Game 1 : The Dodgers beat the Yankees 6-3 on NPR

LOS ANGELES – A nail-biting night with a Hollywood ending.

Game 1 of Yankees-Dodgers certainly delivered.

Freddie Freeman hit the first game-ending grand slam in World Series history with two outs in the 10th inning, leading the Los Angeles Dodgers to a 6-3 victory over the New York Yankees in Friday’s drama-filled opener.

“Maybe the greatest baseball moment I’ve ever seen, and I’ve seen some great ones,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts marveled.

With a badly sprained right ankle, Freeman fell to the first pitch he saw — a 92-mph fastball from Nestor Court — and raised his bat before beginning his trot as 52,394 gathered.

“I couldn’t believe what happened,” Roberts said. “That’s what makes the Fall Classic a classic, because the stars come out and the superstars make big plays, get big hits. … I am speechless now.

It’s reminiscent of Kirk Gibson’s spectacular homer that lifted the Los Angeles Athletics over the Oakland Athletics in the first game of the 1988 World Series at Dodger Stadium — one of the most famous swings in baseball.

Gibson, sidelined by leg injuries, came off the bench and pitched against Hall of Fame closer Dennis Eckersley.

“I played the whole game,” Freeman said with a smile.

Freeman, an eight-time All-Star who missed three games during the National League playoffs because of his sprained ankle, hadn’t had an extra-base hit this postseason until Friday when he tripled in the first inning.

“Felt really good,” said Freeman, who will donate his game spikes to the Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. “We’ve handled it well the last six days. I feel good. When I ran out there to give high-fives to my teammates, I felt good because it was the first time I ran all week. So, the ankle feels good.

After the home run, Freeman ran to his father.

“I was screaming in his face. Sorry, Dad,” Freeman laughed. “He has been throwing batting practice to me every day since I was a kid. So this is a moment, this is my dad’s moment.

Giancarlo Stanton hit a two-run homer for New York in this storied, star-studded matchup between two of baseball’s most storied and successful franchises — the third straight World Series opener to go into extra innings.

“Can’t sit here and mope. Can’t sit here and complain. You can’t, can’t, Vida,” said Yankees slugger Aaron Judge. “It’s time to get to work. We lost this game. Learn from it. Let’s see where we can improve and go there and win the next one.

In the top of the 10th, Anthony Volpe grounded into a fielder’s choice to shortstop, giving New York a 3-2 lead after Josh Chisholm Jr. stole two bases in the third.

The speedy Chisholm singled to pitcher Blake Treanen and advanced to second. Following an intentional walk to Anthony Rizzo, Chisholm swiped third base uncontested as Treinen played slow and Max Muncy played deep at third.

Tommy Edman Volpe made a diving stop to his left on the field, but couldn’t get it out of his glove at first. Chisholm flew home with the go-ahead run, and he threw to second to get Rizzo out.

But the Dodgers weren’t done.

Gavin Lucks grounded out to pitcher Jake Cousins ​​with one out in the top of the 10th and moved to second on Edmond’s infield single. Oswaldo Cabrera, instead of the defense, dropped the ball with his glove, but it leaked into the outfield.

It produced star slugger Shohei Ohtani, a left-handed hitter. Yankees manager Aaron Boone went back to his bullpen for Cortez, a lefty starter who hadn’t pitched since Sept. 18 with an elbow injury.

Cortez was added to the World Series roster Friday after missing the AL playoffs.

“I ran into the (batting) cage and I told the guys in the cage, this game should have been the first baseball game from a pay-per-view perspective,” Dodgers center fielder Kike Hernandez said.

Left fielder Alex Verdugo made a running catch on foul territory to relieve Ohtani on Cortez’s first pitch. Verduco’s momentum sent him crashing into the low barrier, advancing both runners a base, as the rule made it a dead ball when Verduco wound up in the stands.

With first base open, New York intentionally used Mookie Betts to load the bases and set up a lefty-on-lefty matchup of Cortez against Freeman.

“I was the heater at the right time,” Freeman said.

His run into the right-field pavilion sent Dodgers fans into a frenzy. It was the third walk-off homer in World Series history for a team from behind, following Gibson’s shot and Joe Carter’s run in the 1993 World Series-winning Toronto Blue Jays against Philadelphia.

Nelson Cruz hit the only game-ending grand slam in postseason history for Texas in the 2011 American League Championship Series against Detroit.

“That’s the thing, you’re 5 years old right there in the backyard,” Freeman said. “It’s a dream come true, but it’s only one. We have three more.

This will be the 12th time the Yankees and Dodgers have met in the World Series, the most frequent matchup in the major league annals, but their previous October clash was 43 years ago.

While the Dodgers were looking for their eighth title and second in five years, the Yankees in 2009 at No. They are in the Fall Classic for the first time since winning 27.

Judge (58) and Ohtani (54) combined for the first streak with 50 home run hitters, as 2023 AL Cy Young Award winners Gerrit Cole and Jack Flaherty battled through four scoreless innings. Judge struck out swinging in his first three at-bats, scoring a run on a Brewster Craterroll with two outs in the seventh.

Ohtani was 0 for 3 before ripping a double off the right-field wall in the eighth. He advanced to third on the play when second baseman Kleiber Torres mishandled Juan Soto’s throw, which proved costly when Ohtani scored on Betts’ sacrifice fly that tied the game at 2.

With two outs in the ninth, Torres sent a long drive to left center. A fan wearing a Dodgers jersey went over the wall and caught the ball. The umpires overruled fan interference and gave Torres a double, a call upheld on video replay. Immediately the fan left the place.

Soto was intentionally walked before Judge struck out against Drennan to end the inning.

Hernandez took a 1-0 lead in the top of the fifth when Hernandez singled past Soto in right field and scored on Will Smith’s sacrifice fly.

The Yankees responded in the top of the sixth. Soto took the lead before Judge struck out swinging for the third time. Stanton followed with a 412-foot shot that left Flaherty for his 17th career postseason homer. Stanton grew up in the nearby San Fernando Valley.

Stanton, the ALCS MVP, is hooked on a slightly drooping knee-bend at the bottom of the strike zone. His sixth homer in 11 games this postseason came at 116.6 mph off his bat.

After winning last weekend in Cleveland, Stanton said, “It’s not the trophy I want. I want the next one.”

The Yankees then loaded the bases. Chisholm singled to Anthony Banda and advanced to second. After Rizzo struck out, Volpe was intentionally walked. Austin Wells reached on an infield single, before Verdugo struck out swinging at his former teammate, Edman smothered it with a dive to save a run.

Fernando Valenzuela, the 1981 NL Cy Young Award winner who died earlier this week at age 63, was honored with a moment of silence.