The New York Yankees swept the Kansas City Royals with a comeback victory on Sunday — thanks to two home runs from Aaron Judge — and the Bronx Bombers extended their winning streak to nine games in a row. The Yankees boast the best record in baseball at 16-6 after winning 11 out of their previous 12 games.

Aaron Judge from the NY Yankees connects on the first of two home runs against the Kansas City Royals on Sunday. (Image: Denny Medley/USA Today Sports)

After starting the season 5-5, the Yankees embarked on a heater over the last two weeks. They dropped just one game — a 3-0 shutout loss in Detroit — but went 11-1 since then with four consecutive winning series against the Tigers, Cleveland Guardians, Baltimore Orioles, and Kansas City Royals.

During the current winning streak, the Yankees are thriving due to a combination of solid starting pitching and timely home runs. With a +41 run differential, the Yankees are the best in the American League. They only trail the Los Angeles Dodgers at +44 for best run differential in the big leagues.

The Yankees pitching staff allowed just 65 runs through the first 22 games of the season. During the current nine-game winning streak, the Yankees allowed just 26 runs. They held opponents to four or fewer runs four times, including a 3-0 shutout against the Royals on Saturday. It marked the third shutout this season for the Yankees.

During their recent surge, the Yankees saw their 2022 World Series odds improve to +750 over at DraftKings.

HR Kings: Rizzo and Judge

Anthony Rizzo leads the majors with nine home runs. He jacked three against the Baltimore Orioles on Tuesday for his first-ever 3-dinger game of his career, while taking advantage of the short right-field porch in Yankee Stadium. But it’s Aaron Judge who turned heads on Sunday with two home runs including a tape-measuring blast.

Judge is heating up and crushed home runs in three consecutive games. He smacked two home runs in the win on Sunday and he’s currently tied for second-most home runs in the MLB with eight jacks. He drove in three runs on Sunday and improved to 16 RBI on the season, while hitting .300.

“What can I say? The guy’s a monster,” said Yankees starting pitcher Luis Severino about Judge.

Judge crushed a solo home run in the first inning that raveled an estimated 453 feet to dead centerfield in Kauffman Stadium.

“The way he cleaned that first one out, man oh man, it’s hard to hit one more pure,” said Yankees manager Aaron Boone.

“Good look, clean swing,” said Judge. “Just happy we got the win.”