Saturday, October 26, 2024

Month of MLB: Day 26

When I was in the third grade, I spent a long time working my way through a book called Stars of the Series.  It was a history of the World Series from 1903 up to 1964, with detailed descriptions of each series, and thrilling descriptions of the most dramatic games in baseball history.  By the time I was 10 years old, I was familiar with the Miracle Braves of 1914, Walter Johnson's triumph in the Seventh Game of the 1924 World Series, Enos Slaughter's run for the Cardinals over the Red Sox in 1946, Willie Mays's catch of Vic Wertz's long drive in 1954, and many other such events.

Last night, in Game One of the World Series, the Dodgers and the Yankees played a thriller worthy of that history.  It was the best game in the World Series since at least 2016, and one of the best baseball games ever played.  Here is a brief summary of what happened.

Jack Flaherty (13-7) started for the Dodgers, and Gerrit Cole (8-5) started for the Yankees.  They were both sharp, and there was no score after four innings.

In the bottom of the fifth, the Dodgers opened the scoring.  With one out, Enrique Hernandez tripled to right field.  Will Smith then hit a long fly to right.  Most of the time, Hernandez could have trotted home with the run -- but Juan Soto plays right field for the Yankees, and his arm is a cannon.  Soto's throw was excellent, but Hernandez dashed home, just sliding under the tag and putting the Dodgers ahead 1-0.

However, Soto led off the top of the sixth with a ringing single to center.  Flaherty got Aaron Judge to strike out, but Giancarlo Stanton reached down and golfed a pitch 417 feet into the left field seats.  It was a stupendous blow, and it put the Yankees up 2-1.

The Dodgers had a great chance to tie the game in the bottom of the sixth, after Tommy Edman led off the inning with a double.  But Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts grounded out, and Freddy Freeman stranded Edman at third when he flied out to right.  Still 2-1 for New York.

In the bottom of the seventh, the Dodgers had another great opportunity.  Teoscar Hernandez led off with a single that ended Cole's evening.  Clay Holmes came in to pitch, and promptly hit Max Muncy, putting runners on first and second with no outs.  Hernandez laid down a beautiful sacrifice to put men on second and third.  But Holmes got Will Smith to pop up, and Tommy Kahnle (a new Yankee pitcher) retired Gavin Lux on a groundout to end the inning.  Still 2-1 for New York.

Tommy Edman led off the bottom of the eighth by grounding out, and Ohtani came up for what would likely be his last chance unless something changed.  On the radio, Eduardo Perez said that Kahnle was not a good choice to pitch to Ohtani, because Ohtani is dangerous against the type of off-speed pitching Kahnle relies upon.  Ohtani then made Perez look like a genius, as he crushed the next pitch to right field.  At first, it looked like a home run, but it was one of those balls that has a top spin, and it ended up banging off the top of the right field wall.  Ohtani easily made it to second -- and advanced to third when Soto's throw got away from the Yankees second baseman.  For the third inning in a row, the Dodgers had the tying run on third with one out.  Yankees manager Aaron Boone brought in his closer, Luke Weaver, to try to prevent the run.  But after a great at-bat, Mookie Betts hit a 1-2 pitch on a long fly to center to bring home Ohtani and tie the game.  Freeman then flew out to Judge.  Dodgers 2, Yankees 2 after 8.

With two out in the top of the ninth, and Michael Kopech now pitching for the Dodgers, Gleyber Torres blasted a drive to left that was caught by a fan.  The umpires concluded -- and video replay confirmed -- that if the fan had not caught the ball, it would have bounced off the wall.  So they awarded Torres second base, where he was replaced by a pinch hitter.  The Dodgers intentionally walked Soto to bring up Aaron Judge, and then brought in former Nat Blake Treinen to pitch to judge.  Throwing Judge a series of sweeper pitches, Treinen eventually got Judge to pop out and end the inning.

In the bottom of the ninth, Weaver mowed down the Dodgers 1-2-3, and for the third year in a row, Game One of the World Series went to Extra Innings.

In the top of the tenth, Treinen struck out Giancarlo Stanton, but then Jazz Chisholm went to war for the Yankees.  He singled to right.  He stole second base.  He stole third base, and then he scored on a grounder by Anthony Volpe.  Treinen avoided further damage, but the Yankees led 3-2 going into the bottom of the 10th.

