“Couldn’t ask for a greater begin in these three video games,” Freeman mentioned. “However we have now yet another to go.”
Offensively, Freeman has been the largest driving power behind the Dodgers’ commanding 3-0 lead within the Collection. He grew to become solely the third participant in World Collection historical past to homer in every of the primary three video games of the Collection — becoming a member of Hank Bauer of the Yankees in 1958 and Barry Bonds of the Giants in 2002.
Courting again to his time in Atlanta, Freeman has now gone deep in 5 straight World Collection video games, tying George Springer, who did it with the Astros, for the all-time report. (No participant has homered in each recreation of a World Collection, and solely Springer has performed so in 4 straight in the identical Fall Traditional.)
Freeman is now hitting .333 with three homers, seven RBIs and a 1.635 OPS within the World Collection. He’s doing so whereas enjoying on a sprained proper ankle he sustained close to the top of the common season. By way of the NLDS and NLCS, Freeman was out and in of the lineup, clearly hobbled by the damage.
“We went to Freddie a number of occasions and mentioned, ‘We bought you,’ throughout these final two collection,” mentioned third baseman Max Muncy. “That is Freddie saying, ‘I bought you,’ this time. It’s been enjoyable.”
Freeman did foul a ball off that ankle on Monday night time, although not fairly in the identical space. He mentioned he has a bruise and would obtain additional remedy, however known as it “OK.” He completed the night time 1-for-3 with a stroll.
“I assume I’m seeing the ball very effectively,” Freeman mentioned. “Clearly not lacking errors, hopefully we are able to maintain it going. We’ve got yet another.”
The Dodgers are on the precipice of a World Collection title thanks largely to Freeman. On Monday, two batters after Shohei Ohtani’s leadoff stroll, Yankees right-hander Clarke Schmidt left a belt-high cutter over the inside third, and Freeman turned on it, sending it a Statcast-projected 355 ft into the right-field seats.
“Clearly, everyone knows how nice of a participant Freddie Freeman is,” mentioned Yankees supervisor Aaron Boone. “He is getting off swings you are usually used to seeing Freddie get off, the place possibly that wasn’t taking place within the earlier rounds with the damage.”
It’s been fairly a World Collection for Freeman, who in Sport 1 grew to become the primary participant in Fall Traditional historical past to hit a walk-off grand slam. That he did so whereas enjoying on a sprained proper ankle known as again pictures of Kirk Gibson’s walk-off residence run for the Dodgers in Sport 1 of the 1988 World Collection. (Solely Freeman, Gibson and Toronto’s Joe Carter have ever hit a walk-off residence run with their crew trailing within the recreation on the time.)
That was, fairly famously, Gibson’s solely at-bat of the collection as he handled accidents. Freeman, however, may simply be headed for a World Collection MVP, dangerous ankle and all.
“For a man like Freddie, who doesn’t actually need something extra to cement his legacy,” Muncy mentioned, “this has been a fairly particular run.”