Thanks to a huge home run from Juan Soto in extra innings, the New York Yankees are heading to the World Series for the first time in 15 years.
The Yankees rallied to beat the Cleveland Guardians 5-2 in extra innings in Game 5 of the American League Championship Series on Saturday at Progressive Field. It’s the Yankees’ first AL pennant since 2009.
The Yankees will take on either the Los Angeles Dodgers or the New York Mets in the World Series. The Dodgers hold a 3-2 series lead over the Mets ahead of Sunday’s Game 6 in the National League Championship Series.
The Guardians’ season ended after the club made its deepest postseason run since 2016, when it fell to the Chicago Cubs in Game 7 of the World Series.
After both teams made it out of the ninth inning still tied 2-2, Soto came up big for the Yankees to close out the three-run win. Soto drilled a deep home run off Hunter Gaddis to stun the Guardians and put the Yankees in the lead for the first time Saturday.
The shot was the first extra-inning home run in a postseason series-clinching win for the Yankees since Aaron Boone hit one in Game 7 of the 2003 ALCS against the Boston Red Sox. The Yankees lost the World Series that year to the Florida Marlins.
After Soto’s homer, the Yankees closed out the bottom of the 10th inning with three quick outs.
The Naylor brothers put the Guardians on the board first in the second inning after Cleveland barely escaped what could’ve been a disastrous opening inning, as the Yankees loaded the bases before Cleveland starter Tanner Bibee got out of it.
In the second, Josh Naylor got on base with a quick single, and then Bo Naylor hit him in with a double up the right-field line. Cleveland extended its lead in the fifth when Steven Kwan hit an RBI single to center.
But, as he has repeatedly in this series, Giancarlo Stanton came through just in time for the Yankees. Stanton drilled a deep home run in the top of the sixth that tied the game 2-2. It marked his fourth home run of the ALCS.
That was it until Soto sealed the win for the Yankees in the 10th.
The last time the Yankees were in the World Series, they beat the Philadelphia Phillies in six games, winning the franchise’s 27th title. They’ve been to the ALCS five times since then before this fall, most recently in 2022, when they were swept by the Houston Astros. Their American League title is the 41st in team history.
Game 1 of the World Series, regardless of how the Mets-Dodgers series ends, is Friday.
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