LOS ANGELES – In their most famous previous matchup, Freddie Freeman was 4-for-4 with two singles, a double and a home run back on April 28, 2021, and his Braves led Anthony Rizzo's Cubs by 10 points.

But both of them – not just Freeman – were all smiles because with one out and one on in the seventh, Rizzo prepared to… wait for it… pitch to Freeman.

Rizzo wanted the ball and this matchup to provide a light moment in a blowout. With the score tied at 2-1, Freeman fouled out, which only further upset both men – and everyone else watching. Could Rizzo actually beat the reigning NL MVP, arguably the best pure hitter in the sport?

Rizzo threw a 61 mph turn that broke off slower, slower, slowest toward the outside corner. Freeman thrashed in vain. A pair of outstanding 31-year-old left-handed first basemen with mutual respect erupted again as Freeman retreated to the dugout and Rizzo to first base while another position player, Matt Duffy, came in to pitch. On a disappointing Cubs team, Rizzo was soon on his way to the Yankees at the trade deadline; Freeman on the way to a Braves championship and then a free agent signing with the Dodgers in the offseason.

There's now a lot more at stake when they meet – which is why they're actually going to meet. If this were April again… or May or June or July… both would be on the injured list. Rizzo still has fractures to the fourth and fifth fingers of his right hand, which he suffered on the second-to-last day of the regular season and which ruled him out of the Division Series. Freeman suffered a severe right ankle sprain on September 26, which sidelined him in and out of the Dodger lineup for two rounds.

Both noted the month and the significance of why they were in the lineup – each at first, Rizzo at sixth, Freeman at third – and not on the IL when the 120th World Series began Friday night.

When I asked each other's opinion, it was no surprise that Freeman started with another smile: “I'm still mad at him for kicking me out.” When I wondered (jokingly, of course) if When the Yankees went to a bullpen game and he expected to see Rizzo, Freeman joked, “He's definitely coming for me.” But he said he's done pitching because he wants to finish at the top .”

Freeman got serious and said, “We’ve been playing against each other for a long time. … You just become mutual friends and respect each other and the way he goes about his business. I mean, Anthony's playing with two broken fingers – there's a lot of guys dealing with injuries and he's obviously got some broken fingers and he goes out there and does his best.”

Rizzo said, “I love (Freeman). I feel like Freddie and Paul Goldschmidt were the standard (of first basemen) that I looked up to throughout my career. (Joey) Votto, (Albert) Pujols and Miggy Cabrera were older than us. … I see him hobbling around and putting in all the work, especially with everything he's been through with his son, Max,” — Freeman's 3-year-old, who had to be on a ventilator for a few days in July because of paralysis caused by a rare nerve disorder – “I’m sure it wasn’t easy for him and his wife. So just a lot of admiration for him.”

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The first time Rizzo (Padres) and Freeman (Braves) faced each other in the majors was on June 24, 2011 – the day after the Cavaliers took Kyrie Irving No. 1 overall in the NBA draft – both took the fifth place and played first. Later, Rizzo was the third-ranked batter on the Cubs, the 2016 champions, and Freeman was the second-ranked batter on the Braves, the 2021 champions. Rizzo had a career that earned a player a spot in the Hall of Fame; Freeman is on his way to a memorial plaque in Cooperstown.

And neither of them should really be playing in this World Series. But of course they should. Because this is the World Series. Not April, May or June.

Rizzo reached base in eight of 16 plate appearances in the ALCS, although with just one extra-base hit. Nevertheless, he insisted that he could still gain strength from his damaged fingers. The four-time Gold Glove winner, who also battled a chronic back problem, actually looked far more impaired on defense. Freeman simply hasn't been his hitting self in two outings with seven singles and six strikeouts in 32 at-bats (.219 average).

Freeman did not start in Game 4 of the Division Series against the Padres and then did not face left-hander Jose Quintana or Sean Manaea in NLCS Games 4 and 6 before four days off. Time to heal. Still, one of the Iron Men of this era promised just Game 1 — and then see how he feels about left-hander Carlos Rodon in Game 2 and beyond.

This is now a few grizzled first basemen's battle against age and pain. Less grinning and more courage.

“When it's June and you're going through something that probably requires a lot of rest, you're doing yourself and the team a disservice in the long run,” Rizzo said. “A short-term sprint like this, with the adrenaline, the magnitude, you put everything on the line, and then there are… months to heal in the offseason. With his ankle, with my hand, that's the dream – to play in the World Series. So if you can play, you play.”