Much was made of Freddie Freeman’s ailing right ankle that limited him in the NLDS and NLCS.
But in the World Series it didn’t really matter. Freeman spent most of his time trotting around the bases offensively.
The Los Angeles slugger was named World Series MVP on Wednesday night after the Dodgers earned a 4-1 victory over the New York Yankees for the franchise’s eighth World Series championship.
When it was over, the MVP call was simple. Freeman earned the hardware thanks to a historic home run rip that set multiple World Series records. It was a performance for the baseball era that should highlight a likely Hall of Fame career for the eight-time All-Star slugger.
Freeman set the tone for the series with his electric Game 1 grand slam that secured a come-from-behind victory in overtime and sent Dodger Stadium into a frenzy. The blast was undoubtedly the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history and secured a 6-3 win for the Dodgers.
In Game 2, Freeman delivered another home run. This time it was a solo shot that extended the Dodgers’ lead to 4-1 before Los Angeles cruised to a 4-2 victory.
In Game 3, the series shifted from Los Angeles to New York. A Bronx crowd hungry for a win and hyped by a first pitch from Yankees icon Derek Jeter was ready to give the Dodgers hell.
Then, 15 pitches into the game, Freeman did this:
Freeman’s two-run explosion scored Shohei Ohtani and sucked the air out of Yankee Stadium. It was the fifth consecutive World Series game in which Freeman hit a home run, dating back to his World Series championship with the Atlanta Braves in 2021. That tied Freeman with George Springer (Astros, 2017-19) for the longest streak in history. History of the World Series. The home run provided the first strike en route to the Dodgers’ 4-2 Game 3 victory.
In Game 4, Freeman did it again. He silenced the crowd at Yankee Stadium again with a home run in the first inning, giving the Dodgers another early 2-0 lead.
This time the lead did not last. The Yankees rallied from 11–4 down to prevent a sweep and force Game 5. But Freeman’s home run did make history. With his sixth straight World Series game with a home run, Freeman moved past Springer for sole possession of the longest streak in World Series history, becoming the first player to hit a home run in the first four games of a single World Series. .
Although he didn’t hit a home run on Wednesday, Freeman had a two-RBI single in the fifth inning that helped pull the Dodgers out of a 5-0 hole and ultimately push them to a 7-6 win. It marked the greatest comeback in a World Series clinching game in history.
In all, Freeman had six hits, a series record 12 RBI and four home runs in the World Series. The 35-year-old, who just completed his third season with the franchise, had 153 hits, 89 RBI and 22 home runs while posting a .282 batting average in the regular season and capturing his fourth straight All-Star title.