WS The best scene has changed! Scary 36-year-old Dejavu, walk-off grand slam Freeman"This is my father's moment"

Oct 26, 2024

LA Dodgers Freddie Freeman hits a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 10th inning and then bat-flips. AP Yonhap News

Freeman pulls Nestor Cortes's fastball toward the right-center fence in the bottom of the 10th inning of extra time. AP Yonhap News

They look amazingly alike.

The Los Angeles Dodgers won a dramatic come-from-behind victory in the first 'Dream Match' in 43 years.

The Dodgers won Game 1 of the World Series at Dodger Stadium on the 26th (Korea time) thanks to Freddie Freeman's walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 10th inning.

The Dodgers took a chance with one out and runners on first and second bases with Gavin Lux's walk and Tommy Edman's infield hit in the 10th inning, trailing 2-3. Shohei Ohtani then stepped down with a foul fly to left field by the changed pitcher left-hander Nestor Cortes. It was an incredible defense in which Yankees left fielder Alex Verdugo ran to the foul area, caught a foul, and fell backwards over the fence into the stands.

The runners are on second and third bases with two outs on the base. Here, Yankees manager Aaron Boone filtered Mookie Betts into four pitches in the usual way and loaded the bases.

But I never imagined Freeman's bat would explode like that. Freeman kicked Cortes' 92.5-mile first-pitch low fastball into a grand slam that went well over the right fence.

The Dodger Stadium was already in a frenzy as soon as it was hit with a launch angle of 30 degrees and a batting speed of 109.2 miles. The ball fell 423 feet between fans in the right fence's outfield seats. It was Freeman's first home run of the postseason. Above all, he engraved the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history at Dodger Stadium.

Kirk Gibson hits a walk-off home run in the bottom of the ninth inning in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series against Oakland. AP Yonhap News

It's a scary 'Dejavu' that has no choice but to think of the 1988 World Series right now. The Dodgers won the first game of the World Series against the Oakland Athletics that year with a walk-off home run by pinch-hitter Kirk Gibson in the bottom of the ninth inning with two outs and a runner on second base, trailing 3-4. A light pull of Dennis Eckersley's famous backdoor slider of the day went over to the right-hand stands with a line drive. I'm going to get the first gameJuss eventually won the World Series with a 4-1 record.

What is strikingly similar is that both Gibson and Freeman were injured ahead of the World Series. At the time, Gibson limped around the base after hitting a walk-off home run. My left hamstring and right knee were in trouble during the postseason.

Freeman hit a ground ball at the end of this regular season and sprinted to first base, sprained his right ankle, and still has pain. The best scene in the history of the World Series has changed from Gibson's walk-off home run to Freeman's walk-off grand slam.

The next scene was also impressive. Freeman, who hit a home run, shouted at his father in the infield stand. He "I just screamed because I saw my father's face. I'm sorry, Dad. "My dad's been there since I was a kid. He threw me a batting ball every day. This moment is my father's moment,' he said.

In the best-of-seven postseason series in history, the team that won the first game won the series 125 times out of 193 times, with a 64.8% probability. In addition, the team that won Game 1 home games in the postseason series in the 2-3-2 format took the series with 68 out of 101, or 67.3%. The Dodgers' historical probability of winning the World Series is about 65%.

Otani hits a superior double in the bottom of the eighth inning and looks at the ball. EPA Yonhap News

Shohei Ohtani is an indispensable member of the Dodgers' victory. Ohtani, who remained hitless until his third at-bat, pulled a changeup in the middle of right-hander Tommy Kahnle's second pitch 87.1 miles after one out in the bottom of the eighth inning, and hit a superior double before advancing to third base thanks to an error by opposing shortstop Anthony Volpi. The ball flew at a launch angle of 19 degrees and 113.9 miles (183 kilometers) and hit right fielder Juan Soto's head and the top of the fence. It was a hit that could have been a home run if it had flown two more feet with a driving distance of 378 feet.

Betts then hit a deep sacrifice fly behind center field to bring in Ohtani, tying the game 2-2. It is safe to say that Ohtani's cheerful double stimulated the sinking Dodgers bench. Although he only had one hit in five at-bats, the double in the eighth inning was a game-changer that changed the atmosphere at the end of the game, which was heavily defeated.