The New York Yankees are just two wins away from winning the American League pennant and advancing to the World Series for the first time since 2009. They had a great chance to take a 3-0 lead against the Cleveland Guardians in Game 3 on Thursday night, but they let a late lead slip away and are now locked in a 2-1 dogfight.
That late lead was granted to New York by designated hitter Giancarlo Stanton. Immediately after superstar outfielder Aaron Judge mashed a two-run home run in the top of the eighth inning to tie the game up at three, Stanton sent a deep drive out to center field that just made it over the wall to give the Yankees the lead.
Stanton is having a very good postseason for New York so far. In seven playoff games, the former Marlin is 8-for-26 at the plate with three home runs and six RBI's. His six walks bring his on-base percentage up north of .400, so the veteran slugger is finding his way aboard more than often enough.
Maybe most importantly, Stanton is making great contact at the plate and seeing the ball well. He has gone six games without striking out, dating all the way back to Game 1 of the Division Series against the Royals, according to Sarah Langs of MLB Media.
“Giancarlo Stanton has not struck out since Game One of the ALDS – a span of 26 career plate appearances without punching out – the longest streak of his career (regular or post),” Langs posted on X, formerly Twitter.
Yankees trying to recover from Guardians' late-game heroics in Game 3
After Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton went back-to-back in the eighth inning off of All-World closer Emmanuel Clase, Game 3 and the ALCS as a whole felt over. The Yankees tacked on an insurance run to make the score 5-3, and Cleveland faced an uphill battle to remain at arms length in the series.
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It's a good thing for them that Big Christmas wasn't ready to go home. Jhonkensy “Big Christmas” Noel crushed a two-out, pinch hit him run to tie things up at five and send the game into extra innings before David Fry won it with a two-run shot of his own in the bottom of the 10th.
Now, the Yankees are forced to pick up the pieces and respond after all signs were pointing to them taking a commanding 3-0 lead. It certainly won't be easy against a Guardians team that is all of a sudden playing with a lot of confidence after climbing back into the series. On the bright side, however, Stanton is rolling and it looks like Judge has snapped out of his slump at the plate with home runs in back-to-back games.
Luis Gil is getting the nod for Aaron Boone and the Yankees in Game 4 in Cleveland on Friday night. Gil had a strong regular season, finishing 15-7 with a 3.50 ERA in 29 starts. If he can put together another winning performance, the Yankees will be right back in control.
