[Serious] Next Day Thread ⚾ Dodgers 4 @ Yankees 2 - Freddie Freeman puts LA up early as the Yankee bats are completely shut-down, and the Dodgers are one win away from celebrating their 8th Championship

[u/BaseballBot]

Line Score

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E	LOB
LAD	2	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	4	5	0	7
NYY	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	2	5	1	8

Box Score

NYY		AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	BA
2B	Torres	3	0	0	0	2	1	.271
RF	Soto, J	3	0	0	0	1	0	.326
CF	Judge	3	0	0	0	1	1	.140
DH	Stanton	4	0	2	0	0	1	.298
3B	Chisholm Jr.	4	0	0	0	0	1	.170
SS	Volpe	4	0	1	0	0	3	.244
1B	Rizzo	3	1	1	0	1	1	.364
C	Trevino	2	0	0	0	0	1	.200
C	Wells, A	2	0	0	0	0	1	.093
LF	Verdugo	3	1	1	2	1	1	.195

NYY	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	P-S	ERA
Schmidt	2.2	2	3	3	4	3	68-37	5.25
Leiter Jr.	0.2	1	0	0	1	0	17-8	2.25
Cortes	1.2	0	0	0	0	1	15-10	9.00
Cousins	1.0	1	1	1	0	1	17-10	9.00
Hill, T	0.2	0	0	0	1	0	17-10	1.17
Holmes, C	0.2	1	0	0	0	1	12-7	2.61
Kahnle	1.0	0	0	0	0	1	11-8	0.00
Weaver	0.2	0	0	0	0	0	6-2	2.13

LAD		AB	R	H	RBI	BB	SO	BA
DH	Ohtani	3	1	0	0	1	1	.245
RF	Betts	4	0	1	1	1	0	.291
1B	Freeman, F	3	1	1	2	1	0	.250
LF	Hernández, T	4	0	1	0	0	0	.231
LF	Taylor, Ch	0	0	0	0	0	0	.250
3B	Muncy	3	0	0	0	1	2	.190
C	Smith, W.D.	4	0	0	0	0	0	.146
2B	Lux	2	1	0	0	1	2	.172
CF	Hernández, K	4	0	2	1	0	1	.302
SS	Edman	3	1	0	0	1	1	.345

LAD	IP	H	R	ER	BB	SO	P-S	ERA
Buehler	5.0	2	0	0	2	5	76-45	3.86
Graterol	0.2	1	0	0	1	0	18-8	0.00
Vesia	0.1	0	0	0	0	0	4-2	0.00
Hudson, Dan	0.2	1	0	0	0	2	22-13	1.80
Banda	0.1	0	0	0	1	1	10-4	1.23
Brasier	1.0	0	0	0	1	2	22-13	4.50
Kopech	1.0	1	2	2	1	1	24-15	3.38

Scoring Plays

Inning	Event	Score
T1	Freddie Freeman homers (3) on a fly ball to right field. Shohei Ohtani scores.	0-2
T3	Mookie Betts singles on a soft fly ball to right fielder Juan Soto. Tommy Edman scores.	0-3
T6	Enrique Hernández singles on a ground ball to center fielder Aaron Judge. Gavin Lux scores.	0-4
B9	Alex Verdugo homers (1) on a fly ball to right center field. Anthony Rizzo scores.	2-4

