Yankees avert World Series sweep, forces Game 5 vs Dodgers

You cannot complete the comeback from 3-0 down if you do not win your first game.

Well, the New York Yankees have lived to fight another day, taking Game 4 of the World Series with an 11-4 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Freddie Freeman, of course, got it all started with a two-run homer in the first, but the Yanks cut the deficit in half after Alex Verdugo drove in a run on a fielder’s choice. But in the next inning, Anthony Volpe delivered a big hit with a grand slam that gave the Yankees a 5-2 lead, their first since Game 1.

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New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (11) reacts after hitting a grand slam against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the third inning during Game Four of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. (Robert Deutsch-Imagn Photos)

Los Angeles tacked on two more in the fifth thanks to a small ball, and the Yankees squandered a golden opportunity after getting their first two guys on base, but not scoring, in the bottom of the frame. Austin Wells made up for it though, hitting a long solo homer in the sixth.

The Dodgers got the tying run at the plate in the seventh, but Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freeman were all retired, and in the eighth the Yanks got plenty of insurance.

Volpe scored on a play at the plate off the bat of Verdugo, and then Gleyber Torres hit a three-run homer, his first of October, to make it a 10-4 game. Even Aaron Judge delivered an RBI single for his first run in the World Series to cap a five-run eighth inning. The Yankees had scored just seven runs in the first three games combined.

Luis Gil lasted four innings, but five Yankee relievers combined for five scoreless innings, allowing just one hit, one walk and seven strikeouts.

New York Yankees shortstop Anthony Volpe (11) hits a grand slam against the Los Angeles Dodgers in the third inning during Game Four of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. (Robert Deutsch-Imagn Photos)

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Of course, the Yankees are trying to become the second team in MLB history to complete the comeback from 3-0 down, accomplished only by the 2004 Boston Red Sox against the Yankees in that year’s ALCS — perhaps Volpe, a New Jersey native who was at the Yankees’ World Series parade in 2009, may be this year’s version of Dave Roberts, who manages the Dodgers and kick-started that comeback 20 years ago.

Game 5 is back in the Bronx, and the Yankees have some momentum – they’ll have reigning Cy Young Award winner Gerrit Cole on the mound, while the Dodgers return to service with Jack Flaherty.

Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman Freddie Freeman (5) hits an RBI fielder’s choice during the fifth inning against the New York Yankees in Game Four of the 2024 MLB World Series at Yankee Stadium. (Brad Penner-Imagn Photos)

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With a win, it would be the first time a Fall Classic would be pushed to a Game 6 after a team took a 3-0 lead — that contest would be Friday night back in Los Angeles.

Safe to say, the pressure is on.

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