The World Series Champs: The LA Dodgers
By Brooke Brottman
All season long, there was a doubt that baseball was going to be played. It was evident as the death toll from the coronavirus in the United States exceeded 200,000 that baseball would not make it to the playoffs. On Tuesday, at the conclusion of a bizarre season played among a global health crisis, the Los Angeles Dodgers finally made their mark. Their 3-1 victory over the Tampa Bay Rays in Game 6 of the 2020 World Series won them their first World Series since 1988.
Mookie Betts wins a World Series in his first year in Los Angeles. (UAE Times)
After the Rays manager, Kevin Cash turned to Nick Anderson with one on, one out, and the top of the order due up in the sixth inning, the Dodgers' offense finally came alive. Mookie Betts doubled, Austin Barnes scored on a wild pitch, and Betts slid home safely on a grounder to the right side. Betts, who has exceeded offseason expectations, tacked on an important insurance run with a solo homer in the eighth, and Dodgers closer Julio Urias helped his team cruise past the finish line. Justin Turner, a lifelong Dodgers fan is a champion. Clayton Kershaw, ridiculed for his postseason shortcomings, is a champion. Kenley Jansen, stripped of his title as the team's closer, is a champion. The Dodgers, who have owned the National League West for eight straight years, are finally champions once again.
When Major League Baseball resumed in July, the Dodgers proved to be one of the greatest teams in baseball history. They won 43 of their 60 games and finished with the fourth-highest per-game run differential in the regular season. Cody Bellinger, Max Muncy, and Joc Pederson struggled through a shortened, fanless season, but the Dodgers' offense still led the majors in runs. Betts signed a record extension before Opening Day and played like an MVP since then.
The Dodgers managed to get through the first two rounds of the postseason with ease, but it wasn't until they faced the Atlanta Braves in the National League Championship Series that they felt challenged. The Dodgers fell behind 3-1 in the series and were one game away from yet another disappointing season. However, that was not the case as the Dodgers won three consecutive games to help give them another chance at the World Series Title. In the World Series, Dodgers fans traveled in groups, making a neutral-site stadium feel like a home venue. The Dodgers' offense, which was led by Seager, Turner, and Muncy set new benchmarks for home runs and two-out production. Kershaw won two games in the same postseason series for the first time in his career. Walker Buehler proved himself, once again, as a solid ace.
The Dodgers faced a disappointing walk-off loss in Game 4, committing a comedy of errors to let two runs score in the bottom of the ninth inning, but they came right back to win Game 5. In Game 6, the Dodgers did what they do best, which is to keep the game close, and wait out a dominant starting pitcher and pull away late.
Chances are Game 6 will be remembered not so much for what the Dodgers did, but what the Rays did. Specifically, manager Kevin Cash pulled his ace, Blake Snell, in the sixth inning even though he was cruising all night. After Snell left the game, Los Angeles immediately jumped on reliever Nick Anderson and took the lead. Look at it this way, would Mookie Betts, Corey Seager, and Justin Turner rather face Blake Snell or Nick Anderson? Those three went 0 for 6 with six strikeouts against Snell in Game 6. Anderson's postseason struggles continued in Game 6. Anderson came in, and six pitches later Tampa's 1-0 lead was a 2-1 deficit. Betts doubled, Anderson gave the Dodgers a run on a wild pitch, then Betts scored on Seager's grounder to first. Six pitches are all it took for the move from Snell to Anderson to backfire. With that, Anderson became the first pitcher in baseball history to allow a run in seven consecutive postseason appearances.
Clayton Kershaw was the last one to reach the infield. After the final out was recorded, and the Los Angeles Dodgers had finally secured the World Series championship, Kershaw lifted both arms into the air and smiled with joy into the sky before celebrating with his teammates. The greatest pitcher of this era had finally attained the ultimate prize. Kershaw, who was relentlessly ridiculed for falling below worldly expectations in the postseason, finally has his ring.
With the Los Angeles Lakers defeating the Miami Heat in the NBA Finals and the Los Angeles Dodgers defeating the Tampa Bay Rays in the World Series on Tuesday night, the year 2020 joins an elite list.
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