For so many years, this was the premiere World Series rivalry. A battle that exploded from one just between cities to one between coasts.
And 43 years later, at long last, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers are the last teams standing in October. Finally, the navy pinstripes and Dodger Blue square off in the World Series once again.
MLB couldn’t have scripted it better. The top teams from both the American and National Leagues made it all the way to the Fall Classic. No more wringing hands about TV ratings with small market teams, this one will break records.
The Yankees and Dodgers have seven games to win the crown. Who have we got and why? Buckle up for the deep dive.
2024 season: The regular season is meaningless in the World Series, even with all teams now playing each other. Even so, we can still look to the Yankees and Dodgers’ June weekend series at Yankee Stadium, and get a pretty good idea of what to expect this time. What’s more, Juan Soto will actually be in the lineup after missing the season series with a sore hand.
The Dodgers won two out of the three, and each game was something you see in an ideal World Series. On Friday, Teoscar Hernandez’s two-run homer broke a scoreless tie in the 11th inning. Yoshinobu Yamamoto’s seven shutout innings suddenly seemed like a side dish.
Saturday belonged to the Dodgers again. Nestor Cortes didn’t have his best stuff and Hernandez added two more home runs, including a grand slam. The Yankees finally broke through on Sunday to win 6-4, overcoming yet another Hernandez home run and 12 strikeouts from Tyler Glasnow.
Extra innings drama, a blowout, and a close game. Add a ridiculous high-scoring game, and you get everything we’ll see in this World Series.
And, again, Juan Soto is playing this time.
Probable pitching matchups
- GAME 1: Gerrit Cole (1-0, 3.31 ERA) vs. Jack Flaherty (1-2, 7.02 )
- GAME 2: Carlos Rodon (1-1, 4.40 ERA) vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1-0, 5.11)
- GAME 3: Clarke Schmidt (0-0, 3.86 ERA) vs. TBD
- GAME 4: TBD
- GAME 5: TBD (If necessary)
- GAME 6: TBD (If necessary)
- GAME 7: TBD (If necessary)
Who’s Hot? Shohei Ohtani is the man of the hour and teammate Mookie Betts isn’t far behind. Betts shook off batting .222 in the NLDS to bat .346 with a pair of homers in the NLCS, and Ohtani is batting .286 with three homers and 10 RBI in his first postseason. Of course, what’s Dodgers playoff baseball without Max Muncy, who posted an incredible .640 OBP in the NLCS! Oh, and he also hit .333 with two home runs.
On the New York side, it’s all about the top of the lineup. Gleyber Torres hit .364 in the ALCS and has become a silent assassin in the leadoff spot. Soto is exactly who the Yankees hoped he would be, batting .333 with five homers in the playoffs. Remember, his three-run shot in extra innings clinched the pennant for the Yankees in Cleveland.
And don’t forget playoff Giancarlo Stanton. He has five home runs with 11 RBI already. Four of them were in the ALCS, and the Yankees hope he has more planned for the biggest stage.
Oh, and who had Anthony Rizzo batting .429 in the playoffs after missing the ALDS? Or the streaky Anthony Volpe batting .310?
Throw in two near-untouchable bullpens, and we’ve got ourselves a series.
Who’s Not? Aaron Judge finally broke through with two home runs in the ALCS, including the game-tying shot in Game 3, but he’s still batting a paltry .161 in October. New York needs a much better performance from their captain if they’re to keep up with LA’s deep lineup. It’d also be nice to see Jazz Chisholm Jr. shorten his swing an inch and not immediately sell out for power.
But lucky for the Yankees, their main adversary is also down. Teoscar Hernandez was 2 for 22 vs. the Mets after hitting .333 with two home runs the previous round. No doubt the Yankees have analyzed film of the NLCS and are planning as needed.
Crazier yet, Freddie Freeman is playing on a bum ankle and has yet to hit a home run in the postseason.
Clubhouse Notes
- The lack of pitching matchups make this World Series hard to predict, and could wind up working against the Dodgers. There is no surefire ace in their rotation, and manager Dave Roberts is already planning a bullpen game. But how effectively can he do that if the Yankees make his starters work long and hard early?
- The Yankees need their big power bats this Series, and the numbers imply a breakout could be nigh. Juan Soto is only a .229 career hitter with seven home runs against the Dodgers, but he’s hit .286 with five of them at Dodger Stadium. Giancarlo Stanton has also done well versus LA, hitting .275 with 14 home runs; and yet has hit .309 with ten of them at Dodger Stadium. Don’t sleep on Judge either, he’s a .389 lifetime hitter against the Dodgers and bats a clean .300 at Dodger Stadium, plus four of eight career homers.
- Oppositely, Ohtani has notably not performed all that well against the Bronx Bombers. He has nine home runs, but only bats .209. and a worse .136 at Yankee Stadium. Even Betts has only hit .246 in the Bronx, and most of the Dodgers’ key bats like Freeman (.163 lifetime batting average vs. Yankees) and Muncy (.233) haven’t fared well with New York on the mound.
Odds of winning the World Series
FanGraphs: Yankees 47.7%, Dodgers 52.3%
Prediction: So much baseball mystique, so many moving parts. This marks the 12th time the Yankees and Dodgers have played each other in the World Series. Two teams so evenly matched up and down the stat sheet. This truly will be a case not of how, but how many in terms of who wins the World Series.
The Yankees can work the count long and early, forcing the Dodgers to rely too much on their bullpen. The Dodgers, at this stage, can probably score two runs in the first inning in their sleep.
For that reason—in a World Series guaranteed to end soaked in blood, sweat, and tears—advantage Dodgers. The Yankees have the power, but no true spark plug in the lower half of the lineup. That could prove a problem if Judge continues to struggle.
Los Angeles, on the other hand, has super-utility player Kiké Hernandez and his 15 career playoff home runs. They have rookie outfielder Andy Pages. Even Chris Taylor has nine home runs in the postseason!
In the end, it will come down to that neither the Yankees nor Dodgers chases pitches out of the zone. They were the two most disciplined lineups in baseball and that will be on full display soon. Given that, despite one hell of an effort, New York’s arms will issue just enough poorly timed walks to keep extending the Series, all the way to the bitter end. Dodgers in 7
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