The New York Yankees are still alive in the World Series thanks to their lesser hitters.
Anthony Volpe’s grand slam in the third inning overturned an early deficit, and the Yankees avoided being swept in the Fall Classic, shaking down the Los Angeles Dodgers’ reliever squad on Tuesday en route to an 11-4 victory that forced a fifth game.
Freddie Freeman homered for the sixth consecutive game in the World Series, hitting a two-run shot in the first inning on successive nights to anesthetize Yankee fans.
Seeking to become the first team to reverse a 3-0 deficit in the Fall Classic in history, New York took a 5-2 lead thanks to Alex Verdugo’s RBI grounder in the second inning and Volpe’s home run against Daniel Hudson in the third.
After the Dodgers got within one run by scoring twice in the fifth, including a home run off starter Luis Gil, Austin Wells homered into the second level of the right field bleachers in the sixth against Landon Knack. .
Gleyber Torres added a three-run homer off Brent Honeywell in a five-run eighth. At that point in the game, the Dodgers — limited to a three-starting rotation this postseason — had already decided to reserve their best bullpen arms.
Seven of New York’s runs were driven in by the three batters at the bottom of their lineup: Volpe, Wells and Verdugo.
Relievers Tim Hill, Clay Holmes, Mark Leiter Jr., Luke Weaver and Tim Mayza had five zeros, one hit and seven strikeouts. The Yankees were thus saved from suffering their first World Series sweep since 1976.
Game five — the last at Yankee Stadium — will be this Wednesday night. Gerrit Cole will start for the Yankees and Jack Flaherty will start for Los Angeles, replaying the confrontation from the first duel.