Unfortunately for the Yankees, they could no longer use Weaver, so they brought in Jake Cousins (2-1, 2.37 ERA in 37 appearances).  Cousins could win the game if he retired the Dodgers' 7-8-9 hitters.  He got Will Smith to fly out to right, but then he walked Gavin Lux, and then allowed a single to Tommy Edman.  Lux had a chance to reach third, but fell down rounding second and had to scramble back to the bag.  The Dodgers replaced Lux with pinch runner Chris Taylor.

With the tying run on second, the winning run on first, and Shohei Ohtani coming to the plate, Aaron Boone decided to make another pitching change.  This time he went with Nestor Cortes, a left-hander who is normally a starter.  In the regular season, Cortes went 9-10 with a 3.77 ERA in 30 starts, but he hadn't pitched since September 18.  Now he pitched to Ohtani, and Ohtani jumped on the first pitch.  However, he didn't hit it solidly -- it sailed off to left field, slicing foul.  It looked like it might go into the stands, but Alex Verdugo made a spectacular diving catch that actually carried him over the low wall that runs down the left field line in Dodger Stadium.  So now there were two outs, but the runners advanced to second and third.  With Mookie Betts coming to the plate, Boone decided to walk him, load the bases, and let Cortes go after Freeman to win the game.

Freeman has had foot problems for months, and at one point there were serious concerns that he might have to sit out of at least some of the playoffs.  But after a week off, he was moving better last night than he had in a long time, and he had beaten out a triple earlier on the night.  Now he, like Ohtani, swung at Cortes's first pitch -- but he, unlike Ohtani, hit it solid.  If you've been paying close attention to this narrative, you know that the Dodgers hit one ball after another to right field last night, but all of them came up short of a home run.  So when Freeman hit a fly ball to right, I was immediately fearful that he had flown out to end the game.  But Fox kept its camera focused on Freeman, and you could see the Dodger fans going nuts in the background.  You could also see that Freeman wasn't moving -- he was just standing there watching the ball.  Then he did a gesture I don't ever remember seeing before.  He took the bat with one hand, and extended it straight up over his head, like King Arthur holding up Excalibur.  And that's how I knew that Freddy Freeman had hit the first walk-off Grand Slam in 120 years of World Series games, and that the Dodgers led the Series one game to nothing after a 6-3 victory in ten innings.

There were some Yankees fans who complained about Boone going to Cortes, and the Yankees could also regret leaving 11 men on base, but on the whole both teams played at an extraordinarily high level, and both of them will like their chances going forward.  Tonight they meet again in Dodger Stadium at 7:08 P.M. Central.  The Yankees will start Carlos Rodon (16-9, 3.96 ERA in 32 starts).  The Dodgers will counter with Yoshinobu Yamamoto (7-2, 3.00 ERA in 18 starts, as he was limited due to injury).  It should be another good one.

55 comments:

  1. Yankees lineup for Game Two:

    1. Torres, 2b
    2. J. Soto, rf
    3. Judge, cf
    4. Stanton, dh
    5. Chisholm, Jr., 3b
    6. Rizzo, 1b
    7. Volpe, ss
    8. A. Wells, c
    9. Verdugo, lf

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  2. We'll be listening to this game on ESPN Radio, with Jon Sciambi doing the play-by-play, and commentary from Eduardo Perez and Jessica Mendoza. They do a solid job. Of course, we will have the radio synced up with the Fox TV broadcast.

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  3. Dodger Stadium is the second-oldest stadium in the National League, and in my opinion it is the best.

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  4. The Dodgers send out Ice Cube to do a rap, and he whips the crowd into a frenzy.

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  5. Of course the Dodgers and Yankees are wearing their traditional uniforms. The Dodgers have also painted a big "34" on the mound to honor Fernando Valenzuela.

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  6. Yamamoto walks Torres to lead off the game, but then he gets a groundout from Soto, a strikeout from Judge, and a pop up from Stanton. Going into the bottom of the first, it's the Yankees 0, the Dodgers coming up to bat.

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  7. Dodger Stadium is now one of the largest stadiums in baseball in terms of attendance. These days, most new stadiums seat around 40,000 fans. But the Dodgers can pack over 52,000 people into their stadium, and it can get very loud.

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    1. When I was rewatching the 1977 World Series, I noted that Dodger Stadium and Yankee Stadium were being packed by more than 50,000 people for each game--and that it was just a little short of how many people lived in all of McCracken County in 1977.

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  8. In the 2019 World Series, the Nationals had an average attendance of 43,888 for the three games at Nationals Park.

