[ODDS and EVENS] Before the World Series, a Lively Discussion with Old Friends

Die-hard baseball fans know that the New York Yankees have won a record 27 World Series titles. Casual fans, however, may not know that the proud franchise hasn't captured an MLB title ― or appeared in the championship series ― since 2009.

Since then, the Los Angeles Dodgers have made three World Series appearances, losing in 2017 and 2018 and winning in 2020. Dave Roberts, who was born in Okinawa, has served as the Dodgers manager since 2016.

Fast forward to late October 2024. The Yankees are back on the sport's biggest stage for the first time since now-retired slugger Hideki Matsui won the Fall Classic MVP award after a sensational performance against the Philadelphia Phillies (.615 batting average, three home runs and eight RBIs in six games) in '09.

This year's World Series, which gets underway on Friday night, October 25 (Saturday morning JST) at Dodger Stadium, will be a lengthy celebration of the teams' connected and separate history. For instance, this will be the 12th time the teams meet in the Fall Classic and the first time since 1981.

From 1947-56, the Yankees, aka the Bronx Bombers, met the Brooklyn Dodgers in the World Series six times. The Yankees triumphed five times, with the Dodgers winning just once, in '55.

After the Dodgers bolted from Brooklyn to Los Angeles following the 1957 season, the teams reunited their World Series rivalry in 1963, 1977 and '78.

All of these title-deciding matchups, of course, happened before the biggest stars of the current Yankees and Dodgers lineups were born.

World Series Spotlight: Judge and Ohtani Take Center Stage

At age 32, Aaron Judge is the most feared slugger in the American League and the driving force of the Yankees lineup. The six-time All-Star had an AL-best 58 home runs and drove in 144 runs this season, more than any other MLB player. (New York led the AL in homers with 237.)

Ohtani, who is 30, had a season that captured everyone's attention, from Tokyo to Los Angeles and human dwellings everywhere in between. As the charter member of the 50-50 club (54 homers and 59 steals), Ohtani raised his game to new heights this season as a power hitter and as an incredible threat on the bases.

So it's no surprise that baseball fans are fired up to see Judge vs Ohtani as a game-within-the-game storyline.

Observations and Predictions

Many years ago, semi-fictitious buddies Frankie Luigi and Les Witt debuted in one of my sports columns. And over the years they've reappeared a few times for conversations about the NFL, horse racing and the World Series, among other topics.

Now, they're back.

Luigi, born and raised in New York City, always roots for the Yankees. It's a 24/7 obsession, from Day 1 of spring training to the team's final game each season.

He'll be glued to the TV for the entirety of the 2024 World Series.

"Ohtani is incredible," Frankie said recently. "The power of his swing and the enthusiasm with which he plays the game are infectious."

"Who am I to argue with your analysis?" was my response.

"Hey, Les," I added during our Very Important Phone Call, "do you think Judge will power the Yankees past the Dodgers?"

"I don't think so," Les, an aspiring sitcom script writer, blurted out from his bungalow, within walking distance of Santa Monica Pier, not far from the downtown stadium in LA.

"The Yankees will refuse to give Judge anything to hit," the transplanted New Yorker declared. "He'll have zero chances to blast homers at Dodger Stadium or Yankee Stadium."

"That's a pathetic analysis," Frankie chimed in.

"Is it possible that the Yankees will employ the same possible strategy with Ohtani?" I asked.

"Impossible," Les told us.

"The ruthless New York tabloids, talk-radio hosts and fans would rip Yankees manager Aaron Boone, calling him a wimp for refusing to 'compete' against Ohtani," Frankie insisted.

"You're absolutely right," I said, agreeing with the former sandlot star's point of view.

Talking Points on Pitching

In eliminating the New York Mets in the National League Championship Series, the Dodgers ended countless New Yorkers' hopes of a Subway Series. The Dodgers are returning to the World Series just days after 1981 NL Rookie of the Year and Cy Young Award winner Fernando Valenzuela passed away at age 63.

One of my earliest baseball memories was watching the Dodgers drop the first two games in the 1981 Fall Classic and then storm back to win the next four games to quash the Yankees' title hopes.

LA's comeback began with Valenzuela, the pride of Mexico, on the mound in Game 3.

"Do you remember that Valenzuela pitched the entire game?" Frankie blurted out.

"Yeah. And who can forget that he walked seven batters, allowed nine hits, including two homers, and the Yankees could only score four runs?" Les countered.

Valenzuela made 147 pitches in that game. But Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda, who later served as Hideo Nomo's first MLB skipper, opted to stick with his left-handed starter instead of calling on his bullpen. The Dodgers triumphed 5-4 in Game 3 to jump-start their title-winning comeback.

Forty-three years later, MLB is a dramatically different landscape.

"The Mets and Dodgers used a combined 14 pitchers in Game 6 of the NLCS," I reminded my buddies.

"An overreliance on relief pitchers has dumbed down the game," Frankie chimed in. 

"One of the great charms of the game in decades past was the repeated mano a mano battles during a game between great starting pitchers, guys like Bob Gibson and Sandy Koufax, and top hitters like Yogi Bera and Willie Mays," Les pointed out.

Keeping an Eye on the Hitters

A few days before Game 1 at Dodger Stadium, the totality of statistics from the 2024 season from the Yankees and the Dodgers don't produce a slew of concrete conclusions, anyone can claim.

After all, the Dodgers went 98-64, winning four more games than the Yankees. Not a huge difference.

What's more, LA had a 3.90 ERA and batted .258 as a team to New York's 3.74 ERA and .248 batting average.

"In terms of batting average, 10 percentage points ain't insignificant," Les hollered.

"It's up to Boone and his brain trust, including catcher Austin Wells, to slow down the Dodgers offense," Frankie noted.

The Dodgers outscored the Mets 37-7 in their four NLCS victories. And the Yankees scored six or fewer runs in three of their four American League Championship Series wins against the Cleveland Guardians.

"Therefore, lower-scoring games would appear to be a better scenario for the Yankees," this columnist shared.

"I'll stick to a different theory," said Frankie. "If Judge homers, the Yankees will win that game."

"Not necessarily," argued Les. "If Ohtani continues to thrive with men on base, the Yankees will have no chance of winning the title."

Mr Witt was referring to Shohei Ohtani's unreal success of late while batting with runners in scoring position. 

"He has 18 hits in his last 22 at-bats with runners in scoring position," reported Mr Luigi, a walking baseball encyclopedia.

RELATED:

• Dodgers Clobber Mets in NLCS Game 6 and Advance to the World Series
• Shohei Ohtani Plays a Starring Role in Dodgers' Game 4 Rout of Mets
• [ODDS and EVENS] Highs and Lows and Other Observations from the World of Sports

Author: Ed Odeven

Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.