The Cleveland Guardians and the New York Yankees are tied 2-2 in the American League Division Series.
The Yanks struck first, then the Guardians won two in a row and had New York on the ropes.
The Yanks leveled things on Sunday night, setting the scene for a winner-take-all affair on Monday night, in the Bronx.
The Guardians are making sure their fans are ready and hyped, releasing a short, but powerful video to keep everybody engaged.
“Two walked in, but only one of us is walking out of here tonight. David versus Goliath, the conclusion,” was their message.
In the video, there are some of the most exciting plays of the series against the Yankees: the Oscar Gonzalez walk-off in Game 3 against Clarke Schmidt, Steven Kwan‘s timely hits, and Josh Naylor‘s Game 4 home run in which he rocked a (imaginary) baby to mock Gerrit Cole.
Two walked in, but only one of us is walking out of here tonight.
David versus Goliath, the conclusion.#ForTheLand pic.twitter.com/u9emxKETSH
— Cleveland Guardians (@CleGuardians) October 17, 2022
Cleveland Is Hyped
All of those plays, plus the boatload of strikeouts and important outs the pitching staff has contributed, have taken us where we currently are: Game 5.
The winner goes on to face the Houston Astros in the AL Championship Series, and the loser goes home to watch the rest of the postseason on TV.
You can be sure the Guardians prefer the first option.
It’s really a David vs. Goliath story: Cleveland’s payroll is around $82 million, while the Yankees’ exceeded $265 million.
On the field, however, the two teams look evenly matched, with their own strengths and weaknesses.
Cleveland has shown grit and heart, playing a unique brand of baseball that includes intensity, contact, smart and aggressive baserunning, and a lot of good pitching.
That formula may be enough to take them to the next round if they can execute well.
NEXT: Aaron Civale Is The Key Factor In Game 5