Yankees vs. Guardians ALCS Game 1 recap: New York cruises to 5-2 win

The New York Yankees defeated the Cleveland Guardians to take a 1-0 lead in the American League Championship Series.

On a chilly night in The Bronx, the Yankees turned to southpaw Carlos Rodon for the Game 1 start. He delivered a stellar outing for the Yankees, showing much more poise in a crucial setting.

Meanwhile, the Yankees got some help from the Guardians' miscues, including five wild pitches from their bullpen, two of which helped the Yankees put runs on the board.

On offense, Juan Soto and Giancarlo Stanton provided the power with a solo home run each. There are still some concerns with runners in scoring position, but home runs can make a world of difference in the playoffs.

Here's our recap from the Yankees' 5-2 win over the Guardians in Game 1 of the ALCS.

Yankees vs. Guardians ALCS Game 1 recap

Final Score: Yankees 5, Guardians 2

Keys to the game

• The Yankees got into the Guardians bullpen early in the game as Alex Cobb lasted just 2.2 innings.
• Carlos Rodon pitched with conviction, giving the Yankees a fantastic start by allowing just one run over six innings.
• The Yankees scored two of their runs in the third inning off wild pitches.
• Luke Weaver continues to be the savior of the bullpen. The self-proclaimed ferocious jungle cat got another five-out save, which included four punch-outs.

Stars of the Game

• SP Carlos Rodon: 6.0 IP, 3 H, 1 R, 0 BB, 9 SO, 93 pitches
• RF Juan Soto: 2-for-3, HR, RBI, BB
• DH Giancarlo Stanton: 1-for-3, HR, RBI, BB, 2 R
• RP Luke Weaver: 1.2 IP, 0 H, 0 R, 1 BB, 4 K

Quick Hits

• Guardians lefty Joey Cantillo, in relief of Alex Cobb, faced four batters, threw four wild pitches and issued three walks.
• Aaron Judge collected his first RBI of the postseason with a sacrifice fly in the fourth inning.
• Carlos Rodon's 25 swings and misses are the most in a postseason game for a Yankees pitcher since 2008 when pitch tracking began ( Sarah Langs ).
• Carlos Rodon's nine strikeouts with no walks are tied for the third-most in Yankees history. It's also the third time since 2017 that a Yankees starter has recorded at least nine strikeouts with no walks in a postseason game ( Stathead ).
• Giancarlo Stanton moved to sixth on the Yankees' postseason home run leaderboard with his solo shot in the seventh inning.
• The Yankees continued to struggle with runners in scoring position, going 0-for-7 as a team.
• Clay Holmes, who came on in relief of Rodon, continued his solid postseason with a scoreless frame in the top of the seventh.

What’s next?

The Yankees will be back in The Bronx for Game 2 of the ALCS with Gerrit Cole set to throw his first pitch at 7:38 p.m. ET.