CLEVELAND — The Yankees acquired Harrison Bader mostly for his glove, but his bat would like a word.
For the second time in three games, Bader crushed a solo home run, though this time it was not enough as the Yankees fell to the Guardians in a crushing 6-5 walk-off loss in Game 3 of the ALDS on Saturday night at Progressive Field.
The Guardians had just cut the Yankees’ lead to 4-3 in the bottom of the sixth inning when Bader walked to the plate with one out in the top of the seventh against Sam Hentges.
The left-handed reliever threw a 95 mph fastball down the middle and Bader did not miss it, clobbering it 412 feet into the left-field bleachers to put the Yankees up 5-3.
The home run marked both the first run and first extra-base hit the Guardians’ bullpen allowed this postseason, snapping its 18 ²/₃-inning scoreless streak through the AL wild-card series and the first two-plus games of the Division Series.
Harrison Bader celebrates after belting a solo homer in the seventh inning of the Yankees’ 6-5 Game 3 loss. Corey Sipkin
Bader also singled up the middle in the fifth inning and scored on Oswaldo Cabrera’s go-ahead two-run home run.
Bader’s first home run of the series — and his first as a Yankee — came in Game 1 in The Bronx, when he drilled a solo shot off starter Cal Quantrill to tie the game at one in the third inning. That marked his first home run since June 2, when he was still a Cardinal.
The Bronxville native is quickly making up for lost time. When the Yankees landed him at the trade deadline for Jordan Montgomery, Bader was still in a walking boot for plantar fasciitis. He did not make his Yankees debut until Sept. 20 and only got 49 plate appearances before the regular season ended, hitting .217 (10-for-46) with three doubles and a .528 OPS.
Bader is also carrying the flag for the Yankees’ trade-deadline acquisitions.
Three of the five major league players the Yankees traded for this summer are not on the ALDS roster because of injuries — Andrew Benintendi (broken hamate bone), Frankie Montas (shoulder soreness) and Scott Effross (Tommy John surgery). Reliever Lou Trivino, who recorded the final out of the sixth inning Saturday, joined Bader as the other healthy newcomer.
