Throughout the American League Championship Series, the New York Yankees have found ways to tag a Cleveland Guardians bullpen that ranked as the best in baseball during the regular season. So when Saturday's Game 5 ventured into extra innings, perhaps it was a sign of impending doom for the home team.
And with one swing of the bat from right fielder Juan Soto, all the Guardians fans' fears came true.
Soto delivered a three-run homer with two outs in the 10th inning to give the Yankees their pennant-sealing 5–2 win over the Guardians and advance to the World Series for the first time since 2009.
JUAN SOTO PULLS THE YANKEES AHEAD 😮
— Sports Illustrated (@SInow) October 20, 2024
(via @MLB) pic.twitter.com/XOwD2khKqJ
For most franchises, 15 years without reaching the Fall Classic wouldn't be cause for outcry. But for the Yankees, it stands as the longest drought since the franchise first made the World Series in 1921.
Cleveland held a 2–0 lead through five innings on Saturday thanks to a strong outing from Tanner Bibee. Manager Stephen Vogt opted to keep Bibee in the game after getting into a jam in the sixth. With two outs and a runner on third, Bibee gave up a game-tying home run to Giancarlo Stanton, which was Stanton's fifth of the postseason.
The game remained tied until the top of the10th, when catcher Austin Wells walked and reached second on an error by Guardians shortstop Brayan Rocchio. After Hunter Gaddis struck out Gleyber Torres, he got ahead with a 1–2 count to Soto, who fouled off four pitches before hitting a homer that will go down in Yankees lore.
This article was originally published on www.si.com as Juan Soto Delivers Dramatic Home Run to Lift Yankees to World Series.
