CLEVELAND – (Staff and Wire Service Report) – New York’s Juan Soto hit a three-run home run with two outs in the 10th inning and the visiting Yankees advanced to their first World Series since 2009 with a 5-2 victory over the Cleveland Guardians on Saturday night.
Giancarlo Stanton of New York hit a game-tying two-run home run in the sixth inning for the Yankees, who won Game 5 of the American League Championship Series after trailing through the first five innings and never taking the lead until Soto’s heroics. Soto had three hits while teammate Gleyber Torres had two.
In the 10th, Soto hit four consecutive foul balls against Guardians right-hander Hunter Gaddis (1-1) before smashing a 1-2 fastball over the wall in right-center field. It was his second home run in two games and third of the series.
Stanton hit home runs in three consecutive games and had four in the series. Four New York relievers held Cleveland scoreless over the final 5 1/3 innings with Luke Weaver (1-0) pitching the last two innings to earn the win.
Bo Naylor doubled home brother Josh Naylor to give the Guardians a lead in the second inning, and Steven Kwan added an RBI single in the fifth. Cleveland right-hander Tanner Bibee held New York scoreless until Stanton hit his two-run homer with two outs in the sixth.
Torres led off the game with a single but was thrown out at home trying to score from first on a Soto double.
Cleveland took a 1-0 lead in the second inning when Josh Naylor singled with one out and scored on Bo Naylor’s two-out double that came on the 10th pitch of the at-bat against Yankees left-hander Carlos Rodon.
It was the first time a brother drove in a brother in a postseason game since the 2001 AL Division Series when the Oakland Athletics’ Jeremy Giambi brought home Jason Giambi.
The Guardians got to Rodon again in the fifth inning for a 2-0 lead when Kwan’s two-out single knocked in Andres Gimenez, who had doubled.
The Yankees opened the sixth with singles from Torres and Soto before Aaron Judge grounded into a double play. Stanton followed by working the count full before crushing a game-tying home run to left center with a 117.5 mph exit velocity.
After Weaver pitched a perfect ninth inning, he worked around Kyle Manzardo’s one-out single in the 10th, getting Jose Ramirez to line out to center and getting Lane Thomas to fly out to Soto in right field to end the game.
–Field Level Media