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  9. In the bottom of the 1st, Ohtani flies to center, Betts singles to right, Hernandez flies out to right, and Freeman pops up to first. No score after one.

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  10. In the bottom of the second, Tommy Edman hits a fly ball into the left field bleachers, and the Dodgers take an early 1-0 lead.

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  11. That's all for the Dodgers in the bottom of the 2d. They lead 1-0 after 2.

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  12. In the top of the 3d, former National Juan Soto crushes a home run into the right field seats, and we are tied at 1.

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  13. That's all for the Yankees. 1-all after two and a half.

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  14. Scores from college football:

    (6) Miami (Fla.) 17 - 7 Florida St. (11:39 left in 3d quarter)
    Wisconsin 3 - 7 (3) Penn St. (1:13 left in 2d quarter)
    (14) Texas A & M 7 - 17 (8) L.S.U. (4:16 left in 2d quarter)
    (16) Kansas St. 9 - 7 Kansas (11:02 left in 2d quarter)

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  15. Mookie Betts grew up in Nashville and attended John Overton High School. I never knew that.

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  16. With two outs in the bottom of the third, Betts gets his second single of the game, and then Teoscar Hernandez skies an opposite field home run into the right center field seats. He knew it was gone as soon as it left the bat. Dodgers now lead 3-1.

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  17. Rodon then fails to keep the ball low against Freeman, and he immediately hammers a 401-foot line drive into the right field seats. I think Freeman knew that ball was gone when it was about halfway to the plate. Dodgers now lead 4-1.

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  18. Edman doubles and steals third. Enrique Hernandez hammers a line drive to left, but it stays up and Verdugo catches it for the third out. Dodgers lead 4-1 after 3.

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  19. With one out in the bottom of the 4th, and the Dodgers still leading 4-1, the Yankees pull Rodon and bring in Jake Cousins.

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  20. Will Smith greets Cousins with a double, but Rojas and Ohtani can't do anything, and the Dodgers still lead 4-1 after 4. Ohtani is now 0-3 on the night.

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  21. Yamamoto mows down the bottom of the Yankees order, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 4 1/2 innings.

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  22. Teoscar Hernandez hits a one-out single in the bottom of the fifth, and the Yankees bring in left-hander Tim Hill to face Freeman. Hill gets Freeman to pop up to short.

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  23. Hill does his job, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 5.

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  24. Yamamoto mows down the top of the Yankees order, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 5 1/2 innings.

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  25. College football scores:

    (6) Miami (Fla.) 23 - 7 Florida St. (8:10 left in 4th quarter)
    Wisconsin 13 - 14 (3) Penn St. (2:44 left in 3d quarter)
    (14) Texas A & M 7 - 17 (8) L.S.U. (9:47 left in 3d quarter)
    (16) Kansas St. 16 - 14 Kansas (Halftime)

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  26. With two out and nobody on in the bottom of the 6th, the Yankees bring in Clay Holmes to face Will Smith.

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  27. Holmes retires Smith, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 6.

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  28. With one out and nobody on in the seventh, manager Dave Roberts pulls Yamamoto. He was magnificent, pitching 6 1/3 innings while allowing only one run on only one hit. Anthony Banda (3-2, 3.08 ERA in 48 appearances) replaces him.

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  29. Significantly, in the first two games the Dodgers have gotten 11 2/3 innings from their starters.

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  30. With two outs, Banda walks Rizzo and throws a first-pitch ball to Volpe. Will Smith goes out to talk to him.

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  31. Whatever Smith said worked. Volpe flied out to center, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 6 1/2 innings.

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  32. In the bottom of the 7th, Ohtani walks but is thrown out trying to steal second. Dodgers lead 4-1 after 7.

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    Replies
    1. Apparently Ohtani was hurt on the stolen base attempt. It's not clear how serious the injury is.

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  33. In the top of the 8th, the Dodgers send out Michael Kopech (6-8, 3.46 ERA in 67 games).

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  34. Kopech retires the Yankees in order, and the Dodgers lead 4-1 after 7 1/2.

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  35. The Dodgers are retired 1-2-3, and they lead 4-1 after 8.

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  36. Blake Treinen, who pitched for both the Nats and the A's, comes in to pitch the 9th. In the regular season, he went 7-3 with a 1.93 ERA in 50 appearances.

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    1. His return to the A's will be a big deal to all of us Las Vegas fans in 2027 or whatever.

