ALCS Game 5 takeways: Yankees off to World Series on wings of Juan Soto's 10th-inning homer

Regardless of how New York's postseason run ends, Soto — an impending free agent — has essentially earned himself a blank check this offseason. Last month, Tim Britton of The Athletic predicted that Soto could sign a 14-year, $560 million deal in free agency. Considering the type of talent that Soto is and how monumental his home run was, it would be surprising if the value of his next contract did not start with a six. 

Yankees DH Giancarlo Stanton hits yet another clutch home run

How many home runs did Stanton have to hit against Cleveland in this series for manager Stephen Vogt to walk him in a key situation? Apparently, more than three.

After working around a bases-loaded jam in the first inning, starting pitcher Tanner Bibee settled in nicely, giving the Guardians what appeared to be the ace-level outing they desperately needed from him. Bibee allowed just one base runner across the next four innings of Saturday's game before running into trouble in the sixth while his team led 2-0.

Bibee gave up a pair of singles to begin the inning, but the right-hander picked up two outs thanks to Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge grounding into a double play, bringing Stanton to the plate. The former National League MVP worked the count from 0-2 to 3-2 and rather than walking him, Bibee tried to get Stanton to chase — only to hang a slider.

Stanton promptly sent the pitch 446 feet to left-center field for a towering game-tying two-run home run, his fourth long ball of the series. 

Unsurprisingly, Stanton was named MVP of the ALCS after posting a 1.222 OPS with four homers and seven RBI over the five-game set. Stanton has already established himself as an all-time great postseason performer, but he'll likely need to lead New York to its 28th title to make a case to be enshrined in Cooperstown.

Guardians should consider trading closer Emmanuel Clase this offseason

While this idea might be controversial, trading Clase may be a necessary move for the Guardians to improve this winter. Several fielding errors and poor decisions from Vogt were undoubtedly among the leading factors behind Cleveland's ALCS loss, but Clase's struggles also played a major role in the series' outcome.

The three-time All-Star blew a save in Game 3, allowing back-to-back eighth-inning home runs to Judge and Stanton before surrendering two runs in the ninth inning of Friday's Game 4 loss.

Although it's hard to hold one series against a player, especially one who posted a ridiculous 0.61 ERA during the regular season, Clase hasn't been the same dominant pitcher in October. Clase's postseason woes didn't begin in the ALCS, either, as he gave up a go-ahead homer in the ninth inning of Cleveland's ALDS Game 2 loss to the Detroit Tigers.

Overall, the 2022 AL Reliever of the Year posted a 9.00 ERA across seven outings this postseason. Even so, Clase looked sharp in his one inning of work on Saturday, which could help Cleveland net a trade package comparable to his peak value this offseason.

Plenty of teams should still be interested in Clase, especially since he's under team control through 2028. Considering the bullpen is Cleveland's strength and it has multiple relievers who could serve in the closer role, flipping Clase for starting pitching might prove to be a worthwhile move.