Game 1 of the World Series between the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers lived up to the hype with the first ever walkoff grand slam in the World Series to put an exclamation point on a great game.
Freddie Freeman ended Friday night as the hero for the Dodgers. Despite playing on an injured ankle, the persistent Freeman, who hasn’t been 100 percent healthy throughout most of the postseason, demoralized the Yankees with one swing of the bat.
The Dodgers are 1-0 in the World Series, but the lead already just feels so much larger.
Yankees slugger Giancarlo Stanton hit a towering slam into the seats in the sixth inning to give the Yankees a 2-1 lead in the game. In extra innings, shortstop Anthony Volpe delivered an infield single to give the Yankees a 3-2 lead. But they just could not find a way to close it out.
At his absolute worst, just a short week ago in the National League Championship Series against the San Diego Padres, Freeman could barely swing the back. His nagging ankle injury appeared to be begging for a day off. He just did not look like the same player that hit . 282 with 22 home runs during the regular season. But the 35 year-old first baseman stayed persistent. And boy did fighting through that injury pay off, as he launched himself into baseball history.
“The game honors you,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “When you do things the right way, you play the right way, you’re a good teammate—I just believe that the game honors you. Tonight Freddie was honored.”
While that iconic moment will certainly go down as a hallmark in Freeman’s personal career, it means even more for the Dodgers, who were able to protect home field advantage by securing a win at Dodgers Stadium and putting the Yankees in an 0-1 hole in this best of seven series.
And this is exactly the scenario the Dodgers dreamed of. Nestor Cortes Jr. was absolutely no match for Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and ultimately Freeman. After the game, New York manager Aaron Boone defended the move to put Cortes in the game in extras.
“Just liked the matchup,” Boone said when asked why he chose Cortes. “The reality is he’s been throwing the ball really well the last few weeks as he’s gotten ready for this.”
And in Boone’s defense, how can you blame him? What late-game reliever can come into the game ice cold against the three most feared bats in baseball? While Boone will be criticized for his decision, more praise should be given to Roberts, Executive Vice President Brandon Gomes and owner Mark Walter for assembling one of the most feared lineup cards in the history of baseball.
The Dodgers still need to find a way to win three more games. But somehow, the Yankees will need to find a way to get off of the mat and turn this series around after losing in dramatic, historic fashion. That feels like the much taller task at this point.
