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Yankees don’t have a Shohei Ohtani problem: They have these 3 other World Series problems

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4 weeks ago

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Yankees don’t have a Shohei Ohtani problem: They have these 3 other World Series problems

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NEW YORK — There was no masking the discomfort for Shohei Ohtani.

After suffering a left shoulder subluxation in the seventh inning of Game 2 of the World Series on Saturday night, the Dodgers superstar was somehow in the team’s lineup in the leadoff spot for Game 3 on Monday.

The superstar and presumptive MVP appeared with a wrap around his left arm during pregame introductions. He grimaced on a handful of swings and kept his arm in a sling position after reaching base on a walk in the opening inning.

It appeared as though the Yankees might have their opening with the star clearly compromised, yet the Dodgers appeared no worse for the wear. They cashed in on their early opportunities while the Yankees offense remained stuck in neutral in a 4-2 loss in Game 3 of the World Series in front of 49,368 fans at Yankee Stadium.

In the process, the Yankees fell into a massive 3-0 hole in the World Series. Only one team in major league history — the 2004 Boston Red Sox — has come back from down three games to win a best-of-seven series.

“We’re trying to get a game. That’s where our focus lies,” Aaron Boone said. “Hopefully we go do this amazing story and shock the world, but right now it’s about trying to get a lead, trying to grab a game and force another one and then on from there. But we got to grab one first.”

The Dodgers will have a chance to secure their eighth World Series crown in Game 4 at 8:08 p.m. on Tuesday at Yankee Stadium. The Yankees will be looking to avoid being swept for the fourth straight time when trailing by three games in the World Series.

To make that mission a reality, the Yankees must overcome these three looming obstacles.

Aaron Judge and the Yankees offense aren’t quite right

The fans at Yankee Stadium greeted Aaron Judge with a rousing ovation before his first at-bat, even in the midst of his prolonged postseason swoon.

Judge could not back up that enthusiasm in Game 3. He struck out against Walker Buehler in the first inning and finished 0-for-3 with an eighth-inning walk. In the World Series, Judge is 1-for-12 with seven strikeouts, bringing his postseason average to .140, with six hits in 12 games.

“You want to be getting the hits, you want to be going out there and doing your job,” Judge said. “I’m not doing my job right now, so I need to pick it up.”

Judge is not the only member of the Yankees who is scuffling. Following Monday night’s loss, they have scratched across seven total runs on 19 hits. Alex Verdugo’s ninth-inning two-run home run ended a hopeless night at the plate, with six different players going hitless in two at-bats or more apiece.

In three World Series games, Giancarlo Stanton, Juan Soto and Jazz Chisholm are the only Yankees players with three hits or more.

“If we’re not scoring, we’re putting a lot of pressure on our pitchers to go out there and be perfect against a really good Dodgers lineup,” Verdugo said. “We’re gonna have to go out there and set precedent a little bit. Get some hits, get some runs and let Luis (Gil) out there kind of relax and attack the zone.”

The Yankees starters have put a lot of pressure on the bullpen

After the Yankees could not capitalize on six innings of one-run ball by Gerrit Cole in Game 1, the next two starts from Carlos Rodon and Clarke Schmidt have left much to be desired for the Yankees.

In Game 2, Rodon gave up four earned runs on six hits, including three home runs, in 3⅓ innings. On Monday, Schmidt was pulled after loading the bases in the third inning, completing 2⅔ innings with three earned runs allowed on two hits, including a first-inning two-run home run to Freddie Freeman, and four walks.

“Against that team, especially, like us, if you’re not in the strike zone, they’re not going to go chase you,” Boone said. “I think (Schmidt) had a little bit of a hard time harnessing a little bit. He made some pitches after the two-run home run to at least limit some damage but it was a struggle finding that next level of command for him tonight.”

Boone used seven separate relievers to cover the final 6⅓ innings in Game 3. Mark Leiter Jr., Jake Cousins and Tim Hill all threw at least 17 pitches on Monday. Cousins and Clay Holmes have now both pitched three times in the last four days. The Yankees’ bullpen is a strength but they are going to be pushed to try and get the team back to Los Angeles.

“Tonight, just on all sides of the ball, we’re not stringing the hits together, we’re not putting the zeroes when we need to put zeroes up,” Schmidt said. “It’s just tough to play when you’re from behind the whole time.”

Now, the Yankees’ fate falls on the shoulders of Luis Gil, who has just one postseason start in his career after pitching to a 4.38 ERA over the final two months of the regular season.

Freddie Freeman and the Dodgers are getting contributions from all sides

While Ohtani has scuffled to a 1-for-11 mark in his first trip to the World Series, the Dodgers have received contributions throughout their lineup.

Most notably, Freeman belted his third home run of the World Series on Monday, hoisting the Dodgers up to a 2-0 lead to stagger the Yankee Stadium crowd.

Freeman, who is playing through a sprained ankle, has now knocked a home run in five straight World Series games dating back to his previous successful trip with the Braves in 2021 and including the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history in Game 1.

“I think clearly having those few days following their championship series probably served him well and helped him, most notably probably in the batter’s box,” Boone said. “He’s getting off swings that you’re typically used to seeing Freddie get off, where maybe that wasn’t happening in the previous rounds with the injury.”

By comparison to the Yankees, the Dodgers have five different players with at least three hits in the series. And they’ve gotten the big hits.

In Game 2, Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez broke open a 1-1 tie with back-to-back home runs. On Monday, Kiké Hernandez was 2-for-4 with an RBI single that extended the Dodgers’ lead to 4-0.

Mookie Betts continues to be a threat behind Ohtani in the lineup. Betts added a run-scoring hit in the third inning to plate Tommy Edman, who has built off a transcendent NLCS where he drove in 11 runs to grab MVP honors. Edman has four more hits in the World Series thus far.

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