KANSAS CITY — Hours before Game 3 of the ALDS, Giancarlo Stanton took the field at Kauffman Stadium for some early batting practice. With assistant Yankees hitting coach Casey Dykes feeding balls through a pitching machine and lead hitting coach James Rowson watching, Stanton repeatedly sprayed heaters across the outfield. With just one hit over eight at-bats in the first two games of the tied series, the designated hitter made the most of some extra reps. “I wanted to see the backdrop. I wanted to see how the ball flew a little different,” Stanton said. “Just wanted to spread the field out, get some work in when it’s a little quiet.” He added, “Can’t put all that work in and have zero results.” Results certainly followed, as Stanton’s bat produced a 417-foot, solo home run in the eighth inning of Wednesday’s game. The go-ahead blast proved decisive, as the Yankees won, 3-2, and took a 2-1 series lead over Kansas City. As Stanton teed off on a slider from Royals reliever Kris Bubic, he stopped to admire the homer before rounding the bases. Then he said he “blacked out.” “He’s so good at locking in in these big games,” Aaron Boone said. “He’s done it throughout his career with us. He’s just really able to focus pitch to pitch. I thought that at-bat off Bubic was just phenomenal. I think he went up there looking to do damage, looking to do just that. “He’s a killer.” A #POSTSEASON STANTONIAN BLAST pic.twitter.com/6ewPuZLdK1 — MLB (@MLB) October 10, 2024 As Boone alluded to, Stanton has been a force in the playoffs since joining the Yankees prior to the 2018 season. His Wednesday night bomb gave him 12 postseason homers for his career, as well as one per every 9.4 at-bats. Only Babe Ruth (8.6) went deep at a higher clip this time of year. After going 3-for-5 — Stanton also had an RBI double in the fourth inning — he now has a .266 average, .964 OPS and 27 RBI over 30 postseason games. All have come with the Yankees after Stanton won an MVP with the Marlins but never took Miami to the playoffs. Giancarlo Stanton is one of the greatest postseason power hitters of all-time pic.twitter.com/5C0EOJ4Axz — Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 10, 2024 When asked about his postseason success, Stanton said, “This is what I came here for.” Meanwhile, his teammates marveled at his ability to perform under pressure. “He knows how to handle his emotions in the playoffs,” Juan Soto observed. “That’s just Big G,” Aaron Judge added. Stanton, who enjoyed a bounce-back regular season after two years, saw his contributions extend beyond his bat on Wednesday. While a long history of lower-body injuries have often forced him to run at a snail’s pace, he shocked with a stolen base in the sixth inning. It was his first since 2020, and it didn’t go unnoticed in the Yankees’ clubhouse. “That was my favorite part,” Judge said with a smile. “It was a surprise to all of us,” the significantly speedier Jazz Chisholm Jr. said. “But hey, I’m happy he did it.” Soto, meanwhile, highlighted Stanton’s impact off the field. He made sure to note the veteran’s leadership and even called the 34-year-old the Yankees’ “second captain” with Judge holding the official title. “He knows how everything goes,” Soto continued. “If you have any doubts in what you’re doing here and there, you can always come to him, and he’s going to have an answer.” Before Stanton changed the game, Clarke Schmidt cruised for most of his first-career playoff start. The righty permitted just one hit while holding the Royals scoreless for the first four innings, but his evening took a turn with two outs in the fifth. Trouble began when Adam Frazier hit a soft single toward shortstop. Anthony Volpe, playing behind second base, made a backhanded play on the ball, but he sailed a throw to first as Frazier reached safely. Kyle Isbel followed up with an RBI double the other way to left, putting the Royals on the board. Michael Massey then tripled when Soto laid out for a line drive off the second baseman’s bat. The ball got past Soto and rolled to the wall as the Royals tied the game and sent Schmidt to the showers. “That’s the playoffs,” said Schmidt, who tallied 4.2 innings, four hits, two earned runs, one walk, four strikeouts and 71 pitches. “If you give them an inch, they’ll take a mile. I think the momentum swings are a major thing here, especially on the road when the crowd gets involved. “But really good gameplan tonight. And I think there’s a lot to be said about coming out hot and trying to put up zeros early. It gives your team a chance to win.” Back on offense, the Yankees picked up a run in the fifth frame when some station-to-station movement led to a sac fly for Soto. The Yanks’ first two runs came off Seth Lugo. The Royals’ righty also totaled two hits, four walks, two strikeouts and 87 pitches after carving the Yankees up at Yankee Stadium a month ago. The Yankees could have potentially scored in the third inning as well, as Gleyber Torres blooped a ball down the right field line with Oswaldo Cabrera on first. The ball looked like it landed on the foul line, thus indicating a fair ball. However, the right field umpire called it foul, a ruling that stood after the Yankees challenged. On the game’s TBS broadcast, a few limited replay angles appeared to confirm that the ball was fair, but Torres ultimately flew out to deep right to end the inning. “I haven’t gone back now and looked at all the replays. We thought it was super close,” Boone said. “I don’t know if there’s more angles or whatever.” A potential RBI double from Gleyber Torres was ruled a foul ball before and after review pic.twitter.com/USa5XqYEoQ — Talkin' Yanks (@TalkinYanks) October 9, 2024 Another call didn’t go the Yankees’ way in the seventh when Judge struck out on a check swing. Once again, replay sparked some disagreement, but the inning ended there with Soto stranded on first. Judge, meanwhile, ended up going 0-for-4 with a walk on the night despite some solid contact earlier in the game. He is now 1-for-11 in the series. Here's a side view of that Aaron Judge check swing. #Yankees pic.twitter.com/pZ3gcwN7b0 — Gary Phillips (@GaryHPhillips) October 10, 2024 While those calls didn’t work out for the Yankees, they managed to take a 2-1 series lead over the Royals after Luke Weaver recorded a five-out save. The Bombers now have a chance to advance to the ALCS with a win on Thursday in Kansas City. Gerrit Cole will take the ball for the Yanks in that pivotal contest. The ace wasn’t particularly sharp in Game 1, surrendering four runs (3 earned) and 11 hard-hit balls over five innings. Still, the Yankees won that game in the Bronx. Michael Wacha will also start Game 4 after opposing Cole in Game 1. The fellow righty only lasted four innings in the series-opener, as he gave up three earned runs. “We need to wrap it up tomorrow,” Stanton said. “No wiggle room. We’ve got to get it done.”