Dodgers Beat Rays for Seventh World Series Championship

Between 2013 and 2019, the Los Angeles Dodgers won seven straight National League West titles and two National League pennants, but lost two World Series. This year, they won the West for the eighth time and their third pennant in four years. We’ve been hearing for years how good the Dodgers are–and they obviously have been very good, including winning 104 games in 2017 and 106 in 2019–but we’ve also been hearing how they haven’t won a World Series since 1988.

We can finally take that off the list. The Dodgers, who had the best regular season record in baseball’s Covid shortened campaign, beat the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 in the decisive Game 6 of the 2020 World Series on October 27th, winning that elusive World Series. It is the seventh World Series championship for the franchise, including one back in the Brooklyn days.

It didn’t start out well for the Dodgers. Starting pitcher Tony Gonsolin who did not have a good postseason (0-2, 8.68 ERA) gave up a run, three hits, and two walks in 1 2/3 innings before being lifted by manager Dave Roberts. The run came on a homer by Randy Arozarena, who had an incredible post season with 10 home runs, 14 RBIs, a .377 batting average, and a 1.273 OPS in 20 games. The L.A. bullpen shut the door on the Rays, allowing just three hits and no walks the rest of the way.

Tampa Bay’s starting pitcher Blake Snell was pitching an excellent game, allowing just two hits while walking none and striking out nine through 5 1/3 innings. With one out in the sixth inning, Snell gave up that second hit. With Mookie Wilson coming to the plate, Rays’ manager Kevin Cash pulled Snell in favor of reliever Nick Anderson. The Rays follow an Analytics formula where they try not to have a pitcher face a batter more than twice, and this was Wilson’s third appearance. Anderson did not follow the formula as prescribed, allowing a double to Betts, a wild pitch, and an RBI groundout, which gave L.A. the lead at 2-1. Anderson lasted just 1/3 of an inning before being lifted  for Aaron Loup. Dodger players said later that they were more than happy to see Snell taken out of the game, as he was pitching extremely well.

Betts hit a home run in the bottom of the eighth to give the Dodgers one final run. L.A. reliever Jose Urias allowed no hits while striking out four in the final 2 1/3 innings to close out the win for the Dodgers.

In the eighth inning, Dodgers third baseman Justin Turner was taken out of the game. It was revealed that the club received the results of the latest round of Covid testing while the game was in progress, and that Turner was positive. He was told to isolate, but returned to the field for the post game celebration anyway. He tweeted that he felt fine and had no symptoms. The baseball Commissioner’s Office has begun an investigation into this.

Thus ends the 2020 baseball season, one that has been like no other in major league history. At this point, Spring Training for the 2021 season is set to begin February 16th, with the first games of the season set for April 1st. With Covid still rampaging and no vaccines available yet (though there maybe some by that time), how or even if there will be a season and what it will be like is anybody’s guess.