more popular with the team and its fanbase, serving since 1999 as a major piece of a broadcasting team that is widely considered the best in baseball. Hernandez is known for his dry wit, quick sense of humor and willingness to be highly critical of the team he works for.

That has only helped make Hernandez one of the most beloved characters in team history.

Hernandez will be the fourth player to have his number retired by the Mets. The others are Tom Seaver (41), Mike Piazza (31) and Jerry Koosman (36).

“I’m thrilled,” Hernandez said in a statement released by the team. “This is truly a special honor that lasts beyond a lifetime. I can’t thank Steve and Alex Cohen and the Mets Hall of Fame Committee enough. I was very emotional when Steve called to let me know about the number retirement. This is the highest honor an organization can bestow upon a player. I also want to thank Mets fans, who have treated me like family since I arrived in 1983.”

Hernandez, who was acquired by the Mets in June of 1983 from the Cardinals in exchange for pitchers Neil Allen and Rick Ownbey, had a career batting average of .299. He’s considered one of the best fielding first baseman to ever play the game, with 11 Gold Gloves overall.

“Keith was the first captain in team history and a great leader and catalyst on that ’86 championship team,” team owner Steve Cohen said in the statement. “He was a defensive wizard at first and was a clutch performer late in games. We made a promise to continue celebrating and honoring our tremendous history and this is another deserving step in that direction. Congratulations, Keith.”

LeBron James has been placed into the NBA’s health and safety protocols after testing positive for the virus, according to TMZ. James will miss the Lakers’ game tonight against the Kings, according to multiple reports.

James, who has said he is fully vaccinated against the virus, will miss several games, according to ESPN. According to NBA rules, players must test negative on two separate days before they can be cleared to return. Players who test positive must sit out 10 days.

James, who was suspended for last week’s game against the Knicks at the Garden stemming from an altercation with the Pistons’ Isaiah Stewart, was admittedly reluctant about the vaccine but said during training camp that he did it to protect himself “and my family.”

“I know what I did for me and my family. I know what some of my friends did for their families,” James said at the time. “But as far as speaking for everybody and their individualities, and things they want to do, that’s not my job.”

According to Michael J. Babcock, an executive producer with TMZ Sports, James took three COVID tests on Tuesday. The first came back positive, the second negative. A third test was administered as a “tie-breaker” and came back positive.

“I’m told he asymptomatic at this time,” Babcock tweeted. “The team chartered a private jet to take Lebron back to L.A.”

Taillon looked every bit the front-end starter the Yankees envisioned him to be when they traded for him back in January. Unfortunately for him, the Yankee lineup looked nothing like the one that put up 14 runs against the Orioles in the first two games of the series and a late mistake doomed the Yankees in a 4-3 loss to the Orioles in 11 innings. The loss snapped the Bombers’ 12-game Stadium winning streak against Baltimore.

Gleyber Torres made a throwing error in the 10th inning that gave the Orioles a 3-2 lead. Torres took his time fielding a ball hit by catcher Pedro Severino and then rushed the throw. The one-hopper was too much for inexperienced first baseman Jay Bruce to handle and the ball skidded by him, allowing Anthony Santander to score from third. Santander started the inning at second under MLB’s extra-innings rule.

“Just a throw that’s got to be more on target in that spot,” Aaron Boone said of Torres’ errant toss. “It turned into a real tough play over there for Jay.”

The Yankees, with a runner on second to start the bottom of the 10th, tied the score when Kyle Higashioka lined an RBI single to right.

But Baltimore went up for good an inning later when pinch-hitter Chance Sisco blooped a single to left that drove in the go-ahead run.

The game ended on a play at the plate when DJ LeMahieu lifted a ball to right with one out and Gio Urshela on third. Santander fired home in plenty of time to nail Urshela, who dove toward the plate and took a painful tag to the face.

The Yankees trailed 2-1 in the bottom of the eighth when Gary Sanchez ripped a line drive to left field that sailed beyond the reach of Baltimore’s Ryan Mountcastle. Sanchez assumed the ball would be caught and started to slow jog toward first, where he had to stop even though the ball bounced off the wall.

Boone lifted Sanchez for pinch-runner Mike Tauchman, a no-brainer move that helped the Yankees tie the game when Gio Urshela followed with a double to the left-field gap.

The Orioles pulled off a perfect relay that started when Mountcastle cut the ball off before it reached the warning track. Tauchman, whose speed is one of the reasons he is on the roster, burned around the basepaths as the crowd roared in anticipation of a play at the plate.

Tauchman dove headfirst into home, just beating the tag of catcher Pedro Severino and tying the score at 2.

Taillon pitched 4.2 innings, allowing two runs on three hits. He struck out seven and did not walk a batter. The last five outs he recorded came on Ks.

Taillon hadn’t appeared in a Major League game since May 1, 2019. Since then he’s undergone two surgeries, including Tommy John surgery, and was traded from the Pirates to the Yankees. He also survived testicular cancer in 2017.

Taillon cruised through the first three innings, holding the Orioles hitless.

The Yankees broke through with the first run of the game in the third, when Brett Gardner and LeMahieu started the inning with back-to-back singles. Then with one out, Aaron Hicks roped a single up the middle off Baltimore starter John Means.

Gardner raced around third to give the Yankees a 1-0 lead. But with runners on first and second, Giancarlo Stanton followed by bouncing into a 5-4-3 double play that ended the inning.

