Fry's 2-run homer in 10th sends Guardians to stunning 7-5 win over Yankees, close to 2-1 in ALCS

CLEVELAND (AP) — Jhonkensy Noel saved Cleveland's season. David Fry extended it.

With two huge swings, the Guardians hit back at the big, bad New York Yankees and tightened an AL Championship Series that was just about over.

Noel connected for a two-run, pinch-hit homer with two outs in the ninth inning and Fry hit a two-run shot in the 10th as Cleveland rallied past New York 7-5 on Thursday night in an unforgettable Game 3 to pull the Guardians to 2-1 in the best-of-seven series.

Cleveland’s unexpected season that included 92 wins and the AL Central title was on the brink after Aaron Judge hit a two-run homer off All-Star closer Emmanuel Clase and Giancarlo Stanton followed with a solo drive in the eighth to give the Yankees a 4-3 lead.

But Noel, a burly outfielder known as Big Christmas, delivered an October gift and Fry followed with his second momentous homer in these playoffs.

“That’s exactly who we are,” first-year Guardians manager Stephen Vogt said. “We never quit. We get punched in the teeth pretty hard there in the eighth, and our guys stepped up huge for the guy that carried us all year long. That was really fun to see."

It was exhausting, thrilling and dramatic as the Yankees and Guardians jammed a season's worth of highlights into three innings.

"That was playoff baseball,” Yankees manager Aaron Boone said. “Both sides just kept coming with haymakers and big at-bats, big moments off of two really good bullpens. They outlasted us. They had one more good swing than us. That’s part of it. We’ll be ready to roll tomorrow.”

The Guardians trailed 5-3, had no runners on base in the ninth and were moments from falling into a 3-0 deficit when Lane Thomas doubled against Luke Weaver, who had been perfect in eight save chances since taking over as the Yankees closer in September. Noel then delivered his towering homer.

As he rounded the bases, Progressive Field fans danced on their seats and in the aisles in a moment reminiscent of Rajai Davis’ tying homer off Aroldis Chapman in the eighth inning of 2016 World Series Game 7.

It was fitting that Davis, who now works for Major League Baseball, was on hand to see Noel's homer that now belongs beside his in Cleveland history.

“We’re a team that don’t quit,” Noel, who came in 1 of 15 in the playoffs, said through an interpreter. “We play 27 outs, so that’s kind of what happened today.”

Fry joked Noel's homer was stunning and no surprise at all.

“It was amazement,” he said of the reaction in Cleveland's dugout. "It was so much excitement, but then it was just like, oh, yeah, of course Jhonkensy hit a game-tying homer against a guy throwing 98 hits it for a homer.

“Nobody does that. Like Vogter said coming in the game, it's like, here you go, big boy, hit a two-run homer, and he did. It’s so cool.”

Fry’s swing ended an instant fall classic.

Bo Naylor singled leading off the 10th against Clay Holmes and Brayan Rocchio sacrificed. Naylor took third on Steven Kwan's comebacker before Fry, who hit a Division Series-saving homer in Game 4 at Detroit, sent a 1-2 sinker into the left-field bleachers.

Fry watched the ball sail into the stands before heading toward first. He was mobbed by teammates after crossing home plate as fans tossed drinks in the air while trying to process the emotional rollercoaster they had endured.

“I blacked out,” Fry said. “I remember being like halfway down the first baseline looking back at the dugout and looking and saying, alright, I just have to make sure I touch all four bases and get home and celebrate.”

Cleveland can tie the series with a win Friday.

The Guardians still have a chance to end baseball's current longest World Series drought, stretching to 1948.

Judge homered in Game 2 but was batting just .143 (3 of 21) with eight strikeouts this October before coming to the plate against Clase, the AL’s saves leader and MLB’s most feared reliever.

After falling behind 1-2 in the count, Judge, who was on the field taking batting practice five hours before the game, sat back and drove a 99 mph cutter from Clase the opposite way to right, the ball just clearing the outfield wall.

New York’s players poured out of the dugout to celebrate as Judge, the likely AL MVP after hitting 58 homers in the regular season, circled the bases following his 15th postseason homer.

