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Anthony Rizzo calls Yankees team meeting before ‘must-win’ World Series game — just like he did in 2016

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Anthony Rizzo calls Yankees team meeting before ‘must-win’ World Series game — just like he did in 2016

It worked for Anthony Rizzo in 2016, and eight years later he’s hoping history repeats itself.

The Yankees first baseman called a team meeting before Game 3 of the World Series on Monday at Yankee Stadium with the Bombers trailing the Dodgers 2-0, Tom Verducci reported on the Fox broadcast before first pitch.

The 35-year-old did the same thing before Game 5 of the 2016 Fall Classic when he was with the Cubs, who at the time trailed Cleveland three games to one.


Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo called a team meeting before World Series Game 3. Jayne Kamin-Oncea-Imagn Images

Chicago went on to win three straight and end its 108-year championship drought.

“Back then, Rizzo broke the tension by quoting his favorite movie lines with no clothes on,” Verducci said of Rizzo’s 2016 speech. “The mood, and the attire, a little more serious tonight. The meeting was quick. Rizzo was the only one who spoke. And one player said it was a bonding experience.”

Rizzo also described Monday’s game as a “must-win,” Verducci reported.


Follow The Post’s live updates from Game 3 of the Yankees-Dodgers World Series.


The Yankees are in their first World Series since they won it all in 2009 but lost the first two games to the Dodgers in Los Angeles, which included a devastating walk-off grand slam by Freddie Freeman in the ninth inning of Game 1 while the Yankees were up by a run with two outs.


Anthony Rizzo celebrates as the Cubs win their first World Series in 108 years in 2016.
Anthony Rizzo celebrates as the Cubs win their first World Series in 108 years in 2016. USA Today Sports

Freeman hit another home run in the first inning Monday night to give the Dodgers an early 2-0 lead in Game 3, his fifth consecutive World Series game with a homer.

The Yankees lost the first two games of the 1996 World Series, 15 years after their previous World Series appearance, before reeling off four straight wins to beat the Braves.

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