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  37. Evan Phillips led the Dodgers in saves with 18, but he is injured and out for the season, along with starters Gavin Stone (11-5) and Tyler Glasnow (9-6). It's amazing that the Dodgers have gotten this far with so many injuries to their pitching staff.

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  38. Juan Soto leads off the top of the 9th with a long single, and then advances to second on a wild pitch. But then Treinen strikes out Aaron Judge -- the third time Judge had struck out tonight.

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  39. Stanton singles off the third base bag, and Soto races home. Dodgers lead 4-2 with 1 out in the 9th. Jazz Chisholm comes to the plate with Stanton on first.

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  40. I don't think Treinen is going to get out of this inning. Chisholm fights off pitch after pitch and eventually laces a single to right. The Yankees now have the tying runs on base with only one out. Rizzo coming to the plate.

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  41. Treinen v. Rizzo (2 on, 1 out):

    Pitch 1: Ball inside (1-0)
    Pitch 2: Called strike (1-1)
    Pitch 3: Swinging strike (1-2)
    Pitch 4: Ball inside (2-2)
    Pitch 5: Foul (2-2)
    Pitch 6: Treinen hits Rizzo, and the bases are loaded.

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  42. Treinen is just done. He's not fooling the Yankees at all. The only person he has retired is Judge, who is in a horrific slump. Oswaldo Cabrera goes in to run for Rizzo.

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  43. Treinen v. Volpe (bases loaded, 1 out):

    Pitch 1: Swinging strike (0-1)
    Pitch 2: Ball outside (1-1)
    Pitch 3: Ball inside (2-1)
    Pitch 4: Foul (2-2) (Volpe should have hit this one for a grand slam)
    Pitch 5: Foul (2-2)
    Pitch 6: Swinging strike (2 outs).

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  44. Volpe blew it there. Pitch 4 was right down the middle, and Volpe just missed it. He fouled it off.

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  45. With two out and the bases loaded, the Dodgers turn to Alex Vesia (5-4, 1.76 ERA in 67 appearances). The Yankees pinch hit for their catcher with Jose Trevino (.215, 8, 28 in 209 AB's).

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  46. Vesia's first pitch is right down the middle, and Trevino jumps on it. But he doesn't hit it solid, and it turns into a soft fly to center. Edman catches it, and the Dodgers win 4-2. They now lead the series two games to zero, but they will be worried about Ohtani's status. Game Three will be in the Bronx on Monday night.

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  47. College football scores:

    (6) Miami (Fla.) 36 - 14 Florida St. (Final)
    Wisconsin 13 - 28 (3) Penn St. (Final)
    (14) Texas A & M 35 - 23 (8) L.S.U. (3:53 left in 4th)
    (16) Kansas St. 26 - 27 Kansas (7:04 left in 4th)

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  48. Ohtani appears to have injured his left shoulder on an awkward slide, but we won't know more for awhile.

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  49. A & M beats LSU 38-23 in a huge game at College Station. The Aggies are now 7-1, while the Tigers fall to 6-2.

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  50. Last week, Georgia beat Texas. But the Classic SWC got its revenge this weekend, with Texas, Texas A & M, and Arkansas sweeping Vandy, LSU, and Mississippi St.

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  51. There was a shocking result in Conference USA last week. Kennesaw State beat Liberty, 27-24. Liberty was undefeated on the season, and Kennesaw State (of Kennesaw, Georgia) had lost all six of its first six FBS games in school history! Tonight, Liberty hosts Jacksonville State, and Kennesaw State plays just down the street from my daughter's dorm at Western Kentucky University (in Bowling Green)!

    WKU 5-2, 3-0
    Jax State 4-3, 3-0
    Sam Houston 7-2, 4-1
    Liberty 5-1, 3-1
    La Tech 3-5, 2-3
    FIU 3-6, 2-3
    Kennesaw State 1-6, 1-2
    MTSU 2-6, 1-3
    New Mexico State 2-6, 1-4
    UTEP 1-7, 1-4

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    1. I'm also happy to reveal that Western Kentucky beat Kennesaw State down the street from my daughter's dorm and on ESPN2 in my Madisonville living room last night. It was thrilling! And Jax State beat Liberty, so that means the Hilltoppers and the Gamecocks (not of South Carolina but of Jacksonville, not of Florida but of Alabama) remain undefeated in the league.

      There's a lot of ConfUSA football to be played between now and then, but Jacksonville State and Western Kentucky are scheduled to clash at 2:30 p.m. Central Nov. 30 in Bowling Green.

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