Juan Soto almost certainly made himself some money this postseason. The only question is if the Yankees are the ones who will give it to him. Soto’s free agency figures to be the second-most lucrative in MLB history after Ohtani’s $700 million deal, and it could be worth even more when accounting for inflation due to the Dodgers star’s deferrals.< https://redfakir.com/creating-an-irresistible-event-encouraging-attendance-from-your-team/ /p>
The Dodgers last won the World Series in 2020 in the shortened Covid-19 pandemic season. While they were able to celebrate on the field at the time, there was no parade in the streets of LA. Manager Dave Roberts, who has been lauded for his work guiding his team of megastars throughout this season, celebrated with a rhetorical question.
Dodgers players, decked out in goggles as is now traditional for title-winning teams, shared hugs – including the Japanese pairing of Ohtani and Yoshinobu Yamamoto – and enjoyed the moment with music blaring in the background, including unofficial LA city anthem, Kendrick Lamar’s “Not Like Us.”
“Obviously, we’re in a tough position,” Cole had said prior to the 11-4 victory at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night, “but there’s a lot of baseball left to be played and anything can happen. We’re excited to get back out there. Hey, we’re still in the World Series. Hey, we’re in the Bronx. We’ve still got a shot at this thing.”
“Obviously, we’re in a tough position,” Cole had said prior to the 11-4 victory at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday night, “but there’s a lot of baseball left to be played and anything can happen. We’re excited to get back out there. Hey, we’re still in the World Series. Hey, we’re in the Bronx. We’ve still got a shot at this thing.”
So while they didn’t finish the job Tuesday night and have their hands full with Cole, there’s no denying the Dodgers are still in the driver’s seat as they try to win the World Series for the second time in five seasons and the first time in a full season since 1988.
How will the bullpens line up after the starter?Dodgers: After using Ben Casparius and Landon Knack for the majority of Game 4, the Dodgers are now in position to use just about everyone in the bullpen on Wednesday night. Blake Treinen hasn’t pitched in a couple of days now and will be available for two innings. Outside of Daniel Hudson, who struggled in Game 4, the Dodgers should have plenty of coverage.
“I feel great, I feel great,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “It’s about the guys that you have available. They’re all rested. So we have guys that can do up/down. So where we’re at , knowing there’s an off-day , we’re in a great spot with leverage relievers.”
The Dodgers earned their eighth championship and seventh since leaving Brooklyn for Los Angeles — their first in a non-shortened season since 1988. They won a neutral-site World Series against Tampa Bay in 2020 after a 60-game regular season and couldn’t have a parade because of the coronavirus pandemic.
Important Schedule Note: The Little League Baseball® World Series games on Sunday, August 18, will start with the U.S. Bracket games scheduled for 9 a.m. and 1 p.m. at Howard J. Lamade Stadium, respectively, prior to the international games scheduled for 11 a.m. and 2 p.m. at Volunteer Stadium. This change from previous years will allow for fans to enjoy these games, and for Little League® International to welcome the players and clubs for the MLB Little League Classic and showcase one of the best days in sports on ABC and ESPN Platforms.
The Yankees are up against it now. Only 15 teams in 92 tries have won a best-of-seven postseason series in which they dropped the first two games. And so, as their Game 3 starter Clarke Schmidt takes the ball opposite the Dodgers’ Walker Buehler, they’re going to need to feed off the energy of a hungry crowd that hasn’t seen a World Series home game in the Bronx since the Yanks’ 2009 title run.
American rapper and Los Angeles native Ice Cube performed “Bow Down” and “It Was a Good Day” before Game 2. Pearle Peterson, a 19-year-old, sang the national anthem, accompanied by organist Dieter Ruehle. Game 2 featured starting pitchers Yoshinobu Yamamoto for the Dodgers and Carlos Rodón for the Yankees. Matt Kemp and Andre Ethier threw out the ceremonial first pitch.
Yamamoto left his June 15 start after only two innings and was placed on the injured list the next day with a strained rotator cuff in his right shoulder He was transferred to the 60–day injured list in July 13. Yamamoto was activated off the injured list on September 10. In 18 starts for the Dodgers in 2024, he was 7–2 with a 3.00 ERA and 105 strikeouts. He made his playoff debut on October 8, in Game 1 of the National League Division Series, giving up five runs to the Padres in three innings. In his second start of the series, on October 12, he picked up his first postseason win, striking out two and allowed just two hits in five scoreless innings, retiring the last seven batters he faced, as the Dodgers won the series. He then made one start, in Game 4, in the National League Championship Series, allowing two runs on four hits in 4+1⁄3 innings, while striking out eight batters. In Game 2 of the 2024 World Series against the New York Yankees, Yamamoto pitched 6+1⁄3 innings, allowing just one run on one hit (a solo home run by Juan Soto).
The two best teams from the National and American Leagues in 2024. The two expected MVPs. The two franchises with the most World Series history against each other. The two largest cities in the country.
For many years, a match-up between LA and NY, the two largest cities in the U.S., was not uncommon. The teams have faced off against one another in the World Series 11 times: more than any other pair of teams in the MLB. But this is the first time in 43 years they’ll be going head-to-head for the title.
The Yankees used their top bullpen arms on Tuesday to hold on to their lead, and while they’ll be available if needed on Wednesday – this is an elimination game – it’s asking a lot to expect them to shut down the Dodgers again. This is Cole’s game as long as he can take it. It’s on his shoulders. This is why he’s here.
2) Is Freddie Freeman going to homer again?If the Dodgers do end up winning this series — as is still pretty likely, considering they’re up 3-1 — Freeman is obviously going to be the MVP. His two-run shot in the first inning of Game 4 marked his sixth consecutive World Series game with a home run (going back to 2021 with Atlanta), which is of course the all-time record.
MLB.TV offers every post season game, including archived broadcasts of the playoffs. There’s no free trial, but for $29.99, you can watch the World Series games. If you’d prefer to only listen to the games, that will cost just $3.99. Either way, you will need to authenticate a subscription to a participating Pay TV provider to stream the games live.