Dodgers' Freddie Freeman hits walk-off slam to stun Yankees in Game 1 of World Series - ESPN

LOS ANGELES — Freddie Freeman lifted his bat to the sky and watched it fly.

The Los Angeles Dodgers' hobbled first baseman, who has spent all month playing through a badly sprained right ankle, came up with the bases loaded, his team trailing by a run with two outs in the bottom of the 10th, and delivered a walk-off grand slam, electrifying a sold-out Dodger Stadium and sending his team to an improbable 6-3 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night.

It marked the third walk-off homer in the World Series in franchise history, along with those by Max Muncy (Game 3 in 2018) and Kirk Gibson (Game 1 in 1988).

The Yankees had taken the lead in the previous half-inning when Jazz Chisholm Jr., 5-for-34 through his first nine postseason games, lined a one-out single to the right side off Blake Treinen, then stole second base and easily swiped third and came around to score on a groundout.

But the Dodgers threatened once again in the bottom half, putting runners on first and second with one out and Shohei Ohtani coming to bat. The Yankees called upon lefty Nestor Cortes, who hadn't pitched since Sept. 18 because of a flexor strain, to spill out of the bullpen to face him.

Dodgers star Freddie Freeman hit the fifth walk-off homer ever in Game 1 of the World Series. The teams that won in the four previous instances went on to win the championship.

Ohtani lofted the first pitch into left-field foul territory, prompting a spectacular reaching catch by Alex Verdugo. Both runners moved up a base because Verdugo fell over the fence, allowing them to advance 90 feet. The Yankees then opted to intentionally walk Mookie Betts, loading the bases and setting up the lefty-lefty matchup with Freeman.

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