CLEVELAND, Ohio — Andrés Giménez and Josh Naylor teamed up to make one of the finest defensive plays you will see in a major league postseason baseball game on Thursday.
But like Aaron Judge’s home run off Emmanuel Clase in the eighth, Giménez’s defensive wizardry became just a footnote thanks to David Fry’s walk-off two-run home run that gave the Guardians a 7-5 win and kept Cleveland alive against the Yankees in the American League Championship Series.
But let’s give Giménez, Naylor and their gloves some love before turning the page to Game 4.
Giménez, the American League Platinum Glove winner in 2023, found out Tuesday he is a finalist for his third straight Gold Glove Award at second base. He had snapped an 0 for 15 skid for Cleveland hitters with runners in scoring position with an RBI single in the sixth inning that extended the Guardians’ lead to 3-1. So it was already shaping up to be a pretty good day.
New York tied the score in the eighth and took the lead on back-to-back home runs by Aaron Judge and Giancarlo Stanton off Guardians closer Emmanuel Clase, the invincible reliever who had not yielded multiple home runs in any game during his career to that point. Ever.
When Jhonkensy Noel forced extra innings with a two-out, two-run home run in the bottom of the ninth, Cleveland went back to work on defense, and Giménez was given the chance to do something special.
After a one-out walk to Stanton, reliever Pedro Avila fell behind in the count, 1-0 to Jazz Chisholm Jr. Avila threw Chisholm a fastball down and over the middle of the plate that the Yankees third baseman chopped on the ground toward right field.
Giménez ranged far to his left and snagged the ball, which appeared to be nearly past him into right field. In one motion, Giménez spun to his left, jumped and bounced a throw toward Naylor that pulled the Cleveland first baseman into foul territory.
Somehow Naylor stretched, kept his toe on the bag and snagged the throw as Chisholm raced down the line. Giménez ended up in Eastlake, but first base umpire Alan Porter called Chisholm out, and instead of having runners at first and third with one out, the Yankees had a runner at second with two down.
Avila intentionally walked Anthony Rizzo before striking out Anthony Volpe to keep the game tied at 5-5 and set the stage for Fry’s heroics.
Afterward, Cleveland manager Stephen Vogt said what Giménez does on a nightly basis with his glove is fun to watch, and that the Guardians are spoiled to be around him playing second base every day. Vogt did not hold back with his superlatives.
“Andrés Giménez is the best infielder on the planet,” Vogt said. “He has been, and he will be. He makes plays that make us ‘Wow’ every single day, it seems like.”
Vogt broke down the play on both ends, crediting Naylor as much for his awareness and footwork around the bag to keep his toe in contact for the out.
“For (Giménez) to even get to that ball, spin and throw a very good runner out and for Naylor to make an in-between hop pick as he’s falling over fully stretched, that is just unbelievable defense by both of them.”
The play kept momentum in Cleveland’s favor after Jhonkensy Noel’s electrifying home run that tied the score in the bottom of the ninth. Fry said the play, which might get overlooked by those outside the Guardians clubhouse, certainly was appreciated within.
“It was good pitching all night, amazing defense, obviously led by (Giménez), and then clutch hitting,” Fry said. “Bunts, bombs and chaos. That’s what we talked about. It felt like tonight we got back to that.”
