For a team that endured the longest postseason drought in baseball history, few people outside the Los Angeles Dodgers could have imagined the joy, relief and jubilation this victory will bring. It will be the eighth World Series title in franchise history and a much-needed respite from the dark days of mediocrity that dominated for most of the last decade.
Freddie Freeman, clutching the World Series MVP trophy after the Dodgers won a five-game conquest of the New York Yankees Wednesday night, let the emotions flow as he hoisted it above his head. He had just finished a remarkable Series, leading the league with a series-high 12 home runs in four games and setting a new record for most career World Series homers in the process.
The game itself was not quite as sensational as the previous three nights, but it was a wild one nonetheless. After the Dodgers built a 5-3 lead against New York Yankees ace Gerrit Cole in the fifth, the Yankees made a few egregious errors to allow Los Angeles to come back and tie the game.
Then, with the Dodgers facing a bases-loaded, no-out situation in the ninth, Blake Treinen came on to shut down the Yankees’ lineup, stranding two runners and striking out Giancarlo Stanton to clinch a 7-6 victory. It was the final act of a bullpen that turned in 23 outs of near-perfect relief, with a home run and sacrifice fly by Stanton being the only blemishes on an otherwise clean evening.