LOS ANGELES – Freddie Freeman raised his bat to the sky and watched the ball fly.

The walking-impaired Los Angeles Dodgers first baseman, who has spent the entire month playing with a severe right ankle sprain, came up with the bases loaded, his team trailing by one run with two outs in the bottom of the 10th, and delivered a walk– hit a grand slam, electrifying a sold-out Dodger Stadium and giving his team an improbable 6-3 victory over the New York Yankees in Game 1 of the World Series on Friday night.

It was the third World Series walk-off home run in franchise history, joining those of Max Muncy (Game 3 in 2018) and Kirk Gibson (Game 1 in 1988).

The Yankees had taken the lead in the previous half-inning when Jazz Chisholm Jr., who was 5 of 34 in his first nine postseason games, belted a one-out single to right off Blake Treinen and then easily reached second base stahl caught third and scored on a groundout.

But the Dodgers threatened again in the bottom half by putting runners on first and second with one out and Shohei Ohtani coming to bat. The Yankees called on left-hander Nestor Cortes, who hadn’t pitched since Sept. 18 because of a flexor strain, to join him out of the bullpen.

Ohtani threw the first pitch into left field foul territory, setting up a spectacular catch by Alex Verdugo. Both runners moved up a base because Verdugo fell over the fence, allowing them to advance 90 feet. The Yankees then decided to intentionally walk Mookie Betts, loading the bases and setting up the lefty-lefty matchup with Freeman.

It didn’t work. Cortes’ first pitch was a 93 mph fastball to the inside corner. Freeman turned it on and sent it 423 feet to right field, a sure-fire hit that gave the Dodgers a thrilling victory.

The Yankees and Dodgers – two of Major League Baseball’s most storied franchises, located in its two largest markets and boasting the best records in each league this season – will meet in the World Series for the 12th time, tied with Los Angeles Lakers and Boston Celtics for the most common finals duel in all major sports. And this duel couldn’t be more prominent: it also features Aaron Judge and Ohtani, the two outstanding stars who will each be named MVP of the regular season.

But another star shone in Game 1.