World Series Game Two: The Stuff of Legends

In Game One, the Toronto Blue Jays absolutely flattened the Los Angeles Dodgers' bullpen in that sixth inning. Out of the nine runs scored in that inning by Toronto, six of them were charged to the bullpen, which has been a sore subject to Dodgers fans all year. For the Dodgers, the mission for Game Two was simple: make sure the bullpen never takes the mound at all.

With Yoshinobu Yamamoto starting, that's a cinch.

Before first pitch, we were treated to a pair of amazing anthem performances. Bebe Rexha sang the American anthem, and Alessia Cara sang the Canadian anthem, both of them did so very well! The Jays had Kevin Gausman on the mound against the aforementioned Yamamoto, and Gausman was hit early. Will Smith drove in Freddie Freeman in the first inning, and the Dodgers were up 1-0. Yamamoto got himself into a bit of a jam early. Runners on the corners, no outs, and Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. at bat. Yamamoto gets out of it unscathed, but the third inning sees the Jays tie it up; Alejandro Kirk's sac fly getting the job done.

The 1-1 score was standing for many innings with barely any hits, but the seventh inning changed things. Will Smith homered to give the Dodgers a 2-1 lead, and later in the inning, Max Muncy went yard to make it 3-1 for the Dodgers. Meanwhile, Yamamoto continued to pitch a gem, making that 3-1 score a strong one. It got stronger in the eighth inning, as a wild pitch scored Andy Pages, and after that, Smith's fielder's choice grounder allowed Shohei Ohtani to cross the plate. All that was left was for Yamamoto to finish the job.

The Los Angeles Dodgers won Game Two of the World Series, 5-1, and the Fall Classic is all even. Yoshinobu Yamamoto did it again, folks. Another complete game in a league where complete games are becoming a thing of the past. Back-to-back complete game wins for Yamamoto in this postseason; the first Dodgers pitcher to pull this off since Orel Hershiser did it in 1988. We all know what happened that year. Not only did the Dodgers win the World Series that year, but Hershiser was the World Series MVP. Yamamoto's numbers: 105 pitches (73 of them for strikes), a complete game, four hits, an earned run, and eight strikeouts. Right now, Yamamoto is definitely in the lead for MVP should the Dodgers win this World Series.

So the World Series is now a best-of-five affair as a result of the split in Toronto. The Series will now shift to the City of Angels for the next three, and I would think we'll see Shohei Ohtani on the mound for one of the three games, though it's not known which one. This is the 63rd best-of-seven Series to be 1-1 after two games, and in the past 62 instances, the winner of Game Three has won the Series 41 times, nearly two-thirds of the time.

Game Three is Monday in Los Angeles, and that game will be part of the annual Sports Equinox--the one night of the year where all four of the main leagues will play relevant games at once. Other than Game Three, there's a pair of NHL games, NBA action that includes the first games to air exclusively on Peacock, and Monday Night Football between the Washington Commanders and the Kansas City Chiefs.

* * *

If you like this story, click the heart and the subscribe button, and feel free to comment below! Tips and pledges would be greatly appreciated, but only if you want to do so!