The Yankees will host the Mets on Sept. 11 next year on the 25th anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center.
The announcement was made Tuesday, when the MLB schedule was released.
The two New York teams met in Queens at Citi Field on 9/11 in 2021 for the 20th anniversary.
Aaron Boone was there for that one and said he expected a similar response for next year’s game.
“I would imagine it will be quite emotional,” Boone said before the Yankees faced Washington on Tuesday. “A lot of players now don’t have vivid memories [of the events]. Some do as kids, young ones, at that.”
Boone recalled meeting with then-Mets manager Luis Rojas on the field prior to the 2021 game.
MLB will open the 2026 season with the Yankees.Robert Sabo for NY Post
“There was a palpable energy in the stadium, especially that time of year,” Boone said.
The pregame feelings were different for that game, according to Boone, with the knowledge that many people in the ballpark were impacted by the impacts.
“When you go through the pregame introductions, you hope as a ballplayer, or a team, you go out and represent on such a meaningful day in a positive way,” Boone said.
The Yankees will see Rafael Devers for the first time as a Giant to start the 2026 season.AP
The Yankees’ 2026 schedule.@Yankees/X
The Yankees will face Juan Soto and the Mets on Sept. 11.Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post
Fernando Cruz finally made it back to the Yankees bullpen Tuesday after being sidelined since June 28 with a left oblique strain.
Boone said over the weekend the right-hander was physically ready to return from the 15-day IL on Sunday, but the Yankees didn’t want to potentially force him into a multi-inning outing in his first appearance, so they gave him extra days.
Yerry De los Santos, who threw 47 pitches over 2 ²/₃ innings in Monday’s win over Washington, was optioned to Triple-A Scranton/Wilkes-Barre following his outing.
Cruz hadn’t pitched for the Yankees since June 27, but had become one of their most trusted arms out of the bullpen.
Yankees pitcher Yerry De los Santos (73) pitches in the ninth inning against the Washington Nationals Monday, August 25, 2025 at Yankee Stadium in The Bronx, NY.Robert Sabo for NY Post
Ryan McMahon wasn’t in Tuesday’s starting lineup with a lefty on the mound after he broke a 16 at-bat hitless streak in Monday’s win.
“He’s scuffling a little bit,” Boone said of the third baseman acquired from the Rockies prior to the trade deadline. “He’s having competitive at-bats, but he’s fouling some pitches off that he needs to make hay on. The at-bat quality has been there. Now, he has to finish them off with some authority.”
Amed Rosario, picked up from the Nationals at the deadline, filled in for McMahon in just his third start with the Yankees.
After hitting three more homers in Monday’s win, the Yankees entered Tuesday with an MLB-best 218 home runs on the season. Still, it’s well off their franchise record-setting pace of 2019, when they had 238 homers through 131 games.
Giancarlo Stanton, back in right field Tuesday, is doing his part, as he entered the game with four homers in his previous six games and six in his past 10 games.
