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Freddie Freeman Hits Walk-Off Grand Slam In Bottom Of 10th Inning As Dodgers Take Game 1 Of The World Series

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LOS ANGELES — The Dodgers were down by one run vs. the Yankees in the bottom of the 10th inning, and with two outs, bases loaded, Freddie Freeman came up to the plate. And just like the outcome in every kid's dreams, he hit a walk-off grand slam in the World Series as the entire home crowd erupted.

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As many might remember this comes 36 years after Dodgers legend Kirk Gibson hit his iconic pinch-hit walk-off homer in Game 1 of the 1988 World Series.

One can't help but see the storybook correlation, as just like Gibson was seen limping around the bases during his game-winning moment, Freeman was also visibly battling a right ankle injury in tonight's heroic game.

In consideration of what led up to the big hit, with the score 3-2 and one out, the Yankees opted to make a pitching change, as superstar Shohei Ohtani was coming up to the plate.

To note, the Yankees wanted a lefty to face Shohei Ohtani, and they had their left-handed reliever Tim Hill warming up in the bullpen, who has a 1.59 ERA in seven postseason appearances this year.

However, fans scratched their heads as they saw manager Aaron Boone signal for Nestor Cortes to close out the game, as he is not a reliever (0 career saves) and hasn't pitched in over a month (last appearance: September 18 vs. Seattle Mariners).

Luckily, Cortes was able to get Ohtani to hit a foul-ball fly out, on account of left fielder Alex Verdugo flipping over the wall to make the catch.

Then with two outs and two runners on, the Yankees chose to intentionally walk Mookie Betts, which loaded the bases for lefty Freeman.

In view of the analytics that Boone may have overlooked, Freeman is known to be dangerous with the bases loaded vs. left-handed pitchers. In particular, in the last two years, he has been in this situation 14 different times and is 9-for-14 (,643 batting average) with four grand slams and 25 RBI's.

Needless to say, it may have been the wrong decision to walk Betts (0-for-5 vs. Cortes throughout his career). Ultimately, Freeman took his first pitch of the at-bat, a 93 MPH inside fastball, 423 feet over the right field wall, to make the final score 6-3.

The World Series rivalry between the Dodgers and Yankees dates all the way back to 1941, and since then, this is their 12th time competing for a ring. With this in mind, Freeman has added yet another legendary moment to a list of unforgettable Fall Classic memories shared when these two teams have gone head-to-head.

Notably, the only other two sports teams to meet this many times for a winner-take-all championship series is the Boston Celtics and LA Lakers, who have also faced off 12 times (Celtics 9-3 advantage).

The Yankees have won eight out of the last 11 matchups vs. the Dodgers, but with a 1-0 lead, the Boys in Blue are in good position to claim their eighth title in franchise history. That is, when looking at history, the team that wins Game 1 of the World Series has gone on to win it all 125-of-191 times (65%).

Game 2 will be played back in Los Angeles on Saturday, October 26 at 8:08 pm ET.

Related: Fans React To Outrageous Dodgers Vs. Yankees World Series Ticket Prices

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