The Tampa Bay Rays swept the New York Yankees out of the playoffs. They won Game 3 of their AL Division Series 4-3 at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday night, the Associated Press reported, and reached the American League Championship Series for the first time since 2020.

Victor Mesa Jr. broke a 2-2 tie in the sixth with a two-run homer off Max Fried. The 25-year-old left Cuba at 16 and was traded to Tampa Bay by Miami before spring training. "That's the moment that you want to live when you're growing up," he said.

The bottom of the sixth turned on replay. Anthony Volpe appeared to hit a two-run homer to left as a fan reached over the wall and caught the ball above Mesa's glove. A review found the ball would not have cleared the wall. Volpe got an RBI double instead, and the Yankees trailed 4-3. They never tied it. Ryan Vilade also homered for the Rays, a 340-foot drive to the short right-field porch.

Bryan Baker struck out Trent Grisham to end it. AP said Baker became the first pitcher with three saves and no hits allowed in a three-game postseason sweep.

The numbers were rough for New York. The Yankees hit .130 in the series and were outscored 10-5. Captain Aaron Judge missed the postseason with a strained calf. It was New York's first sweep in a best-of-five series since the 1980 ALCS, and its 17th straight season without a title.

"It's a broken clubhouse," manager Aaron Boone said.

Payroll made the upset sharper. New York opened the season with MLB's third-highest payroll at $303 million, AP reported, while Tampa Bay ranked 26th at $91 million.

The Rays will host the Chicago White Sox or Cleveland Guardians in Game 1 on Monday, ESPN and AP reported. Chicago leads that series 2-1, with Game 4 Thursday night.

What we know: Tampa Bay won 4-3 to sweep and opens the ALCS at home Monday.
What we don't: Whether the White Sox or the Guardians will be the opponent.