The Bergen Record

Juan-derful! Juan Soto's dramatic 10th-inning homer sends Yankees to World Series

By Pete Caldera, NorthJersey.com,

10 hours ago

CLEVELAND – This is why the New York Yankees traded for Juan Soto – to bring them a pennant.

Ten months ago, desperate to add more power and pizzaz to their lineup, the Yankees trained on Soto, got him in a swap with San Diego and watched him thrive in the New York spotlight.

And on Saturday night, Soto’s towering three-run homer sent the Yankees to the World Series.

Soto’s tie-breaking, 10th-inning blast off Cleveland Guardians reliever Hunter Gaddis lifted the Yankees to a 5-2 win in Game 5 of the best-of-seven AL Championship Series.

For the first time since 2009, the Yankees will go to the World Series to face either the crosstown Mets or the Los Angeles Dodgers.

It had been 5,473 days since the Yankees won a pennant, which is pretty much a pinstriped eternity.

And once again, Giancarlo Stanton raised his October game with a game-tying, two-run homer in the sixth - his third straight ALCS game with a home run and fourth of the series.

Here's our analysis from the Yankees' pennant-clinching victory:

Juan Soto just might have won the pennant

After fouling off a slider and two Gaddis changeups, Juan Soto just hit a towering fly to center that kept carrying – 402 feet over the wall for a three-run homer.

Yanks 5, Guardians 2, three outs to a pennant.

Soto stopped short of first base to celebrate his shot with teammates who'd bolted from the dugout. What a moment for a player who thrives in the spotlight.

Yankees catch a break

Wells walks and should have been forced out at second base, but Rocchio drops the feed on a grounder to Gimenez and it’s first and second, one out in the 10th...

Jasson Dominguez now running for Wells at second, Gleyber is retired and here's Soto vs. Gaddis.

Extra innings in Cleveland

Luke Weaver sets down the bottom of Cleveland's order and another highly entertaining ALCS game enters extra innings. Emmanuel Clase is one and done after his ninth inning hold.

Hunter Gaddis now in for the Guards, fresh off striking out the heart of the NYY order in last night's eighth inning.

It's Luke Weaver time

After the Stanton strikeout, Jazz Chisholm Jr. singled, but Clase gets out of the inning on a grounder to Rocchio, who tags the bag ahead of Chisholm – who was running on the play.

We go to the last of the ninth tied. And here is Luke Weaver on for the Yankees. If they're going to win the pennant tonight, it'll take extra innings.

And how’s this for drama...

Judge flies out to right. And here’s Stanton, one out in the ninth...

…and Clase wins the battle. It was 100-mph cutter after 100-mph cutter, and Stanton strikes out, swinging at a 2-2 delivery.

Here comes Clase vs. Judge and Stanton

And you know this has gone so far.

As brilliant as Clase has been in the regular season, the power righty with the lethal cutter has struggled in October.

The Yanks scored twice off him in the ninth to take Game 4, and Judge and Stanton homered off him back-to-back in that crazy Game 3, won by Cleveland in the 10 ^th .

Everyone standing here in the ninth. Tie game. Fasten your seatbelts…

Looking ahead to the ninth...

The Yankees will send up Judge and Stanton to start the ninth inning.

But before that, there's the matter of getting through Cleveland's middle of the order here in the eighth, and Jake Cousins is still out there as Jose Ramirez comes to bat...

...and a fired-up Cousins does the job, striking out the side after a two-out walk to Josh Naylor. Cousins K'd Ramirez, Thomas and Jhonkensy Noel.

Hill of an outing; Jake Cousins enters

Tim Hill does the job into the seventh, after walking Rocchio on a 3-2 pitch (and not liking Alan Porter's call) by getting Kwan on an unassisted DP by first base replacement Oswaldo Cabrera.

Here's Jake Cousins to keep it tied in the Cleveland seventh, Kyle Manzardo pinch-hitting for David Fry...

...and Cousins fans Manzardo. On to the eighth. All tied.

A seventh inning chance

The tough Cleveland lefty Tim Herrin is now on in the seventh, one out and Oswaldo Cabrera pinch-running for Rizzo (single). Austin Wells up...

...and Rocchio turns a neat double play that ends the inning. Still 2-2 here.

Tim Hill time

One out, runner at first here in the sixth, Tim Hill now into a tie game. Cleveland has all these lefty hitters, and here's the lefty specialist to face Bo Naylor...

...who singles and pushes the go-ahead run to second. But Hill gets Andres Gimenez to tap into a DP turned by Gleyber Torres, still 2-2 into the seventh.

The veteran Hill, discarded by the White Sox in June, has been a big find for this bullpen, paying dividends into October.

And. We're. Tied.

On a 3-2 slider, Giancarlo Stanton mashes it 446 feet for a two-run homer, and it's 2-2 in the sixth. Just hand him the ALCS MVP now.

Bibee is out, Cade Smith is in. Stanton now has homered in three straight games here and four of the five in this ALCS.

A spot for Aaron Judge

Gleyber and Soto open the sixth with singles off Bibee and here's Aaron Judge...

...who taps into a double play. Cade Smith now warming for Cleveland. Here's Stanton (0-for-2, 2 Ks tonight, but you know about the recent homers).

