It’s official. The Los Angeles Dodgers have won their 7th World Series title after beating the Tampa Bay Rays by a score of 3-1 in Game 6. The Dodgers and Rays faced off Tuesday night for the final game of the 2020 World Series at Globe Life Field in Arlington, Texas. After beating the Atlanta Braves in seven games, the Dodgers have finally attained postseason glory, something they have come so close to but just missed twice in the past three seasons.
The Dodgers epitomize the word “stacked.” After trading for Mookie Betts this offseason, it was a World Series or bust. Meanwhile, the Rays surprised everyone by beating the Houston Astros in seven games to set up a matchup with the Dodgers. One player in particular had been a postseason revelation for the Rays, and that is Randy Arozarena. In the postseason, he hit 10 home-runs and had a .377 batting average. Arozarena spent all of 2019 with the St. Louis Cardinals, where he only played 19 games out of 162 and spent most of the year down in the minors, as well as only hitting one home-run in all of 2019.
In Game 1, it was all LA, as the Dodgers won 8-3. Cody Bellinger and Mookie Betts each homered, while Max Muncy also had 2 RBIs. For the Rays, Tyler Glasnow had a tough outing, only going 4 ⅓ innings while giving up 6 earned runs. Game 2 was much closer, but Tampa Bay pulled out the win, 6-4. Brandon Lowe and Joey Wendle each had three RBIs in the game for the Rays. For the Dodgers, Cory Seager, Will Smith, and Chris Taylor each homered, but it wasn’t enough to stop Tampa Bay from tying the series up 1-1.
The Dodgers took Game 3 with a score of 6-2. Justin Turner and Austin Barnes both hit home-runs, while Max Muncy drove home 2 more runs to give the Dodgers the 2-1 series lead. For the Rays, Randy Arozarena homered, but starter Charlie Morton only went 4 ⅓ innings, giving up 5 earned runs. The Rays walked off in Game 4, winning 8-7 with a wild and unorthodox ending that ultimately tied the series up at two games a piece. Randy Arozarena homered again, while Hunter Renfroe, Kevin Kiermaier, and Brandon Lowe also went deep for Tampa Bay. For LA, Justin Turner and Cory Seager went yard, while Joc Pederson had 2 RBIs.
Shifting from the high-adrenaline finale of Game 4, LA went on to win a low scoring affair in Game 5 with a score of 4-2. Joc Pederson and Max Muncy both hit homers. Dodger’s ace Clayton Kershaw pitched a gem, going 5 ⅔ innings and striking out six. For the Rays, starter Tyler Glasnow had a solid outing; he went 5 innings deep and struck out seven LA hitters, but it wasn’t enough for the Rays to pull off the win. Tampa Bay will try to stave off elimination on Tuesday night when they send Blake Snell to the mound opposite Tony Gonsolin for LA.
Game 6 was relatively uneventful until Arozarena hit a homer in the top of the 1st inning. The Rays held onto the lead until the bottom of the 6th when both Austin Barnes and Mookie Betts were able to score for the Dodgers to make it 2-1. Betts then launched a homer in the 8th to make it 3-1. Interestingly, Justin Turner was pulled from the game in the 8th inning for testing positive for COVID-19, which brings up the question of whether his teammates and/or opponents also contracted the virus. It wasn’t until after the game that this was announced. Julio Urías managed to record the save for the Dodgers as they held on to win 3-1 in the 9th. Corey Seager was named World Series MVP after finishing the series with a .400 AVG and hitting the go-ahead run to clinch Game 6. Congrats to the Dodgers on their first World Series win since 1988.
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