CLEVELAND — Cody Bellinger has spent the past week carrying the Yankees, and on Monday night he did it again in a way that linked him to one of the most beloved names in franchise history. His latest piece of late-inning magic was not just another big hit. It put him in company no Yankee has touched in more than three decades.
In a grinding, nearly four-hour marathon at Progressive Field, Bellinger delivered the tiebreaking blow in the 10th inning to lift the Yankees past the Guardians 7-5. The win took every arm and nearly every bat on the roster, but it was Bellinger, once more, who finished it.
The swing that beat Cleveland
With the score tied in the 10th and Cleveland’s infield pulled in, Bellinger came up with the bases loaded and one out against Guardians reliever Shawn Armstrong.
He kept it simple. Bellinger lined a two-strike, 95 mph fastball into left field to score automatic runner Ali Sanchez and Ben Rice, who had been intentionally walked moments earlier to set up a force. The two-run single gave the Yankees a lead they would not surrender. Bellinger described his mindset in the at-bat afterward.
“I wanted to get the job done, keep it simple and not try to do too much,” Bellinger said.
The hit was even more impressive given his splits. Bellinger entered the night with a 1.140 OPS at Yankee Stadium but just a .591 mark on the road, making his road heroics all the more unlikely.
Joining Bernie Williams in the record book
This is the part that turns a clutch hit into history. Bellinger’s game-winning single was his second walk-off-style RBI in as many games, and that back-to-back feat carries serious weight in the Bronx.
Bellinger became the first Yankee to drive in a game-winning run in the eighth inning or later in consecutive games since Bernie Williams did it on May 12 and 13, 1994. For a franchise as storied as the Yankees, going more than 30 years without a player matching that clutch streak underscores how rare Bellinger’s recent run has been. Williams remains a Yankee Stadium icon, a five-time All-Star and a central figure in the dynasty years, which makes the comparison resonate even louder.
That kind of timing is exactly why the Yankees pursued Bellinger. He has delivered the decisive hit in consecutive games at the precise moment the lineup can least afford to go quiet.
A bargain looking better by the day
Bellinger’s value to the Yankees runs far deeper than two clutch swings. His full body of work in pinstripes has made him one of the smartest investments on the roster.
Across 215 games as a Yankee, Bellinger owns a .272/.345/.479 line with an .824 OPS and 38 home runs, paired with elite plate discipline reflected in his 10.4 percent walk rate and 13.5 percent strikeout rate. His 129 wRC+ marks him as a well above-average hitter, and his .354 weighted on-base average tells the same story. The glove only adds to it. He has been a standout defender in both outfield corners, piling up 22 defensive runs saved in left field and another eight in right, good for 7.3 wins above replacement as a Yankee. He is the complete five-tool weapon the front office hoped it was getting.
An all-hands win without Judge
The victory carried extra meaning because of how the Yankees had to earn it. With Aaron Judge sidelined by a fractured rib, this was a true team effort from top to bottom.
Starter Will Warren needed 91 pitches to get through just 4 1/3 innings, forcing manager Aaron Boone to empty his bench and use all but one of his eight relievers. Only Fernando Cruz went unused, despite warming up twice. Paul Goldschmidt started the scoring with a first-inning two-run homer off Gavin Williams, and Ryan McMahon later added a go-ahead shot, the second time in six days the Yankees had taken Williams deep twice. After Cleveland surged ahead on an Angel Martinez homer, Goldschmidt tied it in the eighth before Bellinger ended it. Boone summed up the night simply.
“It wasn’t pretty, but very gritty,” Boone said.
David Bednar closed it out as the seventh Yankees pitcher, recording the final five outs, including three straight with the tying runs aboard. The win improved the Yankees to 39-26 and showed they can survive a heavyweight fight even without their captain.
For now, the Yankees have Bellinger, who keeps writing his name alongside the franchise greats. Matching a Bernie Williams clutch streak in the middle of a Judge-less stretch is the kind of story that defines a season, and Bellinger is making a habit of being there when the Yankees need him most.
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