NEW YORK — In a game they could not afford to fall behind early, the Cleveland Guardians made a mess of things in the first and second innings of ALCS Game 2 against the New York Yankees ( live updates here ). Shortstop Brayan Rocchio dropped an Aaron Judge infield pop up to allow a run to score in the first inning, and that was only the start of Cleveland’s problems.
Anthony Volpe and Anthony Rizzo opened the second inning with back-to-back singles, then Alex Verdugo brought home a run with a double to left field. With runners on second and third with one out, the Guardians did something seemed unthinkable most of the season. They intentionally walked Juan Soto to load the bases for presumptive American League MVP Aaron Judge .
The move worked, at least in the sense that the Guardians avoided a big inning. Judge brought home a run with a sac fly against reliever Cade Smith , who then struck out Austin Wells to end the threat. Judge’s sac fly gave New York a 3-0 lead through two innings…