DETROIT – As the Cleveland Guardians began batting practice Thursday afternoon, first base coach Sandy Alomar Jr. recounted the most heartbreaking moments of his career, the heartbreak that left him sleepless and hungry.

There was the lost lead in the series against the New York Yankees – no, not that one. One of the others. There was the World Series collapse against the Chicago Cubs and the late-inning collapse against the Florida Marlins. Cleveland's baseball team had gone 9,848 days since its last postseason win as it waited for elimination, with “so many devastating losses” in between, Alomar pointed out.

Not since October 25, 1997, when Chad Ogea emerged as a World Series MVP candidate and Omar Vizquel defended his lead with a diving stop in the outfield, had Cleveland been able to prevent winter from arriving earlier than expected. And Alomar has worn a Cleveland uniform most of the time.

“We need to kick down the door,” he said Thursday afternoon, “instead of knocking.”

Four hours later, David Fry high-fived Alomar as he rounded first base after his sweeping, series-saving home run that rocked the visitors – the first go-ahead, pinch-hit blast in franchise history. Vanished into thin air was the Detroit Tigers bullpen.

And then Fry passed out.

October can elevate anyone to the role of a hero. The madness of the offseason can seek out a nationally anonymous part-timer and spit him out as a household name.

No one knows that fate better than Rajai Davis, who watched every game of the series as the league's senior director of on-field operations. With a triumphant, choked-out hit against Aroldis Chapman eight postseasons ago, he was transformed from veteran outfielder to immortal memory-maker in every home from Vermillion to Ashtabula. He never tires of talking about his game-winning shot from the left porch in Game 7, about how he studied his previous encounters with Chapman, about the David vs. Goliath script or about how often his son watches the replay looks at.

Selected in the 38th round out of the University of Connecticut at Avery Point, Davis spent 14 years in the majors after contemplating quitting baseball as a frustrated minor leaguer who longed for more opportunities. Even though he only played two of his seasons with Cleveland and he only posted a .653 OPS in those two seasons, he left his mark there as a playoff hero.

So leave it to the twisted, beautiful and torturous postseason to add another chapter to Fry's compelling story.

Thirty-one months ago, Fry was taking part in a bullpen session at the Milwaukee Brewers' minor league camp when team officials informed him that he would be traded to Cleveland. This had been brewing for months, but the lockout prevented Milwaukee from completing the deal. The Guardians had targeted Fry, but they had to ensure that no other team selected him in the Rule 5 draft, so Fry's identity was kept secret throughout the winter as a “player to be named later.” When the lockout completely wiped out the draft, the teams made the deal: Fry went to Cleveland in exchange for pitcher JC Mejía.

Since joining the Brewers, Mejía has pitched a total of 13 2/3 innings (and 13 earned runs allowed). He also served an 80-game suspension and a 162-game suspension for failing PED tests. Fry, in turn, earned a spot on the American League All-Star team this summer and hit a narrow home run Saturday night at Progressive Field to force a deciding Game 5 of the American League Division Series.

“As a kid, you dream about it,” Fry said, “and you think about it all the time, even in the offseason when you’re working on things. “And then it happens and it goes away real quick.”

For a few months this season, Fry flirted with the top of the OPS rankings alongside Aaron Judge and Shohei Ohtani. He fell back to earth about the time he felt pain in his right elbow. This limited his defensive versatility; In the first half, his ability to move from catcher to first base or to the corner outfield gave him a lot of flexibility when using pinch hitters.

As the season progressed, he teamed up with Kyle Manzardo at the designated hitter spot. That presented some challenges against the Tigers in the ALDS. Fry replaced Manzardo at the plate in the third inning of Game 3 and then went 0-3 with two strikeouts and a small village stranded on base.

Vogt was more selective with his pinch hitters in Game 4. He waited until the seventh to summon Fry, preferring a matchup of Fry against a right-hander over Manzardo against a left-hander. When a decision pays off, a manager is like a genius. When this is not the case, a manager attracts a lot of criticism, especially at this level.

Roast delivered.

“You just can’t say enough about what David has meant to us this year,” Vogt said.

Steven Kwan, who was at second base and was very familiar with the expansive left field area, was careful not to react until he was sure the ball was flying past the fence. Hunter Gaddis, a 6-foot-2 Mountain, had trouble following the baseball's trajectory because the dugout railing was at his eye level as he sat on the bench. He had to resist expressing too much emotion as he would inevitably end the inning. Josh Naylor, coming out of the dugout to slide onto the on-deck circle, threw his bat high enough to tickle the clouds.

Fry circled the bases and quickly returned to the dugout.

“This is his coming out party,” catcher Austin Hedges said.

David Fry's home run wasn't his only heroic move of the night, his late ball also played a key role. (Gregory Shamus/Getty Images)

Two innings later, before Fry went to the plate with runners on the corners and one out, Vogt asked how confident he was about placing a bunt on the infield grass. Fry responded with his trademark self-deprecating joke that he “wasn’t a very good hitter in high school.” In other words, he chickened out a lot, so he exuded confidence.

Fry made the bunt that allowed Brayan Rocchio to race home from third with a crucial insurance run.

And not only did Fry hit a home run and a squeeze bunt, but he also predicted José Ramírez's home run in a dugout conversation with Hedges before Ramírez threw a pitch to the seats in left field.

“I’ll take all the credit,” Fry joked.

Why not? This was Fry's night, the night a PTBNL All-Star saved his team from elimination, the kind of script made for October.

“A big reason we’re here right now,” Hedges said, “is David Fry.”

(Top photo: Duane Burleson / Getty Images)