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Yankees manager Aaron Boone said the arrival of the Astros in town the next few days would lead to “a shot-in-the-arm series.’’ For eight innings, though, that sounded like a shot-in-the-dark prediction.

But then the Yankees did what seemed impossible, brightening what has been an illuminating season. Trailing 6-3 and hitless since the first inning, they erupted for four runs in the bottom of the ninth, sending an Astros-jeering crowd of 44,071 out of their seats and then out of the Stadium believing anything is possible, reveling in a 7-6 victory Thursday night against a team they love to hate.

Aaron Hicks clubbed a three-run home run off of Ryan Pressly, who entered and promptly walked the first two batters he faced, setting up Hicks’ line drive into the right-field seats. Aaron Judge then smacked a game-winning single off reliever Ryne Stanek, continuing his magical, MVP-worthy season.

“We don’t want to lose you know,’’ Hicks said. “We’re a team that’s gonna keep fighting until the end, until the last out was made.’’

The Yankees are 52-18, the third-best start in franchise history after 70 games. It matches the third-best start after 70 games by any major league team in the past 93 years. This one might have been the most difficult, and dramatic, of them all.

“We are never out of a game,’’ Judge said.

The Grilled Cheese Double Burger is back at Sonic.

The returning fan-favorite features two seasoned 100 percent pure beef patties layered with three slices of melty American cheese, all sandwiched between two slices of thick, buttery Texas Toast.

The Grilled Cheese Double Burger will be available at participating locations nationwide. 

Gerrit Cole made a run at history on Monday — and then the Yankees got a huge hit from Aaron Hicks and a gutsy performance from Wandy Peralta to hold on and beat the Rays, 4-2. 

After Cole took a no-hitter into the eighth inning, the Yankees gave back a two-run lead, but Hicks — in the midst of a rough season — delivered an RBI triple in the top of the ninth for the go-ahead run. 

Jose Trevino followed with a sacrifice fly to score Hicks to give the Yankees a two-run lead. 

The Yankees held on in the bottom of the inning, as Wandy Peralta rebounded from his poor outing in Toronto on Sunday and got out of a  two-on, one-out jam to pick up the save. 

“When we can answer like that, it’s special kind of stuff,’’ Cole said of the team’s ability to win another close game. 

With the win, the Yankees improved to 50-17, matching 1998 for the third-best 67-game start in franchise history. They’ve won 10 of 11. 

Pinkberry welcomes Strawberry Shortcake frozen yogurt as the brand’s newest seasonal frozen yogurt flavor.

Inspired by WildBrain’s children’s character “Strawberry Shortcake,” featured in their new animated series Berry in the Big City, the brand’s Strawberry Shortcake frozen yogurt features a cool, tart tang that can be enjoyed on its own or as part of a combination with fresh strawberries, strawberry puree, crumble and whipped cream.

The Golden State Warriors are NBA champions once again, topping the Boston Celtics 103-90 for their fourth title in the last eight seasons. 

Stephen Curry scored 34 points for the Warriors, who claimed the franchise’s seventh championship overall. And this one completed a journey like none other, after a run of five consecutive finals, then a plummet to the bottom of the NBA, and now a return to greatness just two  seasons after having the league’s worst record. 

For Curry, Klay Thompson, Draymond Green and Andre Iguodala, it’s a fourth championship. The first three rings came in 2015, 2017 and 2018, when Golden State was dynastic and made five consecutive trips to the finals. 

Injuries, including ones that sidelined Thompson for 2 1/2 years, and roster changes changed everything. But this season, with Thompson returning around the midway point, the Warriors were finally back. 

Andre Burakovsky scored 1:23 into overtime and the Colorado Avalanche opened the Stanley Cup Final with a 4-3 victory over the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning.

Burakovsky ended it after the Avalanche failed to score on a power play that began late in regulation when three-time champ Patrick Maroon put the puck over the glass. Burakovsky is one of only two Avalanche players who have won the Cup.

The game likely wouldn’t have even reached OT if not for big penalty kills by the Avalanche, who were 3 for 3 against Tampa Bay’s potent power play. The final kill featured a crucial save by goaltender Darcy Kuemper and a series of clears by Norris Trophy finalist defenseman Cale Makar.

An earlier kill built momentum for Colorado, which opened the scoring on captain Gabriel Landeskog’s goal 40 seconds after Josh Manson’s penalty expired. Manson — one of general manager Joe Sakic’s expensive trade deadline pickups — more than made up for a holding the stick minor with some big hits.

Starling Marte was back Sunday night, giving the Mets their first “regular” lineup in four games. 

The veteran outfielder departed Tuesday’s game in San Diego with left quadriceps discomfort. On the same night, Pete Alonso was hit in the right hand by a pitch and forced to leave the game. 

Marte failed in attempts to talk his way back into the lineup Friday and Saturday, but Buck Showalter finally relented for the Mets’ 4-1 win in the series finale against the Angels. Alonso returned to the lineup two days earlier. 

Marte went 2-for-4 with an RBI and a run scored. 

“Marte is happy and we’ll see,” Showalter said. “We could have pushed the envelope the last couple of days. We just would like to get a feel where he is before the off day, but he’s ready to go.” 

Jeff McNeil returned to second base, after playing the previous two games in right field. 

The Tampa Bay Lightning are playing in the Stanley Cup Final for the third season in a row. With a 2-1 win over the New York Rangers in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Final, the Lightning will face the Colorado Avalanche for the NHL’s top prize.

Lightning captain Steven Stamkos played hero with a pair of goals, including the game-winner late in the third that banked in off his body after a great save by Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin. Beyond that, Andrei Vasilevskiy did what he does in elimination games, which is build a forcefield around his own net. Vasilevskiy didn’t have a massive workload, but he stopped 20 of the 21 shots he faced, and he answered the bell when called upon.

Shesterkin did everything he could to force a Game 7 in New York, but his offense let him down for the final time in this series. Even on Tampa’s game-winning goal, Shesterkin made the save but was the victim of an unlucky bounce. Everywhere outside of the crease, the Rangers got thoroughly outplayed, and their five-on-five offense was non-existent. In the final four games of the series, New York scored just one five-on-five goal.

Applebee’s offers guests even more options with the nationwide launch of the new Impossible Cheeseburger.

The Impossible Cheeseburger features an Impossible Burger patty made from plants and comes topped with two slices of American cheese, lettuce, tomato, onion, and pickles on a brioche bun.

Additionally, you can swap an Impossible Burger patty in any of the brand’s Handcrafted Burgers for an upcharge of $1.99 and add a side of five boneless wings for $1.

It had been more than two weeks since the Yankees had allowed as many as six runs in a game, and when Nestor Cortes retired the first nine Twins batters he faced on Wednesday, that streak seemed sure to grow.

But in a rare clunker, Cortes and the Yankees faltered, losing 8-1, to end their seven-game winning streak.

The day started with manager Aaron Boone talking about Cortes’ chances of starting the All-Star game, based on the stellar beginning to his season, but the left-hander gave up a season-high four runs in 4 ¹/₃ innings.

Cortes entered with an MLB-best 1.50 ERA, and Wednesday marked the first time he has allowed more than three runs in a start since last season — a stretch of 19 straight outings.

“There’s gonna be ups and downs in a season,’’ Cortes said. “It’s whether you come back the next time and weather the storm.”

The loss to the Twins was also a rarity, as the Yankees had beaten Minnesota five times in a row, and nine out of their last 10 meetings. Since 2015, the Yankees were 30-10 versus Minnesota — but Boone wasn’t interested in those stats.