10/15/24 01:54:00
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10/15 13:53 CDT Soto, Stanton homers back Rodn as Yankees take advantage of
wild Guardians to win ALCS opener 5-2
Soto, Stanton homers back Rodn as Yankees take advantage of wild Guardians to
win ALCS opener 5-2
By RONALD BLUM
AP Baseball Writer
NEW YORK (AP) --- Juan Soto's home run punctured Cleveland pitching, which then
went wild.
Soto put New York ahead in a three-run third inning, Carlos Rodn got his first
postseason win and the Yankees beat the Guardians 5-2 on Monday night in an AL
Championship Series opener that included Cleveland throwing five wild pitches
and walking nine batters.
Giancarlo Stanton added his 13th career postseason homer for the Yankees, who
are seeking a record 41st AL pennant and their first since winning the 2009
title.
"Getting the start-off win is big," Stanton said. "It's a message in its own."
Cleveland became the second team to throw a pair of run-scoring wild pitches in
a postseason inning and tied a postseason record with five overall. Guardians
pitchers walked six in a nine-batter span and nine overall.
"They don't chase a whole lot," Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. "If I take
something away from tonight, we just need to attack the zone better."
New York batters have walked 34 times in five postseason games.
"That's what they're capable of. That's in their DNA," Yankees manager Aaron
Boone said. "We beat that over --- we hammer it."
Game 2 is at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night. Entering this year, teams taking
the opener of a series with a 2-3-2 format have won 66 of 99 times.
Soto came in 7 for 11 with two homers against Cobb. Before a sellout crowd of
47,264 that included pop star Taylor Swift, Soto hit his first postseason homer
for New York when he drove a high slider from Alex Cobb into the Yankees'
bullpen in right-center.
He made a circle sign toward the relievers as he rounded first.
"It's only me and the bullpen." Soto said, smiling. "We keep it to ourselves."
Rodn rebounded from the Yankees' only Division Series loss, limiting the
Guardians to a pair of singles before Brayan Rocchio's sixth-inning homer.
"The goal was to just stay in control, stay in control of what I can do,
obviously physically and emotionally," Rodn said. "I thought I executed that
well tonight."
Stanton's seventh-inning homer boosted the lead to 5-1. Steven Kwan cut the
Guardians' deficit when he extended his postseason hitting streak to a
team-record 11 games with an RBI single in the eighth off Clay Holmes.
Luke Weaver relieved with runners at the corners. He struck out pinch-hitter
Will Brennan and retired Jos Ramrez on a groundout, and then followed a
leadoff walk in the ninth with three straight strikeouts for his fourth save
this postseason.
Making his first playoff appearance in 11 years, Cobb walked the bases loaded
in the third and rookie reliever Joey Cantillo threw a pair of run-scoring wild
pitches.
Cantillo had four wild pitches overall, one shy of the record for a postseason
game set by Rick Ankiel of St. Louis in a 2000 NL Division Series opener
against Atlanta. The only other time a team scored twice on wild pitches in a
postseason inning was by Minnesota against Oakland's Tim Hudson and Ted Lilly
in the 2002 AL Division Series.
"That performance was obviously the difference in the game, so that's on me,"
Cantillo said.
Cobb dropped in 0-2 in the playoffs, making just his fifth start in a year
limited by injuries. He threw 36 of 65 pitches for strikes, getting only one
swing and miss, and allowed three runs, five hits and three walks in 2 2/3
innings.
Cobb, who had hip surgery last Oct. 31, was removed because of hip tightness
and a back spasm.
"It's kind of been there for a little bit but, obviously, I had the surgery and
tendinitis kind of flares up every once in a while," Cobb said. "Sometimes the
back will tighten up along with it."
Rodn struck out nine and walked none, getting 25 misses among 53 swings,
matching the fourth-most misses in a postseason game since pitch-tracking began
in 2008. His pitches broke so much that catcher Austin Wells had to throw to
first three times on strikeouts for the putouts.
"He was just in complete command of himself and of his emotions," Boone said.
Still, New York knows it was only one game. The Yankees opened the 2019 ALCS
with a win at Houston, then lost three in a row and were knocked out in six
games.
"In our eyes, we haven't done nothing yet," Stanton said. "We've got to win
three out of six, and we take that as three out of three."
TRAINER'S ROOM
Yankees: LHP Nestor Cortes (flexor strain in pitching elbow) is to throw a
second bullpen session Wednesday and is a possibility for the World Series
roster, should the Yankees advance.
UP NEXT
Yankees RHP Gerrit Cole makes his third postseason start on Tuesday after
beating Kansas City in the Division Series clincher. He is 1-0 with a 3.00 ERA
this postseason. RHP Tanner Bibee starts for the Guardians. He had a 2.08 ERA
without a decision in a pair of Division Series starts against Detroit.
___
AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb
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