The Yankees, who had been held to three hits over the first seven innings, were still exchanging hugs and high-fives when Stanton crushed a 1-2 slider from Clase, sending it over the center-field wall.

But even though they had the lead, the Yankees weren't taking anything for granted.

“I wouldn't say we were looking ahead to the World Series,” Judge said. “We still have another game, even if it was 3-0.”

Clase had been impeccable all season, allowing just five runs and recording 34 consecutive saves while dominating almost every time he took the mound. But he was tagged for a three-run homer in the ninth by Kerry Carpenter in the ALDS before Judge and Stanton got him within a span of eight pitches.

New York had two on with no outs in the ninth but scored just one run, on Gleyber Torres' sacrifice fly. Eli Morgan ended the inning by throwing a called third strike past Juan Soto.

Rookie Kyle Manzardo hit a two-run homer in the third for Cleveland.

The 30th postseason matchup between the Guardians and Yankees was another tightly contested matchup between two franchises who know each other well this time of year. This is their seventh meeting in the playoffs.

Cleveland finally got some length from a starter as Matthew Boyd went five innings, the most Vogt has permitted this postseason. The left-hander gave up two hits in the second before retiring 10 straight, seven on easy grounders.

TRAINER’S ROOM

Yankees: Reliever Ian Hamilton was lifted in the sixth inning after appearing to hurt himself while covering first base. The team said he had left calf tightness. ... Boone said LHP Nestor Cortes came through a brief batting practice pitching session on Wednesday without any issues. Cortes is recovering from an elbow strain and hasn’t pitched in a game since Sept. 18. If New York advances, he could be added to the World Series roster.

UP NEXT

Guardians RHP Gavin Williams will start Game 4, his first appearance of the postseason. The hard-throwing Williams had a disappointing regular season (3-10, 4.86 ERA), which began with him on the injured list for several months with an elbow issue. He’ll face Yankees RHP Luis Gil, who went 15-7 during the regular season.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Cleveland Guardians' Jhonkensy Noel (43) celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the ninth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry celebrates after hitting a game-winning two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the 10th inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. The Guardians won 7-5. (AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry, second from right, celebrates with teammates after hitting a game-winning two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the 10th inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. The Guardians won 7-5. (AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians' Jhonkensy Noel watches his two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the ninth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. (AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees relief pitcher Ian Hamilton leaves during the sixth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series against the Cleveland Guardians Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees starting pitcher Clarke Schmidt leaves the game during the fifth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series against the Cleveland Guardians Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Matthew Boyd throws against the New York Yankees during the fourth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Matthew Boyd throws against the New York Yankees during the fourth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge runs the bases after hitting a two-run home against the Cleveland Guardians during the eighth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Cleveland Guardians' José Ramírez, right, steals second base as New York Yankees second baseman Gleyber Torres (25) reaches to tag him during the third inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Sue Ogrocki)

Cleveland Guardians' José Ramírez loses his helmet as he swings for a strike against the New York Yankees during the fifth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton breaks his bat hitting a ground out against the Cleveland Guardians during the third inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees' Jose Trevino, left, is tagged out by Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Matthew Boyd during the second inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Cleveland Guardians starting pitcher Matthew Boyd throws against the New York Yankees during the second inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge walks back to the dugout after striking out against the Cleveland Guardians during the sixth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry celebrates after hitting a game-winning two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the 10th inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. The Guardians won 7-5. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Cleveland Guardians' Kyle Manzardo, right, watches his two-run home run along with New York Yankees catcher Jose Trevino during the third inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians relief pitcher Emmanuel Clase reacts after giving up a home run against the New York Yankees during the eighth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

New York Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton (27) celebrates with teammates after hitting a home run against the Cleveland Guardians during the eighth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the Cleveland Guardians during the eighth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

New York Yankees' Aaron Judge celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the Cleveland Guardians during the eighth inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland.(AP Photo/Godofredo Vásquez )

Cleveland Guardians players wait for David Fry (6) to cross home plate after hitting a game-winning two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the 10th inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. The Guardians won 7-5. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

Cleveland Guardians' David Fry celebrates after hitting a game-winning two-run home run against the New York Yankees during the 10th inning in Game 3 of the baseball AL Championship Series Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in Cleveland. The Guardians won 7-5. (AP Photo/Jeff Roberson)

NEW YORK (AP) — Former President Donald Trump laced into Vice President Kamala Harris and other Democrats on Thursday in a pointed and at times bitter speech as he headlined the annual Al Smith charity dinner in New York.

