Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Sports Illustrated
Sports Illustrated
Sport
Karl Rasmussen

Freddie Freeman Convinced Dave Roberts to Make Crucial Decision in Game 5 With One Look

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts (30) celebrates after winning the 2024 MLB World Series against the New York Yankees at Yankee Stadium. | Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Images

One of the most significant managerial decisions of the 2024 World Series was made by Dave Roberts late into Game 5 when he opted to keep Blake Treinen on the mound in the eighth inning during a one-run game.

Roberts admitted he received some unspoken help from Freddie Freeman when it came to making that decision.

Roberts visited the mound to gauge how Treinen was doing after the veteran surrendered a double to Aaron Judge and walked Jazz Chisholm. With Giancarlo Stanton due up in the batting order, the right-handed reliever unsurprisingly bargained to remain in the game.

Treinen induced a softly-hit fly out from Stanton, and Roberts had planned to pull him after that at-bat, before catching a glance from Freeman out of his peripheral vision.

"I give Freddie credit," Roberts said, via ESPN. "Freddie was waving me off. He kind of subtly kind of said, 'Hey, let him stay in.' So then I trusted the players, and Blake made a pitch."

Roberts left Treinen on the mound to face Anthony Rizzo, despite approaching 40 pitches at that point and throwing into a less favorable matchup in terms of handedness. He struck him out on four pitches, paving the way for Walker Buehler to take the ninth inning and shut the door on the Yankees.

Had Roberts not caught the glance from Freeman out of the corner of his eye, he may have opted for a pitching change, which could have drastically altered how the remainder of the game played out.


More of the Latest Around MLB


This article was originally published on www.si.com as Freddie Freeman Convinced Dave Roberts to Make Crucial Decision in Game 5 With One Look.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.