The Los Angeles Dodgers did not need six games to etch their name in the history books as 2024 World Series champions; five would do. But that final game was a serious battle, and an improbable victory for the Dodgers.
At one point, the New York Yankees had a 96% win probability. And around that point, the Los Angeles front office was turning its attention to the rest-of-series strategy. First up? Their starting pitcher in Game 6.
Projected to be Yoshinobu Yamamoto if the Yankees won Game 5 and forced a return to Los Angeles for Game 6, Dodgers president Andrew Friedman reportedly started to sketch out whether it would be logistically feasible to get Yamamoto on a separate plane from the rest of the team in a lay-flat seat, according to Jeff Passan of ESPN. The advantage would be some extra rest for Yamamoto in a Game 6.
Yamamoto was a Yankee killer in Game 2, where he pitched a one-hit, six-inning start to earn the win.
But as quickly as series and game momentum palpably swung in the Yankees' direction, New York handed it back over like a hot potato. A multi-error fifth inning saw their lead go from five to zero. Taking an eighth-inning lead, Los Angeles got back to aggressively trying to close the game out instead of contingency-planning a return home.
And the rest is history. Instead of a solo cross-country flight, Yamamoto spent his night celebrating with his Dodger teammates.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com as Dodgers Tried to Fly Yoshinobu Yamamoto Back to LA During World Series-Clinching Game.
