close
close

Guiltandivy

Source for News

    • This World Series is over. Dodgers win again, put champagne on ice.
    Update Information

    This World Series is over. Dodgers win again, put champagne on ice.

    Kathleen William Posted on

    play

    NEW YORK – Spread the word: This World Series is over.

    The Los Angeles Dodgers once again defeated the New York Yankees 4-2 in front of a subdued Yankee Stadium crowd on Monday night and can complete a four-game sweep with a win on Tuesday night.

    The Dodgers are 3-0 in the World Series, the most any team in postseason history has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit.

    And the Yankees are not the 2004 Boston Red Sox.

    Not even close.

    The Dodgers know this and, in addition to ordering champagne, have already tentatively planned a parade in downtown Los Angeles for Friday.

    The Yankees were outmatched in virtually every aspect of the game, with Freddie Freeman looking like Reggie Jackson and Aaron Judge looking like George Costanza on the field.

    Freeman again hit a home run, a two-run throw in the first inning, tying a World Series record by hitting a home run in five consecutive games, while Judge continues to struggle in the postseason.

    Freeman is batting .333 (4-for-12) with three home runs and seven RBI, while Judge is batting .083 (1-for-12) with seven strikeouts.

    Game 3: The Dodgers are one win away from the World Series championship

    According to multiple scouts, Judge's problems stem from being drilled in the chest by a 96 mph fastball from Cleveland Guardians starter Tanner Bibee in Game 5 of the ALCS.

    Judge hasn't been the same since, going 1-for-16 with nine strikeouts and a single single. It's almost as if Judge is now so aware of the fastball that he has a hard time even making contact on low-velocity pitches. Certainly the hit-by-pitch triggered poor mechanics. You didn't even see him try to hit the ball in the opposite direction to right field, which shows how out of control he is on the field.

    In fact, the entire Yankees team is out of sync, and the Dodgers are barely breaking a sweat.

    The Dodgers don't need heroics or even a hit from Shohei Ohtani to win this series. He wore a sling during pregame introductions, ran carefully with his partially dislocated left shoulder, didn't get hit, but that didn't matter at all.

    The only real drama was whether Ohtani would even be in the lineup after suffering a subluxation in the seventh inning of Game 2, but he made it completely non-issue and told the Dodgers he was playing before they even made the flight boarded for New York.

    “He was adamant he was going to play,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think there was more uncertainty in all of us, but in his mind from day one, from Saturday night, he was keen that he was going to play. …

    “While there was never any doubt that he would post, he’s a competitor, he wouldn’t be there.”

    But even if Ohtani could swing one-handed, Roberts said his presence alone could play a role.

    “I think it's definitely an advantage for us to have him in the batter's box,” Roberts said. “No matter what limitations a pitcher thinks he has or doesn’t have, not many people are willing to take that risk. All I expect from him is to control the strike zone, let the bats come to him, and swing and shoot when the ball is in a strike zone.

    “We’re just really grateful that he’s in the lineup.”

    When Ohtani needs inspiration, look no further than Freeman.

    Freeman severely sprained his right ankle on September 26, an injury that doctors said would take six weeks to fully heal. Undeterred, Freeman arrived for treatment 4½ hours early each day and has become the most feared hitter in the postseason.

    Freeman, who hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history in Game 1, hit a home run in the third inning of Game 2 and wasted no time that night by striking out on the fourth pitch he saw , hit a home run and Clarke Schmidt's hit fastball hit 93 mph into the right field stands.

    “He looks pretty normal,” Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy said. “It was very special. You're talking about a six-week injury that he basically recovered from in four or five days.

    “He obviously wasn't himself (at the start of the postseason), but when you talk about a name like Freddie Freeman in the lineup, that carries a lot of significance. Just the fact that certain players are in the lineup helps a lot because the other team never knows how a certain player is feeling.

    “For example, you might try to have a left-handed hitter come in facing him and he hits a grand slam.”

    Ah, nothing like a little shade, with Muncy referring to Freeman's hit against left-hander Nestor Cortes.

    The Yankees' biggest advantage in this series was supposed to be their starting rotation, but they didn't overtake the Dodgers in any of the three games. While Schmidt only lasted 2 ⅔ innings that night, Walker Buehler, who hasn't pitched in 12 days, threw five shutout innings while allowing just two hits.

    The Yankees are outplayed, outplayed, outplayed, outplayed and even outplayed in the pregame ceremonies, with Ice Cube easily outdoing Fat Joe in a battle of the rappers.

    It was a complete team effort that methodically dismantled the Yankees and brought back memories of Roberts' team speech at spring training at Camelback Ranch in Phoenix.

    “I think his exact words are, 'You have to want to be that guy,'” Muncy said. “That’s why we’re all here. We all want to be in this situation. We all want to be that guy in that moment. …

    “That's definitely something that jumps out at you when your manager comes at you like that in spring training and says, 'Hey, you all must want to be that guy in this situation.' “You can’t leave it to someone else.”

    “It’s already shown how many guys have held on for us in big moments.”

    Now one more game, another win, another hero, and the Dodgers can prepare to party like it's 1988.

    Follow Nightengale on X: @Bnightengale

    Get to the heart of the news quickly with the USA TODAY app. Download for award-winning reporting, crosswords, audio storytelling, the e-newspaper and more.

    Tagged:

    LEAVE A RESPONSE

    Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

    Kathleen William
    View all posts

    You Might Also Like

    ads