A timely postseason home run can change the fortunes of any player or any franchise in the blink of an eye. But the criteria for how a playoff homer becomes the stuff of legend extend far beyond good timing. You have to account for the players involved, the stage, the stakes, the reactions, the emotions, etc. All of it comes together to form a baseball moment that can be seared into our minds forever.
Springer’s dinger helps send Toronto to first World Series in 32 years
Springer has hit plenty of postseason home runs but none has been bigger than his go-ahead, game-winning three-run home run in Game 7 of the 2025 ALCS against the Mariners. Just three days after a brutal hit-by-pitch on his knee that forced him to leave Game 5 early, Springer miraculously found his way back in the lineup for the final two games and produced one of the most memorable moments in Toronto sports history.
With the Blue Jays trailing 3-1 in the seventh inning in Game 7, Springer crushed the second pitch he saw from Mariners reliever Eduard Bazardo into the seats at Rogers Center, giving Toronto a 4-3 lead and sending the stadium into a frenzy. Two innings later, Jeff Hoffman struck out the side and sent the Blue Jays to their first World Series since 1993.
Freddie Freeman’s walk-off slam secures Game 1 of the 2024 World Series
Freeman channeled his inner Kirk Gibson from the 1988 Fall Classic when he hit a walk-off grand slam at Dodger Stadium on a sprained right ankle. It was just the second postseason walk-off grand slam and the first to happen in the World Series. Freeman also became just the third player in World Series history with a walk-off home run while his team was trailing, joining Gibson and the Blue Jays’ Joe Carter (1993 Game 6).
The circumstances in which Freeman had this opportunity only furthered his legendary home run. With runners at second and third and first base open, the Yankees opted to intentionally walk Mookie Betts in front of Freeman. Little did the Yankees — or the baseball world — know that it set up one of the most iconic home runs in baseball history.
Juan Soto sends the Yankees to the World Series
In the 10th inning of Game 5 of the 2024 American League Championship Series, Soto came to the plate with two runners on and two outs with the score tied, 2-2. Facing one of the best relievers in the game, the Guardians’ Hunter Gaddis, Soto smashed a go-ahead three-run homer over the center field wall at Progressive Field.
That towering drive proved to be the difference in a 5-2 Yankees win that clinched the franchise’s first AL pennant in 15 years. Acquired in a trade with the Padres the prior offseason, Soto delivered the biggest hit of the year to that point to put the finishing touches on a hard-fought five-game ALCS against Cleveland.
Pete Alonso’s historic dinger stuns Milwaukee in 2024 NL Wild Card Series
The Mets were scoreless through eight innings against the Brewers in their winner-take-all NLWC Game 3 at Milwaukee’s American Family Field. However, their offensive struggles paled in comparison to Alonso’s. The slugger was in the middle of a power outage that featured zero extra-base hits over a 12-game span. But all he needed was one chance to make a difference.
Alonso got that chance when he stepped into the batter’s box with runners on the corners and the Mets trailing by two runs in the ninth. Brewers closer Devin Williams threw him a 3-1 changeup in the zone, and Alonso slammed it over the right-field wall to catapult the Mets into the lead and silence the Milwaukee crowd. In the process, Alonso became the first player in MLB history to hit a go-ahead home run with his team trailing in the ninth inning or later of a winner-take-all postseason game. The Mets added another run later in that frame and held on for a 4-2 victory to advance to the NLDS.
Yordan Alvarez delivers dramatic homers in 2022 ALDS and World Series
Alvarez’s three-run, walk-off homer with the Astros trailing by two runs and down to their final out against the Mariners in Game 1 of the 2022 ALDS electrified Minute Maid Park and ignited Houston’s run to a second World Series title. It was the first walk-off home run in postseason history by a team trailing by multiple runs.
Bryce Harper’s drive lifts Phillies into Fall Classic
In Game 5 of the 2022 NLCS against the Padres, Harper took center stage and pummeled a go-ahead, two-run shot in the bottom of the eighth inning at Citizens Bank Park. It was the decisive blow in the Phillies’ victory, which sent them to the World Series. He became the sixth player to hit a go-ahead homer with his team trailing in the eighth inning or later of a potential clinch game — authoring a moment that Philly fans will treasure for a long time.
Howie Kendrick’s decisive blow in the 2019 World Series
You could argue that Kendrick authored the two biggest homers of the ’19 postseason. First, he toppled the 106-win Dodgers in the NLDS with a tiebreaking grand slam in the 10th inning of a winner-take-all Game 5. Three weeks later, he beat the 107-win Astros and helped bring home the first championship in Nationals franchise history with this go-ahead, two-run liner off the foul pole in the seventh inning of Game 7. It capped a magical run for the Nats and Kendrick alike. The veteran infielder didn’t experience much success through his first 33 postseason games. But in 17 games during the 2019 playoffs, he drove in 12 runs and had six extra-base hits.
José Bautista (bat) flips 2015 ALDS in Blue Jays’ favor
This home run is certainly a worthy inclusion on its own merits. It’s a no-doubt, three-run blast in the latter stages of a game with a trip to the ALCS on the line. And the eruption from the Rogers Centre crowd is fantastic. But let’s not bury the lead any longer: Bautista’s bat flip absolutely puts this over the top. So dramatic, so aggressive. Bautista told the Texas Rangers to hit the road with his lumber in more ways than one. It’s quite possibly the greatest bat flip in history. When you couple that with a series-deciding long ball, you end up with an unforgettable postseason moment.
Ishikawa is the epitome of what makes the postseason so special: Anyone can be a hero if given a chance. In this case,