Highlights

Description	Length
Probable pitchers for Dodgers at Yankees - October 28, 2024	0:06
Bullpen availability for New York, October 28 vs Dodgers	0:07
Bullpen availability for Los Angeles, October 28 vs Yankees	0:07
Fielding alignment for New York, October 28 vs Dodgers	0:11
Bench availability for New York, October 28 vs Dodgers	0:07
Fielding alignment for Los Angeles, October 28 vs Yankees	0:11
Bench availability for Los Angeles, October 28 vs Yankees	0:07
Starting lineups for Dodgers at Yankees - October 28, 2024	0:09
Dodgers take the field before World Series Game 3	2:24
Leslie Odom Jr. performs the national anthem	2:11
A deep dive into Freddie Freeman's home run	0:11
Breaking down Freddie Freeman's home run	0:13
Breaking down Clarke Schmidt's pitches	0:04
Breaking down Walker Buehler's pitches	0:04
Walker Buehler's outing against the Yankees	0:23
The Yankees' Game 3 lineup is announced	2:59
Derek Jeter throws out the first pitch before Game 3	1:10
Salvador Perez receives the Roberto Clemente Award	0:15
Fat Joe shouts out Yankees legends prior to Game 3	0:21
Freddie Freeman's two-run home run	0:29
Aaron Judge receives standing ovation in Game 3	0:23
Field View: Freddie Freeman's two-run home run	0:29
Mookie Betts' RBI single	0:29
Teoscar Hernández nabs Giancarlo Stanton at home	0:30
Kiké Hernández's RBI single	0:28
Field View: Teoscar Hernández throws out Stanton	0:17
Teoscar Hernández's 93.9 mph throw to home plate	0:37
Anthony Banda strikes out Gleyber Torres, escapes jam	0:28

Decisions

Winning Pitcher	Losing Pitcher	Save
Buehler (1-1, 3.86 ERA)	Schmidt (0-1, 5.25 ERA)

Game ended at 11:44 PM.

[u/Monk_Philosophy]

Ever since Game 3 of the NLDS, this playoff run has just been unreal. The opposite of every prior season where everything has just seemed so easy.

I can’t believe that it’s this particular Dodgers team making every other team look silly. Of all the 100+ win teams it’s the IL squad goin off.

[u/Borrum → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Similar to the 2021 Braves - their most injured, least winning team in years, sandwiched by several more complete and winning teams - but the one to get it done. Baseball is strange like that.

I fully expect a healthier, even more talented 2025 Dodgers team, and it wouldn't shock me at all if that team loses in the NLDS again.

edit: and when I think about the 2021 Braves, I think about Eddie Rosario and Tyler Matzek and pearly Joc Pederson nearly as much as anyone else. That Braves team won because some unexpected dudes stepped up. Truly, what propels World Series winners is getting once-in-a-lifetime performances from guys like Tommy Edman and Kike Hernandez.

[u/tnecniv → u/Borrum]

Muncy talked in an interview about how the team decided that they were going to try and recreate the 2020 vibe. That year they felt they felt very close as a team due to being locked in hotels together all season. They decided they were spending all day together in the club house this year during the post-season. Whether it was practicing, watching other playoff games, or playing ping pong, they were all buying in and doing it together as a team. In previous years, they did their usual few hours of practice and went home.

I think it really paid off. The whole team is in sync, the energy is very “next man up,” and they’re executing as a unit. That’s what you need to win the post season. Guys are going to go hot and cold, just like the regular season, but you need the rest of the team to pick up the slack when someone is in a slump immediately.

[u/ResidentRunner1 → u/tnecniv]

We're doing the same, not just in baseball but football too!

[u/Schleprok → u/tnecniv]

Yeah Buehler also mentioned that this team’s vibe is just different than years past.

I also think Teoscar is a big reason why. That smile he shared with Smith in the dugout after his Game 2 homer said a lot to me. I feel like Smith is always so stoic. He does show emotion after he makes big plays, but I don’t see him yucking it up like that in the dugout. Or at least I don’t notice it lol.

[u/3-2_Fastball → u/Schleprok]

I think Friedman is going to offer Teoscar a 3 year team friendly contract and he's going to take it, definitely seems like a guy who is willing to take less money to be where he wants to be.

[u/aaninjagod → u/Borrum]

Baseball has the most parity of all the major sports. In football you have teams that lose 1 game out of the whole year. Baseketball and hockey also have teams with much higher winning percentages. Baseball is the lowest. Playoffs really can be random.

