The Los Angeles Dodgers captured the franchise’s 8th World Series title, coming from behind to beat the New York Yankees 7-6 in Game 5 Wednesday night in the Bronx.
The Yankees jumped out to an early 2-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning when slugger Aaron Judge, whose bat had been quiet in the Fall Classic, launched the first pitch he saw from Dodgers starter Jack Flaherty into the right field seats.
New York added three more runs and led the Dodgers 5-0 heading into the 5th inning – that’s when a series of defensive miscues opened the door for L.A.
Judge took his eye off shortstop Tommy Edman’s soft liner at the last moment and dropped it for an error that put two runners on with nobody out. After two more defensive blunders by New York, the Dodgers tied the score when Freddie Freeman hit a two-run single, and Teoscar Hernández followed with a two-run double off Gerrit Cole with two outs.
Freeman’s two-run single gave him 12 RBIs in the World Series, matching a Fall Classic record set 64 Freddie Freeman hit a two-run single to tie the Series record of 12 RBIs, set by Bobby Richardson over seven games in 1960, and was voted Series MVP.
The 35-year-old first baseman had homered in each of the first four games, becoming the first player to accomplish that feat. The streak began when he launched the first game-ending grand slam in World Series history in a dramatic opener in Los Angeles.
The Yankees regained the lead in the bottom of the sixth inning on a sacrifice fly by Giancarlo Stanton, who scored Juan Soto.
The Dodgers were down – but not out.
They loaded the bases in the top of the 8th inning on two singles and a walk before Gavin Lux’s sacrifice fly scored Enrique Hernandez to tie the game 6-6.
The runners advanced on the sacrifice, and the Dodgers loaded the bases again on a catcher’s interference call that put Shohei Ohtani on first. Then, perennial All-Star Mookie Betts followed with another sacrifice fly to score Tommy Edman and give the Dodgers a 7-6 lead.
Walker Buehler, making his first relief appearance since his rookie season in 2018, pitched a perfect ninth for his first major league save.
“We’re obviously resilient, but there’s so much love in the clubhouse that won this game today,” Betts said. “That’s what it was. It was love, it was grit. I mean, it was just a beautiful thing. I’m just proud of us and I’m happy for us.”
When Buehler struck out Verdugo to end the game, the Dodgers poured onto the field to celebrate between the mound and first base, capping a season in which they won 98 games and finished with the best regular-season record.
“There’s just a lot of ways we can win baseball games,” Buehler said. “Obviously the superstars we have on our team and the discipline, it just kind of all adds up.”
“We just take advantage of every mistake they made in that inning,” Teoscar Hernández said. “We put some good at-bats together. We put the ball in play.”
The championship, L.A.’s first since 2020, was the culmination of a remarkable season that saw the team finish with the best record in baseball and with the first player in MLB history to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases.
Shohei Ohtani’s 10-year, $700 million signing paid off, as his presence as a designated hitter transformed the Dodgers’ offensive.
Other key offseason moves included the signing of Japanese ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto to a 12-year, $325 million deal, the addition of veteran pitcher Tyler Glasnow in a trade with the Tampa Bay Rays, and the signing of free agent outfielder Teoscar Hernández, who hit 33 home runs and won this season’s Home Run Derby.
The Dodgers’ World Series title also brings redemption to manager Dave Roberts, who faced intense criticism after the team failed to win a playoff series after cruising to NL West titles the past two years.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.