No player has ever had a game like the one Josh Naylor put together Monday night

More than 20,000 players have appeared in a major league game in the sport's history. No player ever had a game like the one Josh Naylor enjoyed in Monday night's wild, comeback win over the Chicago White Sox.

With two outs in the top of the ninth inning, Naylor stepped to the plate with the bases loaded and the Guardians staring at a four-run deficit. It's the type of scenario just about every kid dreamed up in the backyard at one time or another.

Naylor crushed a score-tying grand slam. Two batters earlier, the White Sox had a 99.7 percent win probability. That came before Jose Ramirez walked and Owen Miller singled to extend the game long enough for Naylor's grand slam.

Naylor's heroics weren't finished. The White Sox went on to load the bases in the bottom of the ninth. With two outs, Adam Engel ripped a ball down the third-base line. Ramirez snagged it with a full-out, diving stop and fired to first. Naylor, fully outstretched with his foot still on the base, picked the throw off the dirt to extend the game into extra innings.

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Two innings later, it was — who else? — Naylor, who came to the plate with two runners on base and drilled a three-run home run in the top of the 11th inning that put the Guardians on top 12-9, the eventual final score. Two home runs, seven RBIs and a highlight-reel play at first base, all after the Guardians were down to their last out in the top of the ninth inning.

Naylor became the first player in MLB history with two three-run or better home runs in the ninth inning or later in the same game, according to STATS. And combined with an RBI-double in the eighth inning, Naylor became the first player with at least eight RBI from the eighth inning on since the RBI became an official statistic in 1920, according to Sarah Langs of mlb.com.

As he returned to the dugout, Naylor screamed "I want all the smoke." He got it.

It was the emphatic exclamation point in Naylor's extensive rehab and long road back from the gruesome ankle injury that left him with an uncertain future. Last June, it was unclear if Naylor would be able to return for this season's Opening Day. In fact, it was unclear for months if Naylor would be ready by June 1 or even July 1.

He made it back to the field about a week after Opening Day, just missing the deadline for which he had been shooting.

But Naylor hasn't just returned to the field and the clubhouse. He's been one of the better hitters in the American League, now sporting a .338 average and .944 OPS, and has carved out a key role in the heart of the Guardians' lineup along the way.

A season ago, Naylor drove in 21 runs in 69 games prior to the injury that ended his season. This year, he has already driven in 21 runs but has needed only 19 games to do it.

Naylor running around at full speed in early May wasn't a sure thing nearly a year ago, let alone him carrying the Guardians to a come-from-behind win against a divisional rival with one of the best ninth-inning-on performances in the game's history.

Naylor is a key part of the Guardians' clubhouse, an upbeat, always-positive presence. He has also been a vital part of the lineup, furthering his remarkable turnaround from the collision with Ernie Clement in Minnesota that led to a surgery that was about as extensive as an ankle procedure could possibly be due to the severe damage he sustained.

"We all see some days, it's a little harder for him to move around a little bit, and that's understandable," manager Terry Francona told reporters in Chicago. "But he looks really good in the batter's box. And you can tell when things happen, how much it means. He's really emotional, but I get it. He missed playing baseball and he missed playing with his teammates, and it means a lot to him."

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.

Guardians at White Sox

Time: 2:10 p.m. Wednesday

TV: Bally Sports Great Lakes

Pitchers: Aaron Civale (1-2, 9.45) vs. Vince Velasquez (2-2, 3.97)

This article originally appeared on Akron Beacon Journal: Guardians' Josh Naylor makes baseball history Monday night