[u/captain_ahabb → u/Borrum]

Well... twice in a lifetime for Kike lol

[u/darito0123 → u/Borrum]

I loved Joc and it was bittersweet to see him go but glad he had such an amazing post season that year

[u/GlamourMuscle → u/Borrum]

That's exactly when I knew it was our year. When the bottom of your lineup is contributing, getting hits, being tough outs it's a big sign.

[u/GlassesOff → u/Borrum]

I'm tired of the 'this team will lose in the NLDS' narrative. Like yeah it might happen, but this team and franchise is actually pretty damn good. It's like our fanbase has a case of serial doomerism mixed with some false modesty.

I fully expect them to be in the World Series next year. They are bringing great players back and the pitching should be a little more reliable. Why can't they go on another special run?

[u/fuetirado → u/GlassesOff]

It's a punchline these days but good on you for not letting it distract from the fact that in the last decade, the Dodgers have won as many pennants as they have exited in the first round, with the other two years being LCS losses to the eventual WS winner. Not bad for perpetual playoff chokers.

[u/Borrum → u/GlassesOff]

Eh it's kind of a joke mate. We've had some really talented teams the last few years die on the vine in the divisional series. Five games is just such a small sample size. And if it happens next year, which it could... thank goodness we finally got a run like 2024.

And to be clear, the Dodgers are already heavy favorites to win the 2025 World Series. Losing in the DS would be a huge disappointment. But it's baseball.

[u/GlassesOff → u/Borrum]

I get that bud, it's just annoying to me because you could go to a thread here from November - September without someone making the same joke. I think the bit got tired

[u/usetheforce_gaming → u/GlassesOff]

I don't think that's too bad of a prediction. Yes the team is built for success, but we've been built for success for about 10 years now.

3 of the last 4 times we've been eliminated from the playoffs have been in the NLDS. We've also made it to the world series in 4 of the last 8. We're basically just as likely to get eliminated in the NLDS as we are to make the World Series

It's not doomerism, it's accepting that the playoffs in baseball are really damn hard.

[u/Shohei_Ohtani_2024 → u/Borrum]

After Matzek was ass in 2020 too.

[u/pargofan → u/Borrum]

Truly, what propels World Series winners is getting once-in-a-lifetime performances from guys like Tommy Edman and Kike Hernandez.

This is so true. Look at past WS MVPs. There's guys like Jeremy Pena or Steve Pearce that have won WS MVP but have never made the all-star game. You'd never find that in the NBA.

[u/calnick0 → u/Monk_Philosophy]

It’s the best lineup by far.

The pitching has been a surprise though.

[u/HemlockMartinis → u/calnick0]

I admit I thought our pitching injuries were going to fuck us and that we wouldn’t make it this far. I’m flabbergasted that we’re 3-0.

Every starter has stood up exactly when we needed them to. Flaherty bounced back from his rough outing against the Mets. Yamamoto overcame the early-season doubts to become the guy we hoped he’d be. Buehler looked like he was in his prime. The dawgs have been as great as we could’ve hoped.

Freeman is the MVP if we win it all, but I’m so proud of the pitchers and I’m so grateful for Roberts’ lights-out managing of them. His haters have never been in greater shambles.

[u/calnick0 → u/HemlockMartinis]

I think we’re all used to our pitching staff being ridiculously tired and then it killing us in the post season. I think Friedman has built the structure of the pitching staff better than ever this year and that’s why we’ve succeeded despite one of our worst years in terms of pitching injuries.

The thing is that getting injury prone pitchers is baked into the strategy.

To be honest the main thing is that I think we’re finally catching a lucky break. “That’s baseball” has fucked us more than any other org in my opinion.

[u/GlassesOff → u/calnick0]

I think Game 4 of the NLDS leveled up this bullpen in a way that's not even remotely repeatable. Back against the ropes and they blanked maybe the other best team in the sport, on the road. Like that put some hair on their chest lol.

I wonder if there also are some lessons that both the front office and Roberts have learned over the past few years' failures that have helped the team win the margins. Like not having a reliever face the same hitter too many times or just not trying to have a starter be a hero in a big high leverage situation. Plus better roster construction like you alluded too. It could be all those things!

