Giancarlo Stanton’s MLB Postseason Heroics Put Him in Historic Company

Giancarlo Stanton has earned quite the reputation for being unable to stay healthy during his time with the New York Yankees. Stanton has played in 114 games or more just once since 2019, but those shortcomings haven’t mattered much in October.

“Big G” has established himself as an electric postseason player for the Yankees and is on a historic tear during the 2024 playoffs. He has hit multiple go-ahead or game-tying home runs during the Yankees run to the World Series, and through Game 1 of the World Series, homered in four consecutive games.

Stanton’s streak has him in the conversation for greatest postseason runs ever, but he is far from alone in his dominance in playoff baseball. Let’s look at some of the most memorable runs in MLB postseason history.

1. David Ortiz (2004)

David Ortiz showed promises of superstardom in the 2003 postseason, which included a big home run in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series against the Yankees. The Red Sox would drop that game and series, but he would get his revenge the following season.

Ortiz put on a clinic in the 2004 postseason, hitting .400 with five home runs and 19 RBI en route to leading Boston to its first World Series win since 1918. His walk-off home run off of Mariano Rivera in Game 4 of the ALCS with the Sox facing elimination is one of the most iconic home runs in franchise history, and he’d add a walk-off single in Game 5 to ultimately help Boston storm back from three games down to win the series. He won ALCS MVP and would add a homer in the World Series against the Cardinals as well.

2. Reggie Jackson (1977)

They don’t call Reggie Jackson “Mr. October” for no reason. Jackson was a stellar postseason player throughout his entire career, hitting 18 homers across 11 appearances. Five of those home runs came in one series.

In fact, three of them were from one game. Jackson was a monster in the 1977 World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers, hitting five home runs en route to being named World Series MVP with the Yankees. That was highlighted by Game 6, when he took the Dodgers deep three times into the Yankee Stadium night. It helped deliver New York’s first World Series championship since 1962.

3. Alex Rodriguez (2009)

Alex Rodriguez helped the Yankees break a nine-year championship drought with his heroics during the 2009 postseason.

Rodriguez had gained notoriety for being a poor playoff performer up to 2009. After some contract drama the previous offseason, he entered the 2009 playoffs with focus and produced the greatest run of his career. He hit a dramatic game-tying home run in the ninth inning of Game 2 of the American League Division Series, a game-tying 11th-inning homer in Game 2 of the ALCS, and a critical homer in Game 3 of the World Series. He hit six altogether that postseason while notching a .365 average and 18 RBI.

4. Barry Bonds (2002)

Most remember Barry Bonds’ true dominance coming during the 2001 regular season, but he was a man on a mission for a world championship in 2002. His postseason performance took the San Francisco Giants just outs from a title, but they ultimately fell just short against the Angels.

Bonds hit eight home runs in the 2002 playoffs for the Giants, to go along with a .356 batting average. Perhaps more impressively, he did that while walking 27 times and still managed to drive in 16 runs on 24 hits. He sported a .700 slugging percentage in the World Series, but his efforts alone were not enough to win his first ring.

5. Carlos Beltrán (2004)

It would take until 2017 for Carlos Beltrán to finally get his World Series ring, but it sure looked like he had a chance to do so in 2004. Beltrán was a midseason acquisition by the Houston Astros from the Kansas City Royals, and he produced one of the greatest playoff runs ever.

Beltrán hit .435 across the NLDS and NLCS, hitting eight home runs and driving in 14. He hit homers in five consecutive games across both series, bringing Houston within one game of a World Series appearance. His eight homers tied Bonds’ record for most in a postseason and made him a major free agency prize that offseason.

6. Albert Pujols (2011)

Albert Pujols is one of the most decorated players in Major League Baseball history, and his performance in the 2011 playoffs is a great chapter in his career.

Pujols hit .353 with five home runs and 16 RBI for the St. Louis Cardinals as they went on to knock off the Texas Rangers in the World Series. He played a big role in that, as he became the third player to date to hit three home runs in a World Series game, joining Babe Ruth and the aforementioned Jackson at that point. It would be Pujols’ second and final World Series ring, and he’d leave for Los Angeles that offseason.

7. David Freese (2011)

Pujols may not have gotten that second ring had it not been for the heroics of David Freese that postseason. Freese produced some of the most dramatic moments of the decade in Game 6 of the World Series but was excellent the entire duration of the playoffs.

Freese hit .545 in the NLCS against the Milwaukee Brewers with three homers, helping send St. Louis to the World Series. Then, in Game 6, down to his final strike in the bottom of the ninth with two outs, he ripped a game-tying triple over Nelson Cruz’s head. He’d come up again in the 11th inning and hit a solo shot to center to walk it off, forcing a Game 7 the Cardinals would win. He won the NLCS and World Series MVP as a result.

8. Randy Arozarena (2020)

Randy Arozarena’s 2020 playoff performance had many in the baseball world believing the Tampa Bay Rays would finally win their first World Series, and he got them fairly close.

The COVID-shortened 2020 season was an anomaly, but the Rays were excellent the entire way. Arozarena emerged as a start for them in the bubble playoffs, smacking ten homers across three series. Four of those came in the ALCS against the defending AL champs Houston, helping punch Tampa’s ticket to the World Series. He hit three more against the Dodgers and scored on a memorable play that saw him crawl to home plate off an error, though Los Angeles would ultimately take the series.