John Sterling's Yankees radio call from Astros sweep proves this was his World Series

The New York Yankees had an eventful offseason, highlighted by their trade acquisition of superstar outfielder Juan Soto from the San Diego Padres. The goal was to make it back to the playoffs one year after missing out with an 82-80 record. Their first test was against the Houston Astros in a four-game series.

Entering Sunday, the Yankees took the first three games of the series. In the top of the ninth inning, Soto hit a go-ahead RBI single that knocked in Gleyber Torres to take a late 4-3 lead. But in the bottom of the inning, the Astros were threatening. Jeremy Pena and Victor Caratini hit singles to start things off. Jose Altuve reached safely on a force out to third that got Pena out at third. Yordan Alvarez hit a pop-up that allowed Caratini to reach third. Kyle Tucker stepped up to the plate and hit a fly ball to left field, only for Alex Verdugo to catch it on a slide to end the game.

It was a thrilling, and stressful, end to the game for the Yankees, who were able to hold off the Astros to complete the four-game sweep. No one was more excited than the legendary play-by-play announcer for WFAN, John Sterling. Take a listen to his call with the accompanying video.

John Sterling's World Series-esque call of Yankees completing season-opening sweep of Astros

What a call by Sterling. Filled with emotion and excitement with the Yankees' start to the season.

You can credit that to how close these games have been for the Yankees to open up the series. Simply put, they feel like a different team than the one in 2023 where they looked lethargic at the plate, with starting pitching only carrying them so far without run support.

These were big games for the Yankees. No matter how good the Yankees were, the Astros always came out on top. These teams met in the American League Championship Series three times since 2017. In the 2017 season, the Yankees missed out on the World Series, losing to the Astros in seven games. In 2019, the Yankees lost in six games. Then in 2022, the Yankees were swept in four games, and watch the Astros celebrate the AL pennant on their home field.

The addition of Soto has made an early impact. He shows patience at the plate and lures the pitcher into long battles. Soto even showed off his glove, which was viewed as a weakness in terms of fielding. Through the first four games, Soto has gone 9-for-17 at the plate with one home run, two runs, and four RBI while holding a .600 on-base percentage and .765 slugging percentage.

While Yankees fans have to feel good about the start of the season, it must be remembered that there are 158 games left to go. It's great to celebrate like Sterling did on the call, but there is still a long way to go before we can crown Yankees World Series champions.