There will be a Game 5 in the 2024 World Series, and it was fueled by Anthony Volpe’s bat.
The New York Yankees shortstop found redemption and old form in the third inning of a must-win Game 4. He hit a go-ahead grand slam to help his team avoid a sweep with an 11-4 victory on Tuesday. Game 5 is scheduled for Wednesday at 8:08 PM ET.
The Dodgers took the lead early in Game 4 on another home run by Freddie Freeman, his record sixth straight game with a homer in the Fall Classic. It was how the Dodgers started their victories in Games 2 and 3, and then the Yankees didn’t help themselves with some misplays.
One of those errors was by Volpe, who failed to score from second on a double by Austin Wells. It didn’t cost the Yankees much in the end – Volpe later scored from third base on a grounder – but the score was still big when he went to the plate with the bases loaded against Dodgers reliever Daniel Hudson.
Then Volpe hit the first green-lit grand slam in a World Series elimination game. It was his first home run in any game since September 21 and only his second since August 3.
That was the shot the Yankees needed, with their pitching staff once again limiting a potent Dodgers offense from there. Starting pitcher Luis Gil lasted only four innings, but the New York bullpen threw five scoreless innings with seven strikeouts and one hit allowed.
A five-run rally in the eighth inning, highlighted by a three-run homer by Gleyber Torres, turned a nail-biter into a joke.
The Yankees are still down 3-1 and face long odds in this World Series, but they did what they had to do on Tuesday. Of the 24 teams to fall behind 3-0 in a World Series, 21 lost Game 4, so the Yankees can at least say they showed more fight than their predecessors. They are the first to win such a Game 4 since 1970.
Now the series moves to a winnable match between Gerrit Cole and Jack Flaherty on Wednesday. One more win there, and the Yankees would become the first team in World Series history to force a Game 6 after trailing 3-0.
And if the series returns to Los Angeles, who knows what could happen?
Here’s how it all went down on Yahoo Sports:
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And hindsight is 20/20, but the Dodgers’ biggest regret in this game is probably that they stuck with Daniel Hudson after he loaded the bases in the third inning. Sticking with a struggling reliever has paid off before in this series, most notably by not pulling Blake Treinen when he was in hot water in the ninth inning of Game 2, but sticking with what might be your fourth-best reliever in that place is questionable and, ultimately, regrettable.
The good news is that Hudson was the only significant bullpen arm the Dodgers used in Game 4. The rest of their upper arms are being rested in support of Jack Flaherty, who has been the Dodgers’ steadiest pitcher since the team acquired him in the trade . term.
Let’s note something about how statistics work: No team has ever come back from a 3-0 deficit in the World Series, but teams have come back from a 3-1 deficit in the World Series, and that’s what matters now go. Unprecedented doesn’t mean impossible, and the Yankees are already past that.
Granted, the Yankees now have to win three straight games with starting pitchers they lost the first time around, but the downside is that the Dodgers’ rotation will all have to repeat some of the best starts of their season. The Yankees can make history just by sending this series back to Los Angeles, and if they do, the atmosphere will be very different.
It cannot be understated how good the Yankees bullpen has been in this series, despite Nestor Cortes Jr. Freddie Freeman’s grand slam represents the only four earned runs this unit has allowed in all series, and they were huge again in this game, with five scoreless innings behind four runs allowed by Luis Gil.
If more runs had been allowed, the Dodgers would have used their better relievers instead of riding on Landon Knack and Brent Honeywell all game.
There will be no sweep in the 2024 World Series. The Yankees beat the Dodgers in Game 4 and force a Game 5 on Wednesday, pitting Gerrit Cole against Jack Flaherty.
The Bleacher Creatures just started singing, “We want Soto!”
Juan Soto turned and waved at them. He’s loved here, and for good reason.
Giancarlo Stanton pops out to gracefully end the inning, in which Honeywell threw 50 pitches. Tim Mayza comes in to get the last three outs of what quickly turned into a rout.
Yankees 11, Dodgers 4
Aaron Judge scores Soto with a single to left, and it was perhaps his best hit ball of the series. It’s been a rough time, but the Yankees will welcome any opportunity for their MVP to get hot.
Juan Soto hits a double, and the Dodgers simply let Honeywell carry it instead of using other relievers.
Yankees 10, Dodgers 4
Gleyber Torres breaks this thing open with a three-run homer in the bottom of the eighth. We’ll play a Game 5 at Yankee Stadium on Wednesday.
Yankees 7, Dodgers 4
With runners on second and third base, Alex Verdugo works an 11-pitch at bat against Brent Honeywell and hits a grounder to second base. Anthony Volpe beats the home throw and Yankee Stadium can breathe a little easier.
Brent Honeywell comes in for the eighth and, if necessary, ninth inning for the Dodgers.
Luke Weaver retired all four batters in a row, striking out three. (21 places)
Will he be back for the 9th? Aaron Boone doubted himself for not bringing Weaver back in Game 1.
Luke Weaver strikes out Teoscar Hernández and Max Muncy to end the top of the eighth, and the Yankees are three outs away from forcing a Game 5.
Luke Weaver stays in and gets a huge out from Freddie Freeman to open the inning. The Yankees can avoid the Dodgers’ top ranking again if they retire five of the next six batters.
Knack gets three consecutive flyouts and is at 56 pitches after four innings of work. Very little reason for the Dodgers to remove him if they do nothing in the top of the eighth.
It’s still Landon Knack for the Dodgers. It’s his fourth inning and he will start against Aaron Judge.
Weaver strikes out Betts swinging, leaving only six outs.
And Luke Weaver faces Mookie Betts with a man on second and two outs.
Wells provides key insurance
Austin Wells has been yo-yoing in and out of the lineup lately as manager Aaron Boone weighs Wells’ offensive struggles against Jose Trevino’s defensive impact, but the reality is that Wells’ offensive ceiling is significantly higher even if he goes cold.
Swings like Wells’ to send a Landon Knack heater to the second deck right are a nice reminder of that. That could be a huge insurance run for the Yankees, who now have a two-run cushion with nine outs remaining to avoid elimination.