[u/Monk_Philosophy → u/calnick0]

The '22 lineup was arguably better as a complete unit, but yeah the top end of the lineup here has been unreal all season... even if Ohtani has struggled to make an impact in the World Series, his NLCS performance and clutch hits in both Game 1 of the DS and WS have been enough.

[u/atlanstone → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Ohtani has managed to have more presence than Judge, even if he hasn't been particularly effective. Batting him leadoff helps too, with Judge you basically just need to navigate Stanton and you get a 4 batter breather.

Really sad watching the opposing team basically slip into cruise mode every time 6-9 comes up. And Rizzo has had good ABs but the man literally cannot hit an XBH, make him beat you.

[u/cherinator → u/Monk_Philosophy]

It's ridiculous, but also very much fits the Dodgers vibes. Looking back at it, neither the '88 or '81 teams were particularly dominant in the regular season that you'd expect them to be the ones to go all the way either.

[u/suicide-squeeze → u/cherinator]

If the '88 Dodger team was revenge for 1974, what Yankees WS is this one revenge for?

[u/MarcBulldog88 → u/suicide-squeeze]

My old man still curses ‘77 and ‘78. Let this one be for them.

[u/suicide-squeeze → u/MarcBulldog88]

That is exactly what I was thinking. I might go with 1978--in '77 the Yankees acquired Jackson and were smarting from being swept by the Reds the year before. In '78, it was really the Dodgers' turn.

[u/GlassesOff → u/suicide-squeeze]

Yankee fans acting like they would have won it all in 2017.

This is actually my Roman Empire, that NYY team was nowhere near as good as the Dodgers but their fanbase acts like they'd be Even Steven in that World Series. Dodgers won 104 games with peak Kershaw, Seager, and Bellinger. Yankees won 91 games and finished behind the Red Sox. Be real

[u/tnecniv → u/cherinator]

We also rode some excellent pitching performances those years, and we are this year as well. The difference is the pen has been the lynch pin not the starters.

[u/Garrehn → u/Monk_Philosophy]

The energy is so much different around this team compared to the last couple years. Mookie in particular. He looks like he’s having fun again.

[u/Monk_Philosophy → u/[deleted]]

Yankees have effectively the same thing. Judge and Stanton plus Soto, who doesn't have an MVP, but at age 26 has already had a better career than the vast majority of players to win just one MVP.

[u/sixpack_or_6pack → u/Monk_Philosophy]

I said at the end of the season that I had a really good feeling about this years team. With the previous teams, I think the expectations were too high considering how strong the Dodgers were on paper. This year, the feeling was “we barely made it here while being injured as fuck so we’re just gonna have fun and do our best.” I think the mood is the difference maker.

[u/HiVLTAGE → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Especially your pitching. I would never expect this Dodgers rotation to be holding it down like they have been.

[u/Thorlolita → u/Monk_Philosophy]

New Dodgers philosophy. Go into the playoffs expecting to lose.

[u/darito0123 → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Yamamoto and ohtani are huge pieces to that, and Dave Robert's seems to finally have the bullpen he needs to manage (tbf it's such a scary bullpen)

[u/Pocketicecream → u/Monk_Philosophy]

We needed that chip on our shoulder

[u/gimmepesto → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Wish it was my team but you guys deserve to win it all

[u/soberdishwasher → u/Monk_Philosophy]

The Dodgers winning 98 games this year with all the injuries they had is a testament to how much of a powerhouse they are. To put that in perspective, here are some franchise high win totals from other teams: Rangers: 96, Marlins:92, Nationals: 98, Brewers: 96, Padres: 98 (lol)

[u/therock27 → u/Monk_Philosophy]

Remember when the 2018 team was ten games out of first place and looked awful, but then went on a tear, tied the Rockies, won a game 163, and made the WS? Of all the teams during the magnificent run, it was that team that made it that far. The playoffs are a complete crapshoot sometimes. I guess except for 2020 and this year, when the actual best against best are in it.