The ball was in the air, soaring on a beautiful parabola toward the deepest part of the ballpark. Off the bat, it seemed Juan Soto wasnt quite sure. Thairo Estrada Jersey He was taking a good, hard look. But . He could see that a Cleveland center fielder named Lane Thomas was starting to drift back toward the wall. For most of the balls flight, it actually seemed like Thomas thought he had a shot. He kept waiting for it to fall. Kept waiting. Kept waiting. But he kept going back. Kept going back. Kept going back. And then, you could see Thomas shoulders sag ever so slightly and his legs weaken a bit. The ball was over his head. He ran out of room, and the ball was still drifting farther. By the time the ball landed, so did the Yankees right into the World Series for the first time in 15 years. The Yankees enjoy a champagne celebration after their AL pennant-clinching win over the Guardians in Game 5 of the ALCS on Oct. 19, 2024. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post Three outs later , and it was a 41st American League pennant for the Yanks. Friday night either back home in The Bronx or out in Los Angeles they will begin a quest for a 28th World Series championship. And they are playing their best ball of the season. Its a hell of a thing and a hell of a time. Im overwhelmed with emotion right now, said Yankees manager Aaron Boone, who 21 years ago took it upon himself to have his own Juan Soto moment, a homer off his bat shooting another set of Yankees to another Word Series. Im so proud of these guys. Another gritty, tough game, so many guys stepping up for us. Weve been knocking on the door a few times. And now, were going to the dance. Explore More The Yankees came out as they seem to always come out. Gleyber Torres singled leading off the game, again. Soto followed with a rocket this time a double to the wall again. The fly in the ointment was that Torres couldnt make it all the way home before the ball arrived. And for a while, it seemed that might be costly. The Guardians took a 1-0 lead. They took a 2-0 lead. Their starter, Tanner Bibee, began to pick up confidence. He started to mow the Yankees down. The folks inside Progre sive Field started to feel it. They started to believe. Cleveland as Believe-land. The Yankees and Giancarlo Stanton celebrate after he was named the ALCS MVP. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post But Stephen Vogt, who has done such a wonderful job with the Guardians in this, his managerial rookie season and led them to 92 wins and a playoff win over the Tigers, has also made more than a few questionable decisions in this series. And he made a worse one now. There were two outs and one on in the sixth. Giancarlo Stanton was up. Give me a million more times the way Tanner was throwing, Vogt insisted, and I wont have him put [Stanton] on. Stanton, who has been the Yankees most consistently damaging bat in the playoffs. Stanton, who had made Progre sive Field his personal playpen. Aaron Judge celebrates with the Yankees fans after their ALCS-clinching win over the Guardians. Jason Szenes / New York Post Stanton, who fell behind 0-and-2, worked the court back to 3-and-2. And then saw the most remarkable thing: a slider from Bibee that wasnt just a hanger, wasnt just a spinner, it seemed to all but stop for a half a heartbeat as it reached the plate. And Stanton knows what to do with such gifts. By the time it landed, the Yankees were tied, 2-2. And by the time it landed, it felt like just a matter of time before someone else would at last deliver the kill shot to end the Guardians. Juan Soto (right), Luis Gil (left) and Luke Weaver (top) enjoy a champagne celebration after the Yankees ALCS-clinching win over the Guardians. Charles Wenzelberg / New York Post Soon enough, Soto did just that. We did a really good job, Soto said. And now, were the best team in the American League. Follow The Posts coverage of the Yankees in the postseason: For years, the Yankees have struggled though one October after another where it seemed nobody could get a big hit when it really mattered. Mostly, it was against the Astros, a few times against the Red Sox, a couple of times against the Tigers. Theyd get close and theyd go wanting. Aaron Boone hugs Aaron Judge after the Yankees ALCS-clinching win over the Guardians. Getty Images Not this time. These guys, they lose a tough game, like the one we lost Thursday, Hal Steinbrenner said, and theyre so resilient. In Cleveland, on three succe sive nights, the Yankees came up with one hard-to-believe blast after another, a stack of forever swings. Aaron Judge and Stanton on Thursday. Stanton on Friday. Stanton again Saturday. When it ended appropriately enough, with a fly ball landing in Sotos glove they celebrated with a vigor and a pa sion that befits the moment. Even the Yankees are allowed to behave like little kids when they win the pennant. They did. They should. Its the best feeling you can ever have, Soto said. It certainly was. It certainly is. Matt Chapman Jersey