Carlos Rodon's night is over

Rodon lasts 4.2 innings and exits with runners at second and third in the fifth, two out and Mark Leiter Jr. on to try and escape the jam vs. the dangerous Jose Ramirez.

The night ends for Rodon after David Fry's bloop hit into the triangle of Verdugo, Volpe and Judge, just past the diving attempt of Judge...

...first base was open (Fry took second on the throw in) and Aaron Boone decides to walk Ramirez intentionally. It pays off as Leiter Jr. gets Lane Thomas on a grounder. It's 2-0 Guards after five.

Cleveland adds on

Rodon had just blown a 99-mph fastball past Brayan Rocchio for strike three, but the terrific Steven Kwan has singled home Andres Gimenez (double) with two out, and it's 2-0 Guardians.

Mark Leiter Jr. has just begun warming in the Yanks' bullpen here in the fifth inning.

So far, a pitcher's duel

Anthony Volpe's sharp, leadoff single to center in the fifth ends Bibee's string of retiring 10 straight, but Austin Wells grounds into a DP (call at first upheld by replay challenge) and it's still 1-0, Cleveland.

Hey, Tanner...

That's four scoreless innings for Tanner Bibee, holding a 1-0 Guardians lead.

Bibee has retired 10 straight batters since throwing a pitch that grazed Jazz Chisholm's foot in the first inning, and he hasn't yielded a hit since Soto's double - resulting in Gleyber being thrown out at the plate.

The Yankees may yet regret helping Bibee get settled after - for the seventh time in the Yanks' nine postseason games - Torres and Soto opened by reaching safely (yet the Yanks have scored a grand total of four runs).

Through three at Cleveland

Rodon hadn't walked a batter in three playoff starts (11.2 innings) before that leadoff walk to No. 9 hitter Brayan Rocchio in the third, but the lefty got the next three batters. Still 1-0, Guards.

So far, Rodon has 21 strikeouts in his 12.2 postseason innings, including five tonight - getting third strikes on two fastballs, a cutter, a slider and a changeup, so the variety of stuff is there.

Counting pitches

Through two innings, Rodon is at 41 pitches. Ideally, the Yankees would like to get that same six innings (93 pitches) he delivered in Game 2, due to the bullpen's workload.

Our guess is that Tommy Kahnle is likely unavailable, having thrown 44 pitches in Games 3 and 4 the past two nights, and that they'd like to stay away from using Clay Holmes for a third straight game (27 pitches in Games 3 & 4).

Cleveland on the board

Credit Bo Naylor with a great AB, with a two-out RBI double that drives in Josh (infield hit) for a 1-0 Guardians lead in the second inning.

Bo Naylor fouled off four 2-2 pitches (slider, fastball, fastball, slider) before lashing a fastball into the right field corner for the game's first run.

Carlos Rodon off to a solid start

A good start by Carlos Rodon, a quick first inning with two Ks.

As he said of his Game 1 win vs. Cleveland (6 IP, 1 ER), “I was mindful of where I was emotionally,’’ channeling his inner Gerrit Cole after flaming out in his ALDS start vs. Kansas City.

A lot of noise, a lot of nothing

Once more, Gleyber Torres and Juan Soto start a game by reaching safely...more on that later.

But the first misplay goes to third base coach Luis Rojas' too-early, too-aggressive send of Torres from first base on Soto's double to right-center.

Torres gets thrown out at the plate, the Yanks load the bases (Judge and Jazz hit by pitches) and Rizzo lines out.

Nestor Cortes throws a live session

Earlier Saturday afternoon, lefty Nestor Cortes (flexor tendon) threw another simulated inning against live batters.

Cortes is “very much trending forward,’’ said manager Aaron Boone. “If we get through this round, he has an excellent chance of being in play’’ for inclusion on the World Series roster.

Boone said Saturday's 20-pitch session went well. Cortes is due to throw another live early in the week, "and if that goes well, probably feel good about'' adding him to the next round.

The manager didn't speculate about a potential World Series roster, but if the Yanks stay with 12 pitchers, Cortes could potentially replace Marcus Stroman, in an emergency long relief role but idle through the first four ALCS games.

Yankees' ALCS Game 5 lineup

Gleyber Torres, 2B
Juan Soto, RF
Aaron Judge, CF
Giancarlo Stanton, DH
Jazz Chisholm Jr., 3B
Anthony Rizzo, 1B
Anthony Volpe, SS
Austin Wells, C
Alex Verdugo, LF

Giancarlo Stanton in the cleanup spot

Giancarlo Stanton was moved from No. 5 to the cleanup spot against the right-handed Bibee, offering better protection for Aaron Judge, though it stacks four lefty hitters in the order's bottom five.

Aaron Boone has preferred the left-right lineup balance, having elevated Jazz Chisholm to cleanup in Game 4 (replacing the struggling Austin Wells, who then homered in the No. 8 spot), but "I feel like...it's a heavyweight fight now,'' and Stanton has been delivering some real haymakers.

Stanton has launched four homers in his last six playoff games, since ALDS Game 3. And his three-run shot in ALCS Game 4 was Stanton's 15th career postseason home run in 35 career postseason games.