It's too late to react

World Series Game 3: The Dodgers have taken a 3-0 lead. You know what that means.

At 11:40 p.m. at Yankee Stadium, a number of heartbroken Yankee fans were walking in a caravan toward the exit gates of Yankee Stadium. Nothing could stop them. The Dodgers were one out away from winning Game 3 and taking a 3-0 lead in the 2024 World Series. The Yankees hadn’t done enough to stop them. It had been exactly 15 years since the Yankees last played a World Series game at Yankee Stadium. It was Game 1 of the 2009 World Series, where the New York Yankees faced the Philadelphia Phillies.

Yankees fans who visited the first Fall Classic game at the new Yankee Stadium left distraught that night. The Philadelphia Phillies took a 6-1 victory, helped by two home runs from second baseman Chase Utley and a pitching gem from left-hander Cliff Lee, who threw eight consecutive scoreless innings and struck out 10.

The Yankees scored the only run of the game in the ninth inning on a throwing error by shortstop Jimmy Rollins. Hall of Famer and former Yankees star shortstop Derek Jeter scored the run. On Monday night, Jeter also visited the Bronx, this time to throw out the first pitch of the game. The story has not been any different, as the Yankees are on the verge of being defeated. But this time they came to New York down 0-2, and are one out away from losing Game 3. The Dodgers are winning comfortably 4-0, behind another epic home run by Freddie Freeman, coupled with a flawless five-inning start by starter Walker Buehler. The Dodgers bullpen got going and has dominated again without a hitch.

The next pitch could end the game. On an 0-2 count, Alex Verdugo is at the plate trying to survive the looming 100 mph fastball thrown by right-hander Michael Kopech. His swing just pinched the ball. He couldn’t make more than foul contact on a smoking 100 mph fastball. There’s no way to find a smile on the faces of Yankees fans still clinging to the inevitable end. Many cross their fingers. Others nod in their seats, and seem overcome by their yawns. Still others pin their hopes for a comeback in isolated whispers. I, who usually write down strikeouts on my scorecard with my red BIC pen—a gift from my dear friend Yanquiel—am ready to close my notes. However, some Yankees fans still hope to see the “Bronx Bombers” react.

Now, louder, the screams of Dodgers fans can be heard, as Kopech rubs the ball to prepare his next pitch under fire. Alex Verdugo remains focused on the batter’s box. Anthony Volpe, who reached second on a wild pitch before Kopech got a swing and miss to strike out Anthony Rizzo, is hoping to make one last run to the plate. Kopech is ready on the mound. Some fans stand and cheer. Others, arguably most, stand on their way to the exit doors—it’s obvious that a comeback is the last thing on their minds.

Kopech throws another hot fastball. This time, his familiar dose of power and definition is trying to get through the middle of the strike zone. But Verdugo’s swing got in the way and he crushed the 98 mph fastball before it was caught by catcher Will Smith. It was an explosion from the instant Verdugo hit. The ball soared 84 feet into the air. There aren’t many who are sure it will be a home run, but Yankees fans seemed to stand still in time.

“It’s high, it’s far… It’s gone!” “Alex Verdugo's HR broke up the shutout,” was John Sterling's home run call on WFAN Sports Radio.

Alex Verdugo's two-run homer. Dodgers 4, Yankees 2, same score as Game 2. Five seconds earlier, the Dodgers were one strike away from winning Game 3 by shutout. The Yankees had not been shut out in a World Series since losing, 2-0, Game 6 in 2003, the pitching gem featuring right-hander Josh Beckett to give the Florida Marlins the ring at Yankee Stadium.

Verdugo was 1-for-9 with two strikeouts against Dodgers pitchers in this World Series. The homer brought more than just life to his flagging offensive performance: Finally, there was a Yankees comeback. A light at the end of the tunnel. But as in Game 2, the offensive flash came in the ninth inning. It was too late. The Yankees blew a one-run lead in the bottom of the eighth inning in Game 1. The next day at Dodger Stadium, they loaded the bases with one out in the top of the ninth. The Dodgers were ahead 4-2. The potential tying run, and even the lead, were on base. No one could hit.

So the Yankees haven’t been that far from changing history in this World Series. But the key hit never came. One out from a 4-2 loss Monday in Game 3, Gleyber Torres grounded out to the center of the infield. Shortstop Tommy Edman gracefully moved to his left, where he is usually a wizard at fielding ground balls—well, really, Edman is a wizard at covering everywhere. Edman caught the 91 mph ground ball and in an acrobatic spin threw to first with enough time to get Gleyber Torres out. End of story: The Dodgers won 4-2, taking a 3-0 lead in Game 3 of the 2024 World Series.

The moment of hope came too late for the Yankees. Fans were leaving bewildered. The Dodgers celebrated another big win in center field. Yankee Stadium was slowly fading away. But, to be honest, I don't think hope had fully filled the hearts of Yankee fans. I was struck by the fact that when the Yankees lineup was announced, the fans were barely cheering. There wasn't much cheering, with the unmatched decibels that large crowds achieve when they inspire. Juan Soto and Aaron Judge received the biggest ovations. Or at least the loudest. But nothing compared to the overflowing passion of the fans at Dodger Stadium. Even without being there, you could sense a great vibe and, above all, the certainty that the Dodgers would win it all.

For Yankee fans, the situation was reasonable: The Dodgers have been dominant. We can't say that the Yankees' pitching has been inconsistent. They have allowed four or fewer runs over nine innings in every game. Yes, the bullpen has carried the load, covering 14 ⅔ innings (55%), and the worst news for manager Aaron Boone has been the explosions by his last two starters. Left-hander Carlos Rodón in Game 2 and right-hander Clarke Schmidt in Game 3 have combined for just six innings with eight hits, four walks and seven earned runs allowed. “I didn’t think my starters would be this bad,” Boone told Fox Sports’ Tom Verducci, referring to the ineffectiveness of Rodón and Schmidt.

Amid the storm, the best news for Boone remains his bullpen, which allowed one earned run in 6 ⅓ innings in Game 3. Standout performances by Cuban Nestor Cortes Jr., whom Boone brought in (top of the fourth) again for a lefty-versus-lefty duel to face Ohtani, made waves in the Bronx. Ohtani's swing didn't seem to be at its peak, but Cortes Jr. struck him out with a nice cutter on the outside corner. The next inning, Cortes Jr. surprised Freeman by throwing a 79 mph sweeper in the middle of the strike zone. Freeman hit a 49 mph grounder to third, but Chisholm Jr. made a fielding error.

Unlike Boone, Dodgers manager Dave Roberts has had his players respond in the clutch. The first win was headlined by Freddie Freeman's epic walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the 10th inning of Game 1. In Game 2, the Dodgers dominated the game by leading from the third inning on. Tonight in Game 3, Freeman hit a two-run homer off Clarke Schmidt, giving the Dodgers an early 2-0 lead.

Schmidt was in trouble in the first inning, when he led off the game by walking Shohei Ohtani on four straight balls. After dominating Mookie Betts, Schmidt threw a cutter in the upper third (middle, inside) of the strike zone and Freeman returned it at 100 mph. It was a 355-foot homer, which would have gone in 20 of the 30 major league ballparks, including, obviously, right field at Yankee Stadium.

The Dodgers were taking control of the game again.