CLEVELAND — Did you really think they would just go quietly into the night?
On a night that couldn't have been emblematic of this team, the Guardians fought back to stun the New York Yankees 6-5 Saturday night in Game 3 of the American League Division Series at Progressive Field. Cleveland actually trailed by two heading into the bottom of the ninth, but four straight one-out hits closed the gap to 5-4 before Oscar Gonzalez played the role of hero for the second time this postseason and delivered a bases-loaded single to walk it off.
The Guards take a two games to one lead in the best-of-five matchup, and will advance to the ALCS against the Houston Astros with just one more victory.
New York appeared to be in control from the fifth inning onward, blasting three home runs and working their way out of several jams. But Cleveland refused to quit, and Myles Straw got the final rally started with a bloop double to left. Singles by Steven Kwan, Amed Rosario (who plated Straw), and José Ramírez followed, and after Josh Naylor struck out, Gonzalez was down to his final strike before knocking Clarke Schmidt's pitch back up the middle to send the sellout crowd of 36,483 into absolute pandemonium.
The Guards actually led 2-0 early, yet there was a feeling the lead could've been much more after they left two runners on in both the first and second. The Yanks made them pay in the third, when slugger Aaron Judge busted out of an 0-for-9 playoff skid and sent Triston McKenzie's dead-middle fastball 449 feet over the center field fence for a two-run homer. Rookie Oswaldo Cabrera followed with a two-run blast of his own in the fifth to put New York ahead, and in the seventh, Harrison Bader planted one in the bleachers off Sam Hentges for his second home run of the series to make it 5-3.
Things looked bleak, and the energy from the fans seemed almost nonexistent. Cleveland barely threatened until the ninth, but for the second straight game, New York's bullpen began leaking oil. Yankee manager Aaron Boone attempted to have lefty Wandy Peralta record a seven-out save, but after hits by Straw and Kwan he was relieved by Schmidt. The young right-hander surrendered three hits of his own, and ended up taking the loss.
Instant reaction from the Ultimate Cleveland Sports Show:
The Guardians actually won the hitting battle 15-5, but as predicted before the series began, the Yankees made the most of their chances with three home runs. In spite of early missed opportunities, though, Cleveland did go an impressive 9-for-17 with runners in scoring position, including 4-for-5 in the ninth.
Game 4 will take place Sunday night at 7:07 p.m. once again at Progressive Field, with Cleveland looking to move on to the next round against the Houston Astros by sending Cal Quantrill (0-1, 5.40 ERA this postseason) back to the mound against New York's Gerrit Cole (1-0, 1.42) in a Game 1 rematch.