Stanton doubles in return; Yanks fail to clinch

NEW YORK -- Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton returned to the starting lineup and stung the ball in his first at-bat in nearly three months, but New York fell 3-2 to the Los Angeles Angels on Wednesday night and will need to wait at least another day to clinch the AL East.

Stanton, who has battled knee issues this season, was activated from the 60-day injured list and batted fifth and played left field. He roped a double into the left-center gap leading off the second inning in his first at-bat, socked a 114.3 mph groundout in the fourth and struck out in the sixth.

Manager Aaron Boone, who said before the game that Stanton would probably get two at-bats and play four or five innings in the…