Baseball had to wait 43 years for the Yankees and Dodgers to meet in the World Series and the reintroduction into one of the most historic rivalries on this stage did not disappoint.
Freddie Freeman, on one good leg just like Kirk Gibson in Game 1 of the 1988 Fall Classic, smashed a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 10th to lift the Dodgers to a 6-3 victory over the Yankees in Game 1 of the 2024 World Series on Friday night from Dodger Stadium.
Nursing a one-run lead and after New York reliever Jake Cousins put two men on in the, Nestor Cortes — the southpaw starter who had not pitched in 37 days due to injury — got the imposing Shohei Ohtani to pop out for the second out of the inning, but after intentionally walking Mookie Betts, he served up a first-pitch 93 mph fastball low and inside that Freeman golfed over the right-field fence.
It was the first-ever walk-off grand slam in World Series history and the 18th walk-off home run ever in a World Series game. This is the first walk-off round-tripper surrendered by the Yankees since Game 4 of the 2003 Fall Classic against Alex Gonzalez and the Florida Marlins in the 12th inning.
Anthony Volpe’s fielder’s choice in the top of the 10th inning, which was stopped by a diving Tommy Edman with the Dodgers’ infield in, scored Jazz Chisholm from third after he led off with a single and stole two bases to get within 90 feet of what would have been the game-winning run.
Had Chisholm not taken the two bags practically given to him by Dodgers closer Blake Treinen, his high leg kick, and his inability to hold runners, the Los Angeles infield would have been at normal depth and Volpe’s grounder would have been a routine double play.
Chisholm stole three bases in Game 1, tying a World Series record with six others, including Honus Wagner in 1909 and Lou Brock (1967, 1968).
The Yankees came within inches of taking the lead with two outs in the in the top of the ninth inning when Gleyber Torres lined a shot to left-center field, but the ball — which would have hit the top of the wall — was caught by a Dodgers fan leaning over the wall. The play was confirmed by replay and Torres was awarded second base, ensuring there would be no repeat of Jeffrey Maier in the 1996 postseason at Yankee Stadium.
Aaron Judge, who went 1-for-5, popped out to shortstop against Treinen to end the threat.
Giancarlo Stanton’s mammoth sixth-inning, two-run blast gave the Yankees a 2-1 lead in the latter portions of the opener, but the Dodgers — despite leaving multiple big chances on the table — scrapped back to tie it in the bottom of the eighth.
Shohei Ohtani led off with a 114-mph double off the right-field wall and advanced to third when Gleyber Torres could not handle Juan Soto’s throw at second base. He came in to score on Betts’ sacrifice fly.
The majority of Game 1 was a pitcher’s duel between New York’s Gerrit Cole and Los Angeles’ Jack Flaherty.
In his third-career World Series start, the Yankees’ ace went six-plus innings, allowing just one run on four hits with four strikeouts and zero walks. Flaherty, who was tagged for eight runs in three innings in Game 6 of the NLCS against the Mets, rediscovered his form with 5.1 innings — the lone mistake coming to Stanton — allowing five hits with six strikeouts and a walk.
Cole allowed just two hits through his first five innings of work but both were triples, and the second one ultimately led to his side trailing.
Enrique Hernandez sent a fly ball down the right-field line with one out in the bottom of the fifth inning that dropped beyond the reach of Soto, who took a poor line and allowed it to bounce past him into the corner. Hernandez cruised into third and scored on Will Smith’s sacrifice fly.
Soto singled to lead off the sixth off Flaherty to set the table for Stanton, who gave the Yankees their first lead of the World Series with a gargantuan shot down the left-field line that soared 412 feet and left the bat at 116.6 mph.
After falling behind in the count 0-2, Stanton was given an opportunity to reset himself in the count when Flaherty uncorked a wild fastball that sailed well over his catcher and to the backstop. The Dodgers’ starter went back to his put away pitch, the knuckle-curve, that he left down in the zone, but Stanton got it for his 17th career postseason home run in just 37 career games. He has also hit a homer in four straight postseason games.
It was the final pitch Flaherty threw in Game 1.
The Yankees could have tacked on more in the sixth against reliever Anthony Banda with two on and two outs when Austin Wells hit a grounder up the middle that looked destined to roll into the outfield to score Jazz Chisholm Jr. from second. But a diving stop from Tommy Edman withheld Chisholm from scoring, though it loaded the bases.
Banda rebounded to strike out Alex Verdugo to keep the Dodgers’ deficit at just one run.
Edman got the Dodgers back in business with a lead-off double in the bottom of the sixth, but Cole bore down to set aside the heart of Los Angeles’ order. He got Ohtani to ground out before Chisholm snared a bullet from Betts at third. Freeman flew out to right to end the inning.
Cole’s night ended when Teoscar Hernandez singled to lead off the seventh inning — an early hook at 88 pitches. Clay Holmes and Tommy Kahnle kept it intact despite another scare. Holmes hit Max Muncy before Dodgers manager Dave Roberts gifted the Yankees a free out when he had Enrique Hernandez lay a perfect sacrifice but.
But Holmes rebounded with a nasty sinker to get Will Smith to pop out to shortstop on the first pitch he saw. Kahnle then got Gavin Lux to ground out to keep the Yankees ahead, though he would give up the double to Ohtani to lead off the eighth. Weaver yielded the sacrifice fly to Betts.
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