Guardians ALDS Game 3 Takeaways: SpongeBob is Cleveland's October soundtrack

CLEVELAND — They did it again. He did it again.

The Guardians pulled off an improbable, come-from-behind win Saturday night in Game 3 of the American League Division Series, beating the New York Yankees 6-5 in walk-off fashion to take a 2-1 lead in the best-of-five series.

The Guardians will have a chance to close out the Yankees Sunday night in Game 4. Cal Quantrill will take the mound opposite Gerrit Cole.

It was another nail-biting win for the Guardians. It was another late go-ahead hit for Oscar Gonzalez. Here are takeaways from Cleveland's Game 3 win:

Golden cross:Gabriel Arias gets start at first base

The SpongeBob Theme will give pitchers nightmares

A family-friendly, sing-a-long song echoing through the ballpark speakers. The menacing walk of a hitter who might be one of the last batters any pitcher would want to face in a big situation right now.

Rookie outfielder Oscar Gonzalez walks to the plate likely putting some fear into opposing pitchers, a dangerous hitter with formidable stature. He's 24 and might look even younger than that. But his swing is deadly and seemingly improving by the minute.

But he walks to the plate to the SpongeBob SquarePants theme from one of the most popular cartoons for kids of all time. Adults and children alike, all around the stadium, sing with joy the "SPONGEBOB SQUAREPANTS" part of the song while he digs into the batter's box.

The juxtaposition between the cheery nature of the song and what he's probably about to do to a poor baseball is almost jarring. It's like Darth Vader entering the room to the theme from Barney.

"I go [to the plate] singing the song because I have a big body, but deep inside, I feel like a kid," Gonzalez said through a team translator.

With his walk-off single Saturday night, Gonzalez is now tied with five others for the most career go-ahead hits in the ninth inning or later in postseason history, along with Pete Rose, David Ortiz, J.D. Drew, Carlos Correa and Cody Bellinger.

Gonzalez has played five career postseason games.

Gonzalez also hit the walk-off home run that sent the Tampa Bay Rays packing in the AL Wild Card Series and the go-ahead single in the 10th inning in the Guardians' Game 2 win over the Yankees.

Gonzalez has become the Guardians' own death ray late in games, a threat for pitchers to avoid at all costs if the game is on the line. Even if the soundtrack to their demise mentions a pineapple under the sea.

Nothing is going to faze the youngest roster in baseball

The Guardians aren't deterred or overwhelmed by close, nail-biting situations because they've been in them all season. It's how they do business.

They've been open about how a lineup built on contact and aggressive base running can be a difficult way to win. They won't often bludgeon teams to death and win games with 12 runs. The 4-3, comeback victory just in time is more their speed. But they've gotten pretty good at it.

Chicago White Sox shortstop Elvis Andrus thought the Guardians would "crumble" down the stretch. Instead, they won 24 of their final 30 games, including a sweep of the White Sox in Chicago. There were some questions as to how such a team, so thoroughly infused with youth and inexperience, would handle postseason baseball. The Guardians swept the Rays and are now one win away from sending the Yankees and Aaron Judge home for the winter.

But it isn't something that only happened recently. It was built beginning on Day One in Goodyear, Arizona, when the team reported for spring camp.

"It starts from the beginning. It starts from spring training. You can't just show up overnight and expect to do the things that we've done," catcher Austin Hedges said. "It's something that we've preached and we've practiced from the get-go. When we have leadership like we do from top to bottom on this team, and guys that believe in each other and love each other and care about each other, you really show you can do anything you want to."

Regardless of what happens, or how or when the Guardians' postseason run ends, whether it's Monday in New York if Game 5 is necessary or not until the final out of the World Series has been recorded, none of it will be because the Guardians couldn't handle the moment.

The Guardians have done enough to show that they can punch back against more experienced teams. Their way of baseball, intertwined with grit and a genuine belief they're going to win every single night, has gotten them to this point. They've shown they'll carry the same loose, light-hearted attitude through it all.

"Yeah it was just another Guards win. I feel like it's deja vu all over again. It's just what we do," Hedges said, describing a wild comeback victory. "We've said it all year. You've gotta get 27 outs. There's a reason there's nine innings, there's 27 outs, and we only needed 26 of them today."

In the Yankees, the Guardians are playing a team that hit twice as many home runs — 127 more, to be exact. That isn't that far off from an extra home run every single game. The styles of play couldn't be more different. The Yankees pounded their foes into submission with a barrage of haymaker home runs. The Guardians jabbed their way, one little bit at a time, until finally it was enough.

"I think it's really rewarding. We obviously have a different style of baseball," rookie outfielder Steven Kwan said. "To see that succeed and see that prevail I think is, like I said, really rewarding for the game. It shows we're not going to change our game style for anybody. As long as we keep rolling, we can do it."

The Guardians are going to play their way, win or lose, and the clubhouse won't be any different

In the clubhouse after the game, you wouldn't have been able to tell that nearly everyone in that room had just won the biggest game of their life to this point. Myles Straw, Kwan and a few others played a spirited game of knockout on the mini basketball hoop that was set up in a corner.

Because for the Guardians, the stage is new, but the way they've won games isn't. They feel as though they only need the door to be cracked to break through.

"Actually, I was sitting next to Oscar. We were talking," Amed Rosario said through a team translator. "Actually, before it happened, we talked about it. It's a crazy thing, we talked about if Straw gets a base, we'll get this game turned around."

"I was telling [Gonzalez] we're going to load all the bases and then we're going to win the game. He says no, no. I'm going to finish the game. I'm going to win the game."

Ryan Lewis can be reached at rlewis@thebeaconjournal.com. Read more about the Guardians at www.beaconjournal.com/sports/cleveland-guardians. Follow him on Twitter at @ByRyanLewis.

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians ALDS Game 3 takeaways: Oscar Gonzalez beats Yankees again