Trump, in remarks that often felt more like a rally performance than a comedy routine, repeatedly criticized Harris over her decision to skip the event in a break from presidential tradition as she campaigned in Wisconsin.

She recorded a video that was played onscreen, but Trump called the decision "deeply disrespectful."

““If you really wanted Vice President Harris to accept your invitation, I guess you should have told her the funds were going to bail out the looters and rioters in Minneapolis and she would have been here, guaranteed,” said Trump, urging Catholics to vote for him in response.

“You better remember that I’m here and she’s not," he said.

The white-tie dinner raises millions of dollars for Catholic charities and has traditionally offered candidates from both parties the chance to trade lighthearted barbs, poke fun at themselves, and show that they can get along — or at least pretend to — for one night in the election's final stretch.

It's often the last time the two nominees share a stage before Election Day.

Trump delivered a number of one-liners that drew laughs. But he also questioned the mental fitness of Harris and President Joe Biden, commented on second gentleman Doug Emhoff's extramarital affair during his previous marriage, and made a joke about transgender women that echoed his frequent mocking of trans athletes on the campaign trail.

He said at one point that he would offer a couple of self-deprecating jokes before abandoning the effort. “Nope. I’ve got nothing,” he said to laughs.

“I just don’t see the point of taking shots at myself when other people have been shooting at me," he said, referencing his survival of two assassination attempts this year.

Of Biden, he said, “If the Democrats really wanted to have someone not be with us this evening, they would have sent Joe Biden."

Later, he said the current occupant of the White House “can barely talk, barely put together two coherent sentences, who seems to have the mental faculties of a child. This is a person that has nothing going, no intelligence whatsoever. But enough about Kamala Harris.”

In the video she recorded for the occasion, Harris appeared alongside comedian and actress Molly Shannon, who reprised her long-running “Saturday Night Live” character Mary Katherine Gallagher, an awkward Catholic schoolgirl. She also poked fun at Trump for comments he made in Michigan, saying that mocking Catholics in the video would be “like criticizing Detroit in Detroit.”

Harris’ campaign had previously said that, with less than three weeks before Election Day, they wanted her to spend as much time as possible campaigning in battleground states that will decide the election, rather than detouring to heavily Democratic New York. Her team has told organizers that she would be willing to attend the dinner as president if she wins.

Trump was joined at the dinner by his wife, Melania, who has been an infrequent presence on the campaign trail.

The dais included a mix of Trump allies and foes, with various entanglements. They included New York Attorney General Letitia James, who brought a successful civil fraud case against Trump and his business. Robert F. Kennedy Jr., who endorsed Trump after dropping his bid for the Democratic presidential nomination, attended with his wife, Cheryl Hines.

Also in attendance were New York’s embattled Mayor Eric Adams and other top city officials, as well as business leaders and sports and media personalities. Adams was charged last month with accepting illegal campaign contributions and lavish overseas trips from Turkish officials and businesspeople — a case that was mentioned repeatedly, including by Trump.

Trump has claimed, without evidence, that Adams was targeted by authorities because he criticized Biden’s migrant policies.

“Mayor Adams: Good luck with everything,” Trump said, adding that what Adams faces is “peanuts” compared to his own legal woes and predicting that he will win reelection nonetheless.

He also went after former New York Mayor Bill de Blasio, who was repeatedly booed by the crowd.

“To be honest, he was a terrible mayor," Trump said before offering a profanity at a religion-themed event. "I don’t give a s—- if this is comedy or not.”

The dinner was emceed by comedian Jim Gaffigan, who plays Democratic vice presidential nominee Tim Walz on “Saturday Night Live.”

