Freeman powers LA Dodgers over punchless Yankees to brink of World Series sweep | World Series

The Los Angeles Dodgers are one win from a surprising World Series sweep of the New York Yankees – and a second title in five years – after Freddie Freeman’s historic power streak continued to reduce a hotly anticipated showdown featuring baseball’s two most storied franchises to one-way traffic.

The Dodgers’ veteran first baseman matched George Springer’s record of homering in five straight World Series games during Monday night’s Game 3 with a two-run drive into the right-field stands in the first inning, kick-starting a 4-2 victory that opened a commanding three-games-to-none lead for Los Angeles in the best-of-seven tie.

“When you come into a road park, you want to try to strike early and quiet the crowd, and we were able to do that in the first inning,” said Freeman, an eight-time All-Star and the 2020 National League MVP.

The crackling atmosphere on a chilly 52F (11C) night inside Yankee Stadium as it played host to a World Series game for the first time in 15 years climbed to ear-splitting volumes after a ceremonial first pitch thrown by club legend Derek Jeter and a pre-game performance by South Bronx rapper Fat Joe – but the in-form Freeman wasted no time bringing the rollicking Bronx Zoo to heel with one swing of the bat.

After Shohei Ohtani, playing two days after partially dislocating his left shoulder, walked on four pitches to lead off the game followed by a Mookie Betts fly-out, Freeman drove a 1-2 cutter about five rows into the lower deck in right field to give Los Angeles the early edge.

Walker Buehler and six relievers combined on a five-hitter for the Dodgers, who tacked on runs in the third through Betts and sixth inning through Kiké Hernández. The shutout remained intact until the Yankees were down to their final strike in the bottom of the ninth, when left fielder Alex Verdugo hit a two-run homer off Dodgers reliever Ryan Brasier that cut the deficit in half and turned the lineup over. But from there Braiser coaxed Gleyber Torres into a groundout to short for the final out, leaving the Yankees on the brink of a World Series sweep for only the fourth time in their record 41 appearances.

New York only advanced a runner to second base once against Buehler, when Giancarlo Stanton doubled in the fourth. But when Stanton was sent home on Anthony Volpe’s single to shallow left field, the lumbering designated hitter was gunned down at the plate on a perfect throw by Teoscar Hernández to preserve the 3-0 lead.

It was an inspired showing by the 30-year-old Buehler, who has shined on the postseason stage in the past but has struggled this season in his return from a second Tommy John surgery. His only win all year before Monday came back in May against the Cincinnati Reds, before his campaign was derailed by a hip injury. Less so for New York starter Clarke Schmidt, who was chased before the end of the third after walking four.

“Walker Buehler’s been doing this his whole career,” Freeman said. “Big games, big moments, he steps up when you need him. Five strong, strong innings, and our bullpen came in and did a great job. This is what you’ve got to do, you’ve got to pitch in October, and we’ve been doing that.”

The only team in major league history to overcome a 3-0 deficit in a best-of-seven playoff series was the Boston Red Sox against the Yankees in the 2004 American League Championship Series, a comeback that was sparked by Dodgers manager Dave Roberts’ stolen base in Game 4.

“Hopefully we can go be this amazing story and shock the world,” New York manager Aaron Boone said. “But right now it’s about trying to get a lead, trying to grab a game, and force another one, and then on from there. But we’ve got to grab one first.”

Three days after hitting the first walk-off grand slam in Fall Classic history, the 35-year-old Freeman became the third player to homer in the first three games of a World Series after Hank Bauer in 1958 and Barry Bonds in 2002. His streak of five straight World Series games with a home run dates back to Atlanta’s last two games against Houston in 2021.

Since Freeman’s Game 1 blast on Friday night, the Yankees’ potent and expensive offense has been held to four runs and nine hits over two contests. They struck out 11 times in Monday’s defeat, including four looking, while dropping to 4-for-20 with runners in scoring position for the series.

Few have suffered as much as New York captain Aaron Judge, whose nightmarish World Series continued Monday as he went 0-for-3 with a walk, bringing him to 1-for-12 with seven strikeouts after three games. The presumptive American League MVP is batting just .140 (6-for-43) in the postseason with a .580 OPS and 20 strikeouts.

“I’m not doing any good for the team,” Judge said. “[I’ve] just got to step up, take my walks when I can, drive the baseball if I get something to hit.”

He may be running out of time. The Dodgers can nail down the franchise’s eighth World Series championship, and their first in a full season since 1988, with a win in Game 4 on Tuesday night in the Bronx. Down to three healthy starters, Los Angeles are expected to pitch their fourth bullpen game of these playoffs, while rookie right-hander Luis Gil will take the hill for the Yankees.

The Dodgers and Yankees are meeting in the World Series for a 12th time, making it the most frequent matchup in the history of the Fall Classic, but the first in 43 years. Once an interborough battle when the Dodgers played in Brooklyn, it has since become a bicoastal affair since their relocation to Los Angeles in 1958. Only one of their previous World Series meetings ended in a sweep, when the Dodgers took four straight back in 1963 behind Hall of Fame pitchers Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale.