NEW YORK -- There was New York Yankees third baseman Todd Frazier in the middle of the postgame clubhouse asking the simple question, "Why not?"
Following their 6-4 win over the Houston Astros in Game 4 of the American League Championship Series -- with Baby Bombers Aaron Judge and Gary Sanchez leading the way -- the Yankees feel like momentum in the series rests with them, in their dugout.
"Why not?" Frazier said as he and his teammates soaked in their comeback from four runs down to tie the series at two games apiece. "After a game like that, I'd be lying to you if I said no."
Yes, the Yankees need two more wins for the American League crown and six more for a 28th World Series title. These are goals that are tantalizingly close yet far away at the same time. But at this point, this club that entered the tournament as a wild card is as good a bet as anyone. Why not?
The teams history remembers usually have a combination of loads of talent -- first and always foremost -- and a special, intangible quality that unites them into a force.
This might be the bud of another dynasty because of the talent of guys such as Judge and Sanchez, with more like them on the way. Judge smashed a mammoth solo homer in the seventh for the Yankees' first run and then crushed the tying eighth-inning double. Sanchez followed with a go-ahead, two-run double.
However, it is not only the Baby Bombers who make this group feel special. From the beginning of the spring, the focus has been on the youth movement, and rightfully so. Still, manager Joe Girardi has maintained from that first day at the training facility in Tampa that the Yankees veterans could make or break this team.
The Yankees are not here if not for leaders such as CC Sabathia and Brett Gardner. Frazier, the veteran with the big personality, came over right before the deadline to add to a sort of triumvirate of unofficial captains.
Frazier has provided a boost of energy because of the way he approaches life and the game; his outgoing personality is contagious. Gardner is a pro's pro, someone who learned at the knee of the last Yankee champions in 2009. He was part of the 2009 World Series team, but he said this might be the most fun he has ever had in one season. The Yankees extended it on Tuesday.
"We acted like 12 years old in there, going crazy," Frazier said. "It is tough to put into words how much fun we are having right now."
You can't lead -- or have much fun, for that matter -- if you don't produce. In Game 3, it was Sabathia giving the Yankees a lot of confidence if he is handed the ball for Game 7. In Game 4, it was Frazier leading off the seventh with a single.
It is the Toms River Little League World Series hero who has taken the "Thumbs Down" symbol and perhaps placed it squarely into Yankee history. It started when he hit a home run in the regular season and a fan was shown on TV giving a thumbs down. It blew up on social media, and the man known on Twitter as @FlavorFraz21 took it from there. When Judge hit his game-tying double in the eighth Tuesday, he stood on second and gave a thumbs down.
In the hierarchy of Yankee leaders, Chase Headley probably falls a notch below Sabathia, Gardner and Frazier, just because he hasn't had the careers of the other three -- especially with the Yankees. But Headley is a pro who handled the acquisition of Frazier with class. Headley was forced to switch from third to first and did so without a peep.
Headley always seems like he could be a Scott Brosius type if he were on the right Yankees team. Go check the numbers, and you will see the similarities between their careers. Brosius, however, was on the dynasty teams and had his October moments. Headley has not.
In the comeback Tuesday, Headley pinch hit in the eighth inning. He followed Frazier by lashing a drive into left-center. Headley took a big turn around first, stumbled and felt a brief flash of panic.
"I said a couple of things I can't say on camera," he said.
He lucked out a little, as Astros shortstop Carlos Correa, at the direction of second baseman Jose Altuve, threw to first, and the relay to second arrived a hair late. With runners on second and third, now down just two runs with no outs, it almost felt pre-ordained that Judge would get another moment in his historic rookie season.
First, Gardner had to come through. Gardner, as cliché as it might be, is a heart-and-soul guy on this team. The Astros asked Ken Giles to record a six-out save. Gardner didn't try to do too much. He just grounded out to first. It scored a run and set up Judge.
That sequence felt like 1996 again, with the stadium rocking and the anticipation building. None other than former right fielder Paul O'Neill would tweet later that the game reminded him of the "Good old days."
The Yankees are now 5-0 at home this postseason. 👀 pic.twitter.com/9LRchDHB5d
— ESPN (@espn) October 18, 2017
If that is indeed the case, then Judge is quickly turning into giant-sized Derek Jeter, as the moment finds him repeatedly. He has lived up to those expectations much of the time, including when he reached low and just missed a home run, settling for a tying double. Sanchez then smacked a double to give the Yankees the lead. On second, he took a moment to soak it all in.
"Emotions are raw," Sanchez said. "You're standing on second and can't even control them."
Sabathia, all 6-foot-6, 300 pounds of him, jumped over the railing, and the celebration was complete.
"It feels like nothing is too big for us to comeback from," said backup Austin Romine, who started Game 4 with Sonny Gray's pitches diving into the dirt.
It really does feel like this group can come back from anything. The Astros are a really good team, but they have to be a little taken aback.
In the wild card, the Minnesota Twins were up three runs before the Yankees came to bat. It didn't matter. The hottest team in baseball, the Cleveland Indians, were up two games and hadn't lost three straight in two months. It didn't matter.
The ALCS is now a best-of-three series with the Astros having two games at home and Dallas Keuchel and Justin Verlander working Games 5 and 6. Will it matter?