Everything about that night in Los Angeles felt heavy. You could almost taste the anxiety in the air at Dodger Stadium. It was October 25, 2024, Game 1 of the World Series, and the New York Yankees were one out away from stealing the opener. Then, Freddie Freeman stepped into the box.
Most people remember the swing. They remember the ball disappearing into the right-field Pavilion. But what usually gets lost in the highlight reels is just how broken Freddie Freeman actually was when he connected with that Nestor Cortes fastball.
The Ankle, the Ribs, and the Pure Grit
Honestly, Freddie probably shouldn't have been playing. He was dealing with a "severe" right ankle sprain—the kind that normally puts a guy on the shelf for over a month. He’d spent hours every day in the training room just to get it to a point where he could limp to first base.
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But it was worse than that. We later found out he was also playing through a broken rib cartilage injury from earlier in the postseason. Every breath, every rotation of his torso, every torque of a professional swing was sending signals of "stop doing this" to his brain.
He didn't stop.
When he hit that walk-off grand slam, the first in World Series history, it wasn't just a home run. It was a physical impossibility. He couldn't even use his lower half to drive the ball like he normally would. He basically muscled a 92-mph heater into the seats using pure upper-body strength and a shortened swing path he’d spent the previous four days of rest refining.
Why the Kirk Gibson Comparisons Are Actually Right
People love to compare this to Kirk Gibson in 1988. Usually, those "historic parallels" feel forced. This time? It was uncanny.
- The Scene: Game 1 at Dodger Stadium.
- The Situation: Two outs, trailing in the bottom of the inning.
- The Health: Both stars were visibly hobbled and arguably shouldn't have been in the lineup.
- The Result: A swing that changed the entire momentum of the series.
Joe Davis, the broadcaster who called the play, even paid homage to Vin Scully with the line, "Gibby, meet Freddie!" It gave everyone chills. But where Gibson was a pinch-hitter, Freeman was a starter who had to gut out ten innings of defense before even getting that chance.
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The Historic Home Run Streak Nobody Talks About Enough
The grand slam was the spark, but what Freddie Freeman did after that was arguably even more insane. He didn't just have one lucky moment. He went on a tear that literally rewrote the record books of Major League Baseball.
He became the first player ever to hit a home run in six consecutive World Series games (dating back to his time with the Braves in 2021). Within the 2024 series alone, he homered in Games 1, 2, 3, and 4.
Think about that. The Yankees knew exactly what he was doing. They knew he was the danger. And he still went out there and tattooed the ball night after night. By the time the Dodgers clinched in Game 5, Freeman had racked up 12 RBIs, tying a World Series record. He wasn't just the MVP; he was a walking cheat code.
What Most People Miss About the Strategy
There’s a lot of talk about Aaron Boone’s decision to bring in Nestor Cortes. Cortes hadn't pitched in weeks. He was a lefty-on-lefty matchup, which, on paper, makes sense.
But Freddie Freeman is a different breed of left-handed hitter. He doesn't "sell out" for power. He stays inside the ball. When Cortes tried to jam him with that inside fastball, he was playing right into Freddie's hands—or rather, his shortened, "injury-proof" swing.
If the Yankees had walked him? They would’ve faced a different set of problems, but they certainly wouldn't have been on the wrong side of the most iconic highlight of the decade.
Key Takeaways from the 2024 World Series MVP
- Adversity creates legends: The ankle injury was real. The rib injury was real. The performance was surreal.
- Preparation matters: Freeman used the four-day layoff before the World Series to specifically adjust his swing mechanics to compensate for his lack of leg power.
- Momentum is king: That Game 1 home run broke the Yankees' spirit. They never truly looked the same after that walk-off.
If you’re looking to apply some "Freddie energy" to your own life or sports career, start with the mechanics. When your "legs" are gone—whether that's literal or metaphorical—you have to shorten your swing and focus on the fundamentals.
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Next time you watch that replay, don't just look at where the ball landed. Look at Freddie’s face as he rounds second base. That’s the look of a guy who knew exactly what he was going to do, even when his body told him he couldn't.
For fans and collectors, the "Freddie Freeman World Series MVP" memorabilia is already hitting record highs. If you’re looking for a deep dive into the specific physics of that swing, checking out the StatCast data on the exit velocity (it was 109.2 mph, by the way) is a great place to start. It proves that even on one leg, Freddie Freeman's home run power is second to none.