The New York Yankees' consistency, year-in, year-out, is something to behold. They have not finished with a sub-.500 record since 1992, and following their 8-3 win over the Minnesota Twins on Monday, they have now clinched a playoff spot for the ninth time over the past 10 seasons by moving to 87-63 on the season.

For most of Monday, the Yankees' offense sputtered. They found themselves trailing by one run heading into the eighth inning (2-1), but they recognized the situation they were in and locked in at the plate. The bottom of the order did its job, with George Lombard Jr. leading things off with a double, and then Aaron Judge punctuated matters by hitting a three-run home run to push the Yankees' lead to 7-2 — giving them a cushion they would not relinquish.

Considering how well the Yankees' pitching staff performed, limiting the Twins to just one earned run on the night, it would have been a shame had New York failed to clinch a postseason spot tonight. Nonetheless, this win tonight only served to seal what was already looking inevitable in the first place.

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With 12 games remaining in the season, the Yankees find themselves 3.5 games back of the AL East-leading Tampa Bay Rays. In an ideal world, the Yankees would want to surpass the Rays for the division lead so they can earn a bye to the ALDS.

The top two seeds in each league will receive a bye to the ALDS; however, the seeding isn't primarily based on which team has the better record. For instance, even though the Yankees have the second-best record in the AL at the moment, they will be playing in the Wild Card round tomorrow if the season ended today since they are not a division leader (the Chicago White Sox instead would book its ticket into the ALDS).

Thus, the Yankees still have everything to play for, and this win over the Twins on Monday is huge as they look to keep in step with the Rays in the battle for the division crown and a bye into the ALDS.