LOS ANGELES — Every day of the past month has been a grind for Freddie Freeman. He has gone through daily treatment and hours of rehab before games, with only the hope that he can suit up after spraining his right ankle during the last week of the season. Many days this postseason, even the act of walking was difficult for the former MVP.
But in search of his second World Series and first with the Dodgers, there was nothing that was going to keep him out of the lineup for Friday’s Game 1. And then, with the Dodgers in danger of going down 1-0 to the Yankees in the World Series, on a night when opportunities slipped through their hands, the 10th inning offered a more shot at redemption.
“I think you see the end result,” Freeman said after his team’s 6-3 victory. “I’m looking at myself on the TV. This trophy is what makes you go through the grind every day. …. That’s what’s worth it for me.”
With the bases loaded and two outs in the 10th, the stage was set for Freeman, who came into this World Series struggling to find his swing, a challenge as he dealt with constant swelling in the ankle. After a flyout by Shohei Ohtani and an intentional walk to Mookie Betts, Freeman was set to face the Yankees’ crafty left-hander Nestor Cortes with his team down one run.
The Dodgers’ first baseman hasn’t had many moments this October when he could come through for his team. But it only takes one chance to change that.
One swing. One pitch. One moment. As soon as they heard the crack of the bat, everyone in a packed Dodger Stadium knew what had happened.
Freeman demolished the first pitch he saw from Cortes, launching a 92.5 mph fastball 409 feet into right field and sending his team to victory. Lifting his bat to the sky, he put the Dodgers and the city of Los Angeles on his shoulders.
With that one swing, Freeman turned Game 1 of the 2024 World Series into an instant classic.
“It felt like nothing, just kind of floating,” he said after what was easily his best swing in weeks. “Those are the kind of things — when you’re 5 years old with your two older brothers, and you’re playing wiffle ball in the backyard — those are the scenarios you dream about. Two outs, bases loaded in a World Series game.
“For it to actually happen and get a home run and walk it off to give us a 1-0 lead, that’s as good as it gets right there.”
And it wasn’t just any walk-off. The World Series lends itself to something a little more dramatic. Freeman’s walk-off grand slam was the first in World Series history, closing the book on Game 1.
The moments that followed Freeman’s swing of a lifetime were pure jubilation, as his teammates poured out of the dugout, celebrating like kids on a playground. With 52,394 fans screaming and celebrating in a building that was shaking as the smooth voice of Randy Newman singing “I Love L.A.” rained down, Freeman was mobbed at the plate.
“It’s arguably one of the — might be the greatest baseball moment I’ve ever witnessed, and I’ve witnessed some great ones,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said postgame.
“You don’t see teams celebrate after a game, a walk-off like that, but I just think it was certainly warranted. Man, it was a great game before that, but the way it finished, I just couldn’t be more excited for our guys.”
Said starter Jack Flaherty, who pitched 5⅓ innings and surrendered just two runs in the contest: “I didn’t watch it go out. He hit it, and there was no doubt. … Freddie is unbelievable.”
It was an instantly iconic moment that can be rivaled only by the legendary swing of Kirk Gibson, whose walk-off home run in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series still lives as one of baseball’s greatest postseason moments. Freeman added his name to that list with his walk-off slam.
He had the swing and the limp. The only thing missing was the double fist-pump.
“I played the whole game, though,” Freeman corrected with a big smile when asked about the Gibson comp.
Freeman has actually been struggling with a power outage lately. The grand slam was his first long ball since Sept. 16. Until his triple in the first inning Friday, he hadn’t had an extra-base hit this entire postseason.
But in Game 1, Freeman looked different. Even before his 10th-inning heroics, there was a confidence that just wasn’t there before. During the NLDS and NLCS, Freeman’s routine was a daily grind focused on simply making it through the game. But going into the biggest at-bat of his career, he was looking to do damage.
That shift from the first baseman could loom large going forward, as he and the Dodgers have recaptured momentum and confidence going into Game 2 on Saturday.
“I love the history of this game. To be a part of it, it’s special,” Freeman said. “I’ve been playing this game a long time, and to come up in those moments, you dream about those moments. Even when you’re 35 and been in the league for 15 years, you want to be a part of those.
“It’s the kind of energy the crowd brought tonight. Game 1 of the World Series — everyone’s been talking about this all week. For us to get that first win, especially like that, that’s pretty good, but we’ve got three more to go.”
It was an incredible night for Freeman, the Dodgers, this postseason and the World Series, but it might’ve been even more significant on a micro level. After celebrating with his teammates at the plate, Freeman pointed behind home and began running toward the backstop.
When he got there, his father, Fred, was waiting for him. And just like father and son have done in the backyard their entire lives, they shared a moment together. This time with more than 50,000 people sharing it with them.
“That’s mostly his moment because if he didn’t throw me batting practice — if he didn’t love the game of baseball, I wouldn’t be here playing this game,” he said. “So that’s Fred Freeman’s moment right there.
“I just wanted to share that with him because he’s been there. He’s been through a lot in his life, too, and just to have a moment like that, I just wanted to be a part of that with him in that moment.”
