Joshua Linnehan
The 2024 MLB postseason is officially over, and it’s safe to say it was one of the ages. Between having a record six grand slams throughout the series, and the numerous game-winning/go-ahead home runs, drama was at an all-time high. It culminated with the two biggest markets in the MLB facing off in the Fall Classic, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers would go on to win their second championship in five years, and the Yankees championship drought extended to 15 seasons. Let’s narrow these incredible moments down to five, in an effort to quickly recap this historic October.
5. LOLMets to OMGMets
The New York Mets have been a laughing stock for the past couple seasons. Despite being at least top 3 in total payroll the past four seasons (#1 this year and last season), they had only one postseason appearance to show for it. It’s safe to assume they would choke again even with a Wild Card spot in possession. They played the NL Central champion Milwaukee Brewers in the Wild Card. In a must-win game 3, the Brewers hit back-to-back home runs in the 7th inning to take a 2-0 lead. The unthinkable soon followed, as “Polar Bear” Pete Alonso hit a go-ahead three-run home run to the opposite field against Milwaukee’s lockdown closer, Devin Williams, in the 9th inning. This 3-2 victory secured the Mets first postseason series win since 2015.
In the Division Series, they faced their division rival in the Philadelphia Phillies. Philly earned a reputation to be one of the toughest teams to beat in the postseason, as they made the Championship Series last season and the World Series the previous season. However, the Mets had the advantage in this series. They split the first two games in Philly, and won Game 3 in convincing manner, 7-2. Looking to win this series in front of the home crowd, the Mets needed some clutch hits. Superstar Francisco Lindor was up for the task, as he hit one of those six aforementioned grand slams in the 6th inning. Lindor’s blast provided the only runs in the game for the Mets, but it was enough to win the series and knock off the Phillies. In the NLCS, New York would lose to the champion LA Dodgers, but Mets fans will remember this run forever, due to multiple game-winning home runs.
4. Fries for Christmas in Cleveland?
One of the most unexpected storylines this season was the rise of the Cleveland Guardians. Their over/under win total to start the season was at 77.5 according to Vegas, but they won 92 games and secured their second AL Central division victory in three seasons. Speaking of the AL Central, Cleveland would face off against their division rival, the Detroit Tigers, in the ALDS. This series could have made this list by itself. Between Kerry Carpenter’s game-winning home run in Game 2, David Fry saving the Guardians season in Game 4, and Lane Thomas hitting a grand slam off Tarik Skubal in Game 5, it was absolute cinema. This placement is for the next round, in the classic Game 3 against the Yankees in the ALCS.
Down 2-0 in the series, Cleveland needed a victory at home to have any hope of making the World Series. They had a 3-1 lead heading into the 8th inning, which prompted manager Stephen Vogt to bring in the unstoppable Emmanuel Clase. Clase wasn’t himself this postseason, allowing a total of eight runs in eight innings. In the regular season, he only gave up five in 74.1 innings. The two monsters in the Yankees lineup, Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton, hit back-to-back home runs to give New York a 4-3 lead. In the 9th, that lead was extended to 5-3, and Cleveland was down to their final out. In desperation, Jhonkensy “Big Christmas” Noel pinch-hit as the tying run. On the second pitch of the at-bat, Noel delivered the biggest hit of his life with a no-doubt game-tying blast. In extra innings, David Fry followed with a game-winning two-run homer off Yankee reliever Clay Holmes. While this game will go down as a classic, it wasn’t enough to win the series for Cleveland. Let’s see how that happened…
3. Soto? So Good.
The Yankees had a 3-1 lead in the ALCS, with one final game in Cleveland’s home, Progressive Field. The Bronx Bombers have been dominant this whole year, clinching the best record in the American League with 94 wins, and taking care of the Kansas City Royals in the ALDS. Generational slugger Aaron Judge played a huge key in this run, as he led the league in home runs (58) for the second time in three seasons. The concern was that Judge was really struggling in this postseason, entering Game 5 with a .185 batting average and just three extra-base hits. Luckily, the other sluggers in this star-studded lineup had his back.
Down 2-0 in the 6th, Stanton hit a mammoth two-run shot to tie the game. Stanton led the entire postseason with seven home runs in total, which placed him in a tie for 10th in all-time postseason HRs with 18. This game went into extras in a 2-2 tie. With two on and two out in the 10th, Juan Soto came up to the plate for the Yankees. In his first season with the team, Soto has been a top tier hitter; just as advised. In a seven pitch battle with Cleveland reliever Hunter Gaddis, Soto won in fashion, hitting a game-winning three-run homer. With this 5-2 victory, the Yankees were officially in pursuit of championship #28.
2. The Biggest Slam Of All
This year’s World Series couldn’t have started any better. Like many games this postseason, it needed extra innings to decide who wins. The Yankees took the lead in the top of the 10th thanks to a fielder’s choice RBI for Anthony Volpe. Up 3-2 in the bottom half, Yankees manager Aaron Boone had some tough decisions to make for his pitching staff. In 2020, the MLB expanded postseason rosters from 25 players to 26, and set a maximum of 13 pitchers. This is to say, the bullpen options are endless. Boone went with righty Jake Cousins, as his big guns of Holmes, Tommy Kahnle, and Luke Weaver have already been used. Cousins allowed two runners on with one out, which led to Boone taking him out. With arguably the best player in baseball, Shohei Ohtani on deck, Boone went with a lefty.
That lefty was Nestor Cortes; the problem is that Nestor hadn’t pitched in a whole month. His last appearance was on September 18th. Nestor was able to retire Ohtani as outfield Alex Verdugo made an incredible catch in the stands. Boone proceeded to make another questionable call, as he intentionally walked Mookie Betts to load the bases. Freddie Freeman was the next batter, another lefty, hence as to why Boone wanted this matchup. Freeman took care of Nestor with one pitch, hitting the first ever game-winning grand slam in a WS game. This will be remembered as the signature hit this postseason, and a key reason as to why Freeman won World Series MVP.
1. DAAAAAAA Yankees Meltdown!
Let’s fast forward to the final game of the season. The Yankees find themselves in an impossible situation, needing a 3-0 comeback to win the championship. Only one team has ever comeback from a 3-0 deficit in postseason history, that being the ‘04 Boston Red Sox of course. It started off strong, as their bats awoke in Game 4, winning by a final of 11-4. They scored just six runs total in the first three games of the series. Game 5 was going in similar fashion, having a five run lead with their ace Gerrit Cole on the hill. That was until the fifth inning, an inning that made be considered the biggest meltdown in MLB history.
A combination of horrible defense and poor execution was on display. It started with Aaron Judge dropping a routine fly ball in center field to put runners on second and first with no outs. Next at-bat, Volpe, the shortstop, committed a throwing error in an attempt to get an out at third. With the bases loaded and no outs, Cole was able to keep composure and get back-to-back strikeouts, including Ohtani. One out from getting out of the jam, one last mistake cost the Yankees season. On a slow ground ball to first base, Anthony Rizzo scooped up the baseball looking to throw it to Cole covering first base. However, Cole didn’t cover, as Betts outran Rizzo and a run scored. Freeman then drove in two with a single, and Teoscar Hernandez completed the comeback with a two-run double. The Yankees still had a chance in this game, they even took back the lead. The Dodgers just wouldn’t quit, taking their first lead in the 8th off two sacrifice flies and Walker Buehler recorded the final three outs to win the championship for LA. This five run comeback was the largest to win a World Series in MLB history; just how they drew it up.
