BRONX, NY — Thanks to their wins over the Cleveland Guardians and New York Mets in the Championship Series, baseball’s two most iconic franchises, the New York Yankees and Los Angeles Dodgers are set to clash in the World Series.
Both franchises, with roots in the Bjg Apple, are set to meet once again in the Fall Classic for the 12th time overall, and first time since 1981, when the Dodgers beat the Yankees in six games.
Their first title since 1965 and first over New York since 1963, the Dodgers are 2-2 vs. the Yankees since moving west in, hope to add to their recent history thanks to the bat of Shohei Otani.
In a bi-coastal dream series that has all the makings of a classic, due to their shared and long history as neighbors and rivals, with the Yankees coming off their 41st American League pennant and the Dodgers coming off their 25th National League pennant, New York is looking for their 28th World Series win, and first since 2009 and Los Angeles is looking for their eighth overall title and second in five years.
So which team is under the most pressure. Here’s some individuals and matchups to consider.
DH Shohei Ohtani vs. OF Aaron Judge: A matchup between arguably the best baseball player in the world in the Japanese two-way superstar vs. the reigning AL MVP in Judge, it’ll be power vs. power when these two titans step in the batters box.
MLB couldn’t ask for a better ratings dream than seeing its two biggest and most marketable players from their most successful franchises go head-to-head against each other.
1B Freddie Freeman vs. OF Giancarlo Stanton: Two of baseball’s most feared sluggers finally get a chance to meet in the post season. Freeman, who already has a World Series ring via the Atlanta Braves, is aiming for his second, while Stanton, fresh off his ALCS MVP award vs. Cleveland is aiming for his first ring, to help solidify his place as one of the game’s best.
OF Mookie Betts vs. OF Juan Soto: Two of baseball’s most dynamic players and personalities, Betts has two Word Series titles via the Boston Red Sox, and as a longtime nemesis of the Bronx Bombers, Betts will not be intimidated by the Yankees mystique at all.
The former 2018 AL MVP boasts a career .281 batting average, with 114 hits, 16 home runs, 62 RBI’s and 68 runs scored in 102 games. So, Betts is more than comfortable and may be a potential X-factor vs. New York.
Despite being only 26, and already having a World Series ring via the Washington Nationals, Juan Soto is now on his third team in two years, with arguably the largest free agent contract in history looming on the horizon.
Thanks to his series-clinching three-run home run vs. the Cleveland Guardians, Soto is now four wins away from possibly being MLB’s first-ever $600-plis million man.
And there is some history in playing vs. the Dodgers, as he a .278 batting average with 15 hits, four home runs, eight RBI’s and eight runs scored vs Los Angeles in 2023 as a member of the San Diego Padres. If there is a more explosive straw to stir the Yankees post-season drink, you couldn’t ask for one in the fiery Soto.
P Yoshinobu Yamamoto vs. P Gerrit Cole: Two of the highest paid pitchers are also set to face off—likely vs. each other—in the Japanese superstar Yamamoto against the Yankees vaunted ace in Cole.
Signed from the Orix Buffalos for 12-year $325 million deal, shortly after fellow countryman Shohei Ohtani’s record-breaking deal, Yamamoto has performed quite admirably in posting a 7-2 record, a 3.00 ERA and 105 strikeouts for the Dodgers in his first season in the MLB.
If there is any player not named Judge, Soto or the aforementioned Ohtani that is under pressure to deliver, it is the 26-year-old right hander.
In the case of Cole, who signed a nine-year $320 million contract with the Yankees back in 2019, after being with the Houston Astros for two seasons, the 2023 AL Cy Young winner could be making his last appearance as a Bronx Bomber is things line up for him, such as a World Series win for New York.
A native of Newport Beach, and a former standout at UCLA, the 34-year-old right-hander should find some comfort being back in his native Southern California pitching in front of some family and friends vs. his hometown Dodgers.
This season, Cole has posted a 8-5 record, 99 strikeouts and a 3.41 ERA for the Yankees. But no World Series titles to show for it. For Cole, this may be his best and last chance to earn one in New York.
Dave Roberts vs. Aaron Boone: While it is rare to have two opposing World Series managers under the microscope, as having pressure to win, that is the case in both Roberts and Boone.
In the case of Roberts, despite winning, what many consider an illegitimate title during COVID vs. Tampa Bay—Roberts’ recent post-season failures to win with arguably the games best modern-day pitcher in Clayton Kershaw and MLB’s highest payroll at $320.9 million, the highest in history puts the former MLB standout under tremendous pressure to win it all.
With a roster stacked with almost $1.4 billion committed to Ohtani and Yamamoto, as well as playing in the No.2 media market in MLB, and this could be it for Roberts if he doesn’t close the deal.
For Boone, being under the intense scrutiny of managing the Yankees is a task by itself, but when you have such a rabid media presence, demanding fans and ownership expecting nothing short of a World Series victory, this could very well be Boone’s last season in the Bronx.
Managing MLB’s most storied, winningest—and reviled—franchise and brand is not for the weak, and winning trumps all. In his seven years as skipper of the Yankees, Boone has a 598-424 regular season record, highlighted by two 100-win seasons his first two years, and has led New York to the ALCS three times, but has failed to advance to—and win—a World Series.
With MLB’s second highest payroll—behind only the Dodgers—at $306 million, and four players making over $30 million in Judge ($40 million), Cole ($36 million) Stanton ($32 million) and Soto ($31 million), it’s all or nothing for Boone in Nee York.