Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman cements legacy as New York killer
LOS ANGELES — Mets and Yankees fans can probably agree on one thing.
Neither want to see Freddie Freeman up in a big spot.
The former Braves star, who has tormented the Mets for years, had his first truly big swing against the Yankees on Friday night — and what a swing it was.
Freeman, still dealing with a sprained right ankle, hit the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history.
His no-doubt, two-out blast off Nestor Cortes Jr. sent the Dodgers to a 6-3, 10-inning, Game 1 victory.
It was his Kirk Gibson moment, 36 years after the hobbled slugger’s pinch-hit home run against the A’s won Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.
“It felt like nothing, just kind of floating,” the star first baseman said. “Those are the kind of things, when you’re five years old with your two older brothers and you’re playing wiffleball in the backyard, those are the scenarios you dream about — two outs, bases loaded in a World Series game. For it to actually happen and get a home run and walk it off to give us a 1-0 lead, that’s as good as it gets right there.”
The ankle limited Freeman so much in the NLCS against the Mets that he sat for Game 4.
He hadn’t done much in the postseason, managing just one RBI and a .461 OPS.
But in Game 1 of the World Series, he looked more like himself.
He tripled to the opposite field in the first inning, aided by Alex Verdugo over-running the ball and slipping on the grass, and had mostly strong at-bats.
The break from the end of the NLCS last Sunday night to the start of the World Series five days later certainly helped.
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“This last week has been really good for me,” he said. “The first time I ran was when I ran out to give high-fives to my teammates when we got introduced. Tried to stave off running as much as I could this week, treated it as much as I could. So I felt pretty good going into today. I don’t feel it right now, so that’s a good thing.”
Not for the Yankees. In the 10th inning, with a one-run lead, they chose to pitch to Freeman instead of Mookie Betts after Shohei Ohtani flew out with two runners on base for the second out.
Freeman didn’t waste any time. He turned on the first pitch he saw from Cortes, and sent it into the seats, 409 feet away.
After the homer, Freeman made sure to find his father, Fred, and celebrate with him.
“[My dad] has been there since I was a little boy, throwing batting practice to me every day,” he said during his on-field interview with Fox. “This isn’t my moment, it’s his moment.”
Not only did his blast give the Dodgers the dramatic win in a classic opener to what could be a memorable World series, it was also history. No other player has ever ended a game in the Fall Classic with a grand slam.
“This is pretty cool,” Freeman said. “It’s going to be hard to sleep tonight.”
