NEW YORK – Dave Roberts stood atop a makeshift stage at Dodger Stadium eight days ago, staring out at the thousands of people celebrating around the ballpark. He had screamed himself hoarse after winning the National League pennant, but the manager of the Los Angeles Dodgers wanted one last blast from the crowd.

“Hi! Do you want a parade in Los Angeles? said Roberts. “Four more wins!”

After a 4-2 win over the New York Yankees in Game 3 of the World Series, the Dodgers are on the cusp of a championship, a very different championship than the one marred in 2020 by COVID-19 restrictions. The desire for a proper coronation has become a rallying cry for this group as it approaches a title. The triumph could come as early as Tuesday. The first World Series game at Yankee Stadium since 2009 ended like the last two at Chavez Ravine, with the Dodgers elated and the Yankees lamenting missed opportunities.

On Monday, the Dodgers never trailed. Freddie Freeman hit a two-run homer in the first inning. Walker Buehler limited the Yankees to two hits in five scoreless innings. Yankees starter Clark Schmidt could not finish the third inning. He was shocked by Freeman’s early homer and then crushed by the Dodgers’ patience.

The Los Angeles bullpen held the line after Buehler left. The relievers will be asked to handle all 27 outs in Game 4, while the Yankees will put their season in the hands of hard-throwing rookie Luis Gil. The situation looks grim for the Yankees and joyful for the Dodgers. No team in World Series history has overcome a 3-0 deficit. Last week’s hype has given way to reality: so far only one club has shown championship qualities. Aaron Judge, the likely MVP and captain of the Yankees, went hitless in three at bats.

After two exciting nights in Los Angeles, this series was no longer kissed by the sun in a stadium surrounded by palms. The difficulty of the sport, its ability to injure and humiliate even the best athletes, defined the discourse after Game 2. As fans poured into the Bronx for Game 3, there were two main questions: Would Shohei Ohtani’s shoulder heal? And would Judge’s bat wake up?

Late in Game 2, Ohtani rammed his left arm into the dirt while trying to steal second base. He writhed in pain and clutched his shoulder. Examination revealed partial dislocation but no structural damage. He traveled separately from the team, but said in the roster’s group chat that he would not miss Game 3. He tested his shoulder during the day off on Sunday. Some swings hurt more than others. The medical staff determined that Ohtani could play as long as he could tolerate the pain. He wore an over-the-shoulder harness during pre-match introductions and fist bumped teammates with his right hand.

“If he can play, if he’s willing to play, he’s going to play,” Roberts said Sunday afternoon. “Schmidt will know Shohei is in the box, so that means everything.”

Roberts was right. Ohtani didn’t have to swing the bat during his first at-bat. He walked on four pitches to start the game. At first he held the collar of his shirt, as if wearing an invisible sling. He didn’t have to exert himself: Ohtani took a leisurely walk around the bases after Freeman jumped on a belt-high cutter. The two-run shot disappeared off the right-field porch.

FREDDIE FREEMAN, YOU ARE UNREAL. #WORLDSERIES pic.twitter.com/nmKvgGEMYQ

— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) October 29, 2024

Judge received cheers during the intro. The crowd serenaded him with the streamers he will receive for the second time next month: “MVP, MVP.” His inability to repeat his summertime excellence in the fall has become a source of consternation for Yankees fans. Judge entered Monday with a .150 batting average with three extra base hits throughout the month of October.

A standing ovation greeted Judge in the bottom of the first inning. The good cheer lasted six throws. Judge grounded through a cutter for his seventh strikeout of the Series. The crowd had the decency not to curse.

Ohtani did swing in his second appearance and hooked a grounder to the right side, moving shortstop Tommy Edman to second base in the third inning. The extra 100 feet allowed Edman to show his base running acumen when Mookie Betts hit a flare into right field. Juan Soto charged toward the baseball, holding his glove up as if preparing for the catch. Edman ignored the deke. He ran all the way and was able to score easily.

Schmidt didn’t last long. He issued a pair of walks to load the bases. Yankees manager Aaron Boone turned to his bullpen. Mark Leiter Jr. induced a soft grounder from Dodgers catcher Will Smith to end the frame and keep the deficit at three runs. Leiter escaped another jam in the fourth. With runners on the corners, Edman tried a bunt. Leiter played the baseball in time to feed catcher Jose Trevino, who slid to prevent Dodgers second baseman Gavin Lux from scoring.

Buehler gave up his first hit in the fourth. Giancarlo Stanton, the towering design hitter, pulled a sweeper into the leftfield corner. Stanton reached second for a one-out double. The defense saved Buehler. Betts dove to get a well-hit liner from third baseman Jazz Chisholm Jr. When shortstop Anthony Volpe singled to left, Teoscar Hernández came up. Stanton had not even reached third base when Hernández applied the baseball glove. Dodgers catcher Will Smith landed a tag to Stanton’s gut for a crucial third out.

The piece granted Buehler a reprieve. He was once one of the best young pitchers in baseball, a rangy but confident budding ace who could bully hitters and outshoot them with equal élan. The past few years have not been kind to him. Before the game, Boone was asked about benching a left-handed hitter, catcher Austin Wells, when Buehler has struggled so much against left-handed swingers this year. “Righties hit him pretty good, too,” Boone said. The assessment was harsh, but fair. Buehler posted a 5.38 ERA on the season as he returned after missing most of the past two seasons while recovering from a second Tommy John surgery.

Buehler glossed over these failures in October. Performing at this time of year is “all I care about,” he said earlier this month. On Monday night, he turned back the clock and looked like the pitcher he was before his most recent surgery. He struckout five batters. His defenders were firmly behind him. He pitched well enough to win.

The lead expanded to four in the top of the sixth inning, when Lux was hit by a pitch, stole second base and scored on a single by center fielder Kiké Hernández. Judge grounded out on a fielder’s choice in the middle of a failed rally in the bottom half of the inning. The Yankees put two runners on board before Dodgers lefty Alex Vesia got Chisholm to ground out.

(Photo by Freddie Freeman: Luke Hales/Getty Images)