LOS ANGELES – It was a sprained ankle, not a sprained knee or hamstring. It was 10 innings of cramping, not a surprise pinch-hit appearance off the bench. It was the raising of the bat to the sky and the thunder of his joy around the bases, not the fist pump.
But 36 years after pitcher Kirk Gibson did the impossible in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series, Freddie Freeman recorded the latest World Series-opening blast for the Dodgers, launching the walk-off grand slam in Fall history. . The classic also sent 52,394 fans into a frenzy.
“I love the history of this game,” said Freeman. “To be a part of it, it’s special. I’ve been playing this game for a long time, and to appear in those times, you dream of those times, even if you’re 35 years old and you’ve been in the league for 15 years. You want to be a part of those years.”
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Freeman joined Gibson and Joe Carter (1993) as the only players to have hit a home run in the World Series with their team trailing.
As he wandered the bases, giving the Dodgers a 6-3 Game 1 comeback victory against the Yankees, Freeman said he felt like he was floating. Teammate Max Muncy, who hit a home run in Game 3 of the 2018 World Series, is one of the few who understands the feeling.
“You’re black now,” Muncy said. “On a personal note, you don’t remember much of it. I’ll miss this more than I remember mine.”
With the Dodgers trailing by a run, down to the bottom of the 10th, the Yankees intentionally walked Mookie Betts to load the bases and set up a lefty-lefty matchup.
On the mound was Nestor Cortes, who was added to the playoff roster after missing the Yankees’ first playoff series with an elbow injury. At the plate was Freeman, whose right ankle sprain and bone injury produced a limited version of the eight-time All-Star.
“You go through the first Hall of Fame,” Dodgers outfielder Gavin Lux said, “to get to another first Hall of Fame.”
Freeman was unable to pitch in two of the Dodgers’ final three games of the National League Championship Series and held a no-hitter in his team’s first postseason series. But the break before the World Series gave Freeman some much-needed relief.
Throughout the playoffs, each day has produced uncertainty about Freeman’s availability. Sometimes, like the team’s morning before Game 4 of the NLDS and the day before Game 6 of the NLCS, the Dodgers called early to sit Freeman at will. Usually, though, manager Dave Roberts didn’t know until just before pitching if he could keep Freeman’s name on the roster.
He started the playoffs 6-for-17 — all singles — before going 1-for-15. In those eight games, he still had one run scored. In Game 1 of the NLCS, he skipped the plate and needed the Bethes to catch him to stop his momentum. The more Freeman played, and the longer the streak, the more limited his ankle became. The issue was starting to come out of his mouth.
“At that time, a week or so ago, I could go four, five innings before I had trouble walking,” Freeman said. “In Game 5, it started happening right after my first at-bat. It kept making it difficult for me to finish the game.”
The Dodgers called him up for Game 6 of the NLCS with this situation in mind. The rest week meant six days for Freeman to not run, which is usually what causes his sprained ankle. He was still receiving treatment for 3-4 hours a day in the field. Time off helped. Three days ago, Freeman knew he was “100 percent going”. There was no question, in his mind, he would be in the first team.
“They don’t act like that guy anymore,” said Lux. “He’s got a little heart, he’s old school, he wants to be out there. If there are kids looking for an idol, this is the guy you want to try to be like him right there.”
Meanwhile, watching his swing, his teammates saw a different version of their first All-Star player.
“I mean you know,” said Kiké Hernández. “You know your colleagues. You know their curves. You know their habits. You took a BP a few days ago and it looked like it did a few days ago.”
Hernández was not alone. Nurse Daniel Hudson was fielding balls in left field during batting practice with Chris Taylor when he saw Freeman peppering a drive over shortstop and third base. Freeman was starting to look like him again.
“CT looks at me and goes, ‘I think Freddie’s about to go,'” Hudson recalled. “I was like, ‘Yeah, that’s Freddie swings right there.’
That’s when Freeman thought he had hit the ground running in his career by beating coach Robert Van Scoyoc. It wasn’t really any aspects of strength or power that he was showing.