Gaffigan has a history of criticizing Trump. In 2020, he wrote on X, then named Twitter, that, “We need to wake up. We need to call trump the con man and thief that he is.”

Gaffigan largely kept his focus on others Thursday, but offered several pointed quips, including when he referenced allegations that the Trump Organization in the 1970s discriminated against Black renters.

“If Vice President Harris wins this election, not only would she be the first female president, a Black woman would occupy the White House, a former Trump residence,” Gaffigan said. “Obviously you wouldn't be renting to her. I mean, that would never happen anyway. Maybe if Doug did the signing.”

Gaffigan also mocked Harris for not coming to the dinner and joked about the Democrats replacing Biden with the vice president.

“The media has begun discussing the phenomena of secret Trump voters. I don’t know if you’ve heard about this — people who publicly say they would never vote for Trump, but then when they go in the voting booth, they do. It’s a small group. They’re called the Biden family,” he told the crowd.

Trump's tone echoed his appearance in 2016, when he was joined by his Democratic rival, Hillary Clinton, and delivered a particularly nasty speech in which he called her “corrupt."

“Hillary believes that it’s vital to deceive the people by having one public policy and a totally different policy in private,” he said to jeers. “For example, here she is tonight, in public, pretending not to hate Catholics.”

Mary Callahan Erdoes, vice chair of the foundation, alluded to that when she introduced Trump, suggesting she hoped for something less caustic.

“You never disappoint. Your wit is absolutely fabulous. And all of us together are going to hope for the best,” she said to laughs.

Trump, too, referenced the performance Thursday, saying that, in 2016, he "went overboard. That was like terrible. And I knew I was in trouble midway through."

That didn't stop him, however, from similar attacks, and repeatedly straying off-script.

The Harris campaign responded to Trump's speech with a statement saying it would remind “Americans how unstable he’s become.”

“He may refuse to release his medical records, but every day he makes it clear to the American people that he is not up to the job,” said spokesperson Ammar Moussa.

Trump's sense of humor is often cited by his supporters as key to his appeal. While he infamously glowered through former President Barack Obama’s jokes at his expense during the 2011 White House Correspondents Dinner, he also sometimes pokes fun at himself.

At several rallies this year, he has remarked on his hair after catching a glimpse of himself onscreen.

“What the hell can you do? There’s nothing I can do about it. We’re stuck with it," he joked at a rally in Indiana, Pennsylvania, last month.

Both Trump and Biden, who is Catholic, spoke at a virtual version of the fundraiser in 2020, which was moved online due to concerns over large gatherings at the height of the pandemic.

The Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner is named for the former New York governor, a Democrat who was the first Catholic to receive a major-party nomination for president when he unsuccessfully ran for the White House in 1928.

The event has become a tradition for presidential candidates since Richard Nixon and John F. Kennedy appeared together in 1960. In 1996, the Archdiocese of New York decided not to invite then-President Bill Clinton and his Republican challenger, Bob Dole, reportedly because Clinton vetoed a late-term abortion ban.

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York, as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., and Cardinal Timothy Dolan listen. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks as Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., listens at the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Robert F. Kennedy Jr., arrives for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Michael Bloomberg arrives for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump arrive for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

House Speaker Mike Johnson of La., arrives for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

New York City Mayor Eric Adams, center, and former Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, left, arrive for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., and Cardinal Timothy Dolan gesture as Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump watches at the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump atalks with Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer of N.Y., at the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and former first lady Melania Trump arrive for the 79th annual Alfred E. Smith Memorial Foundation Dinner, Thursday, Oct. 17, 2024, in New York. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign event at the Cobb Energy Performing Arts Centre, Tuesday, Oct. 15, 2024, in Atlanta. (AP Photo/John Bazemore)

Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris waves at Trenton-Mercer Airport, in Mercer County, N.J., before departing en route to Milwaukee, Wednesday, Oct. 16, 2024. (AP Photo/Jacquelyn Martin)

FILE - Republican presidential nominee former President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential nominee Vice President Kamala Harris shake hands before the start of an ABC News presidential debate at the National Constitution Center, Sept. 10, 2024, in Philadelphia. (AP Photo/Alex Brandon, File)