New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers Face Off in MLB World Series

The New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers went head-to-head in the 2024 MLB World Series for the first time since 1981, opening their best of seven series Oct. 25.

The Dodgers and the Yankees both managed to win their previous series against the New York Mets and Cleveland Guardians. The Dodgers eliminated the Mets from the competition with a 10-5 final in the NLCS Oct. 20. The Yankees also conquered the Guardians in the ALCS Oct. 19 with a 5-2 win.

The Los Angeles-based team had a regular-season record of 98-64 and a win rate of .605 while the New York team had a regular-season record of 94-68 and a .580 win rate.

Going into the final series, the Dodgers and the Yankees went head-to-head in their first game Oct. 25. The Dodgers managed to squeak out a run in the fifth inning after four scoreless innings to start the game. The Dodgers’ Will Smith got out on a sacrifice fly to right field but still allowed Enrique Hernandez the chance to score and put the first run on the board for the Dodgers.

At the top of the sixth, the Yankees responded with a homer from Giancarlo Stanton, permitting himself and Juan Soto to bring the New York team into the lead with a 2-1 score.

At the bottom of the eighth, Mookie Betts from the Dodgers got out on a sacrifice fly to center field, which allowed Shohei Ohtani to run one in and tie the score at 2-2, sending the game into a 10th inning. 

In the final inning, Anthony Volpe from the Yankees grounded into a forced out, which granted Jazz Chisholm Jr. the chance to score their final run of the game. With bases loaded and the game on the line, the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history to right field. This led Chris Taylor, Tommy Edman and Betts to run in and raise the final score to 6-3 for a Dodgers victory in the first game of the series.

Freeman also joined Kirk Gibson and Joe Carter as the only three players in MLB history to hit a walk-off homer in the World Series.

The Freeman family endured a difficult challenge over the summer, when Freeman’s 3-year-old son Max was diagnosed with Guillain-Barré syndrome. This is an extremely rare condition in which the immune system attacks itself and the body’s nerves. Freeman ultimately left the team to be with his family during this difficult time. His son made a full recovery, and Freeman rejoined the team in August.

Freeman entered Friday night’s game with a sprained ankle, which was injured in late September. After learning that he hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history, Freeman told Dodgers beat reporter Juan Toribio, “That’s pretty cool. Obviously, that’s — that’s kind of amazing. It’s been a lot these last few months, been a grind, but things have been going so well at home. Max is doing great.” 

In the second game of the series Oct. 26., Edman hit his first homer of the series on a fly ball to left field to put the first run on the board for the Dodgers at the bottom of the second. Soto quickly retaliated at the top of the third with a homer of his own on a fly ball to right field, tying the game at 1-1 for the Yankees.

The Dodgers’ Teoscar Hernandez recaptured the team’s lead at the bottom of the third with his first homer of the series on a fly ball to right center field, allowing himself and Betts to run in and bring the score to 3-1. Freddie Freeman stepped up to the plate at the bottom of the third and hit his second homer of the series on a fly ball to right center field, bringing the score up to 4-1.

The Yankees scored their final run at the top of the ninth when Stanton singled on a ground ball to left field, which granted Soto the chance to score. This raised the final score to 4-2 for a Dodgers win. The Yankees put up a valiant effort during this game, but the Dodgers proved to be more dominant, knowing the game they had to play. 

Also in the Dodgers’ favor is the lucky break regarding Ohtani, who was injured while stealing second base in game two. After the game, reports came out that the LA superstar will be ready for game three.

With at least two more games left in the series, do not count the Yankees out just yet. The New York team has one of the best home records in the MLB, so its performance at home may improve in the upcoming games. The teams have arrived at New York City to play at Yankee Stadium for the next three games Oct. 28, 29 and, if needed, 30.

Schlösser is a sports reporter for the Liberty Champion.