In the fourth, Taillon left a pitch up in the zone to Orioles leadoff hitter Cedric Mullins, who crushed it deep into the right field bleachers.

An out later, Taillon threw a fastball that Santander hit over the 385-foot sign and into the Baltimore bullpen in right.

Taillon could be heard cursing himself as the ball sailed overhead and gave the O’s a 2-1 lead.

Taillon went into the fifth having thrown 63 pitches, and he was yanked after blowing a fastball by Freddie Galvas for the second out of the inning.

As Taillon turned the ball over to Boone, the limited Stadium crowd gave him a nice hand. Just before Taillon reached the dugout, where his cheering teammates were waiting, he pounded his fist into his glove and glanced into the stands to take it all in.

“This is gonna sound cheesy but I’ll never take a day in a big-league uniform for granted, that’s for sure,” Taillon said after the game. “I was super happy to be out there. It felt really good to compete. Good to get the first one out of the way. Really excited to be a part of this team and now just build off of this and get going.”

“Obviously this day was a long day coming for him,” Boone said. “So I’m sure there were a lot of emotions being out there on that mound again.”

The Yankees had something brewing in the seventh when LeMahieu led off with a single. After Torres lined out sharply to right, Hicks worked his way into a 3-1 count against Orioles lefty reliver Tanner Scott.

Scott appeared to miss the outside corner with his next pitch and Hicks started making his way to first only to hear the home plate umpire call a strike. As the Stadium crowd hummed in frustration, Hicks chased the next pitch out of the strike zone to the second out.

Scott, a fire-balling lefty with a nasty slider, then struck out Stanton to end the inning.

Five years after attempting to make a run at the major leagues following a short career in the NFL, the former quarterback says he is retiring from baseball.

When Tebow first made it known that he wanted to play baseball, many felt it was a publicity stunt and the longest of longshots. But despite never showing the kind of promise needed to make it to the big leagues, he actually didn’t embarrass himself on the diamond. At least most of the time.

But in the end, the 2007 Heisman Trophy winner finished his pro baseball career with a .223 average over 287 games.

“I want to thank the Mets, (Sandy) Alderson, the fans and all my teammates for the chance to be a part of such a great organization,” Tebow said in a statement released by the Mets on Wednesday. “I loved every minute of the journey, but at this time I feel called in other directions.

“I never want to be partially in on anything. I always want to be 100% in on whatever I choose. Thank you again for everyone’s support of this awesome journey in baseball, I’ll always cherish my time.”

Tebow played 77 games at Triple-A in 2019, batting .163 with four home runs. Still, the lefthanded hitter and outfielder was invited to Mets spring training this season.

Tebow played in four big league spring trainings, hitting .151 in 34 games. The Mets have been criticized for allowing Tebow to take a spot from someone who might have a better chance at playing for the big club.

Tebow did hit a homer last spring but that was the highlight of his time in camp.

“It has been a pleasure to have Tim in our organization as he’s been a consummate professional during his four years with the Mets,” Alderson, the Mets president, said. “By reaching the Triple-A level in 2019, he far exceeded expectations when he first entered the system in 2016 and he should be very proud of his accomplishments.”

Tebow hit a home run in his first professional at-bat during an instructional league game against the St. Louis Cardinals in the fall of 2016. Later that fall, he made headlines by comforting a fan who had a seizure in the front row of Tebow’s Arizona Fall League debut.

The former NFL quarterback was an All-Star at Double-A in 2018, when he batted .273 with six homers in 84 games. He struggled the next year at Triple-A and had his season cut short by a laceration on his left hand.

– with the Associated Press

Konchalski, who attended Archbishop Molloy High School in Queens, was a fixture at basketball games throughout the five boroughs and at summer league games and camps, sitting high in the bleachers in order to have an unobstructed view of the court.

His evaluations were crucial to college coaches, who used his reports to help determine whether a player was worthy of a scholarship. He produced his High School Basketball Illustrated on a typewriter, but it was a must-have for those who needed to keep track of the city’s top basketball talent.

Konchalski, who stood 6 feet, 6 inches tall, was easy to spot and did not try to hide from the players he was evaluating, or anyone else in the gym, including reporters. Before games and at halftime, he would offer a firm handshake, often holding his grip while he inquired about the well-being of one’s family members. He offered warm holiday greetings, often weeks after the holidays had passed.

During games, Konchalski scribbled notes onto a yellow legal pad and asked — politely — not to be disturbed in order to focus on his main purpose: watching basketball.

Konchalski knew just about everyone in the worlds of high school and college basketball. He played the role of a humble politician at basketball camps that were heavily attended by the most notable coaches in the college ranks. Coaches like Mike Krzyzewski and Jim Boeheim would go out of their way to chat with him. When done, he would return to the bleachers to talk to parents and spectators.

In addition to his meticulous reports and warm, friendly personality, Konchalski was known for a variety of quirks.

When talking to reporters about certain players, he used a large repertoire of catchphrases to describe their abilities. “He’s got more shakes than Tom Carvel,” he would say when describing a player who was quick and active on the court.

As reliable as Konchalski was, he was also very difficult to get in touch with due to the fact that he continued to use a rotary phone with no call-waiting and no answering machine long after the advent of both. He did not have a cell phone, either.

A longtime resident of Forest Hills, Konchalski did not have a driver’s license. Instead, he took public transportation to most games. He retired from scouting and producing his report just last year.