“It’s not about lifting or doing any of that,” Freeman said. “If my swing is in the right place and you’re hitting line drives and your swing is in a good place, that’s when you create backspin. I can’t create spin. If I do, I’ll connect up and connect. everything. If your swing is good and direct it to the ball, that’s how you build backspin.”
“He’s coming into power,” added Van Scoyoc. “When he has time, he catches it.”
On the first pitch from Cortes, he caught a 92.5 mph fastball on the inside of the plate and shook Dodger Stadium.
“Those are the situations you dream about, two outs, bases loaded in a World Series game,” Freeman said. “For it to happen and we win at home and go 1-0 up, that’s as good as it gets.”
After arguing with his teammates, Freeman ran behind home plate to celebrate the moment with his father, the man who had been throwing hits his whole life.
“My swing is because of him,” Freeman said. “My closeness is because of him. I am what I am because of him.”
Three months ago, his father was there to throw him, again, during the most stressful time in Freeman’s life. The tumultuous second half of Freeman’s season began in late July, when his 3-year-old son Max suddenly fell ill. The deterioration was rapid. On July 22, Max could no longer walk. The Freeman family eventually learned that Max suffered from Guillain-Barre syndrome, a rare autoimmune condition. Freeman took 10 days off the team to be with his son, who is now on the road to recovery and walking again.
Two days before returning to the Dodgers, the Southern California native went to his former high school, El Modena, and hit the field with his father. In his first game back at Dodger Stadium on August 5, he received a standing ovation not only from the 48,178 fans but also from the Phillies dugout.
“When I went for a week and a half with my family, that first day I came back, that was special because my family made me feel love and support,” said Freeman. “I tried to take it back that night and I thank them for all this, but I think they appreciate this after three months.”
The chaos off the field hit a snag when he broke his finger in August. He decided to play through the pain. He bounced back from a slow start in September with a .316 average over his final 10 games of the regular season, until spraining his ankle in the Dodgers’ playoff game against the Padres on September 26 while trying to avoid a tag. from Luis Arráez. It swelled up like a grapefruit, leaving him in the boot as the Dodgers celebrated. He was told he was injured for 4-6 weeks.
Ten days later, he was in the lineup for Game 1 of the NLDS, ankles bandaged like a ballplayer.
“He did something heroic,” Hernández said.
That night, he not only played but stole a base, as his manager and teammates held their breath. Freeman’s desire to play became a catalyst within the clubhouse of a team that has struggled to advance beyond first-round exits the past two seasons.
“A lot of us are in shock,” Lux said, “so you see this guy can’t walk for a couple of weeks going out and stealing bases, running hard down the line, limping all over the place, it makes you want to go out there and play hard.”
For many years, the World Series featured Taco Bell’s “Steal A Base, Steal a Taco” promotion.
Before Game 1, Freeman threatened his teammates that he was going to do it.
“And we all told him that if he steals a base, we’re going to go out on the field and throw him out ourselves,” said Muncy. “Sure, you get three.”
Freeman started the day with a three-bagger against Cole. He finished it by throwing 90 meters in the age walking competition.
“It might be the biggest baseball moment I’ve ever seen,” Roberts said.
“For him to have that moment, with everything he’s been through,” Lux said, “you couldn’t be happier for the boy.”
As soon as the grand slam left Freeman’s bat, Hudson looked up from the bullpen to the speed banner. There were 109 flashes. He knew the game was over.
It didn’t take long for Hudson to think about firing Gibson.
“I was probably one of two people here who were alive when it happened,” the 37-year-old assistant joked. “Seeing it on TV, side-by-side on social media as soon as it happened. It was a really special moment for all the fans here, for everyone, especially Freddie. I know that meant a lot to him.”
At least for a few hours.
On Friday, Freeman arrived at the stadium at 10:30 a.m. to begin treatment.
On Saturday, he will do it again. Game 2 awaits.
“This trophy is what makes you go forward every day,” said Freeman. “When you go into spring training in February, your eyes are on that, doing everything you can. That’s what I deserve.”
Rowan Kavner is an MLB writer for FOX Sports. He previously covered the LA Dodgers, LA Clippers and Dallas Cowboys. An LSU grad, Rowan was born in California, raised in Texas, and returned to the West Coast in 2014. Follow him on Twitter at @RowanKavner.
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