Yankees take lead in 10th to secure 1st World Series appearance in 15 years

The Yankees are headed to the World Series for the first time since 2009 thanks to a tenth inning home run by Juan Soto, defeating the Cleveland Guardians 5-2 in another October nail-biter.

The pitching matchup between Carlos Rodon and Tanner Bibee lived up to expectations, and left the game tied 2-2 at the end of ninth inning.

With two men on and two outs in the top of the tenth inning, Soto delivered what is easily the biggest hit of his Yankee career thus far.

May we once again re-introduce, The Generational, Juan Soto. pic.twitter.com/6R5fWpEg6I

— New York Yankees (@Yankees) October 20, 2024

For most of the game, it didn't seem certain that the Yankees would take the American League pennant in Game 5. They did not hold a lead until Soto's home run.

The game started looking like the Bombers would have their way with Bibee. Torres started the game off with a single and then Soto doubles to have Torres go ahead to home plate, for him to be thrown out on a great throw by shortstop Brayan Rocchio.

Bibee seemed locked in from there, keeping the Yankees scoreless until the sixth inning, when Giancarlo Stanton got him with a two-run home run, knocking him out of the game.

Rodon gave up two runs in 4 2/3 innings, along with two walks and six strikeouts.

Now with the Yankees headed to a face off with either the New York Mets or Los Angeles Dodgers in the World Series, let's take a look at some takeaways of the team's performance:

Stanton is having a career-defining postseason

The complicated Yankees career for Giancarlo Stanton, the newly crowned ALCS MVP, is starting to get a whole lot less complicated.

At the top of the sixth inning, with the Yanks down 2-0 and second baseman Gleyber Torres on third, Stanton blasted his fourth home run – and fourth hit – of the series, tying the game.

When you look at when the home runs took place, the feat gets even more impressive.

All four home runs have come in the sixth inning or later and three of the four came with men on base.

In this postseason, Stanton has gone 9 for 31 for a .294 batting average and 9 RBIs.

The clutch home run was also the 15th home run in the postseason for the Yankees in his career, surpassing Babe Ruth on the all-time list.

Since Stanton was traded to the Yankees ahead of the 2018 season, he has had the New York City microscope looking down on him due to his massive $325 million contract.

The designated hitter has heard his share of the Bronx cheer at Yankee Stadium over the years, but it will be a warm welcome when he returns for the World Series.

Bullpen comes through

Mark Leiter, Jr., who was not even on the roster to start the series, came up big in the final two games of the series.

He was just one of the four pitchers the Yankees used Saturday night in relief of Rodon, as the Guardians went scoreless once the Yanks' starter left the game.

In fact, the Guardians never even got a runner in scoring position off the pen.

It was not just Luke Weaver who came up clutch, it was a team effort. A sign that the Yankees have a lot going right for them in 2024.

Juan Soto: Worth it

He may sign with another team in the offseason (and maybe even with a team he faces in the World Series), but the trade for Soto is now officially worth it.

If he is a Yankee for one season, it's been memorable enough.

Let's see what he can do in the World Series.