CNN
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Freddie Freeman has essentially done it all in Major League Baseball.

He is an eight-time All-Star. Five-time All-MLB team member. A former MVP of the National League (NL). The owner of several regular season prizes.

Now the 35-year-old can call himself a World Series MVP.

Freeman and the Los Angeles Dodgers claimed the 2024 World Series title on Wednesday by beating the New York Yankees 7-6 in Game 5 to win the series four games to one.

It is the eighth championship in Dodgers franchise history and the second of Freeman’s career, adding to the title he won three years ago with the Atlanta Braves.

The 15-year MLB veteran entered the Fall Classic with a sprained ankle, but calmed the Dodgers fans almost immediately with a history-making performance in Game 1 and became the team’s standout player throughout the series.

For Freeman, winning is all that matters.

“That’s it,” Freeman said after being named MVP. “I wouldn’t be here tonight without the support of everyone in these shirts. It’s been a grind these past three months… it’s been a lot. This is it right here.”

Freeman was referring to the health problems of his three-year-old son Max, who was diagnosed earlier this year with Guillain-Barré syndrome – a rare neurological condition in which the body’s immune system attacks nerve cells.

In July, Max became completely paralyzed and Freeman left the Dodgers to be with his family in the hospital. Ultimately, doctors said his son would recover and Freeman rejoined the team in August.

“These have been the hardest and most terrifying days of our lives,” Freeman’s wife Chelsea wrote on Instagram. “Maximus is such a special boy and he fought SO hard. This will be a recovery journey, but we are confident he will make a full recovery.”

“I will never compare Maximus to baseball,” Freeman said after Game 5, according to the Associated Press. ‘I won’t do that. They are just two different things, but now that he is doing so well, it means a little extra.”

Freeman was born in 1989 in Fountain Valley, California, to Canadian-born parents. He grew up playing baseball and showed signs of his powerful bat at an early age. He hit the ball so hard When he played tee ball at age 6, his swing was judged too powerful and he practiced with children twice his age.

He played college baseball at California State University, Fullerton and was drafted 78th overall by the Braves in the second round of the 2007 MLB draft. was drafted from the minors in 2010 and went on to a stellar 12-year career with Atlanta.

Freeman became the Braves’ starting first baseman in 2011 and established himself as one of the best players in the league at the position. While with Atlanta, he was selected to the All-Star Game in 2013, 2014, 2018, 2019 and 2021. He played on both sides of the ball and claimed the Gold Glove Award in 2018 before winning the Silver Slugger Award in each of the matches. next three seasons.

He was named NL MVP in the Covid-19 shortened 2020 season before essentially padding his resume with a World Series title with the Braves in 2021.

Freeman, who entered free agency after that World Series title, wanted to stay with Atlanta.

However, negotiations between the Braves and his agent did not end in a deal, and Atlanta decided to move on and acquire first baseman Matt Olson. Freeman, who said it was “truly an honor to be part of the Braves organization,” parted ways and subsequently signed with the Dodgers on a six-year, $162 million deal ahead of the 2022 season.

His love for his former organization was on full display When the Dodgers visited Atlanta in June 2022, Freeman returned to Truist Park for the first time since trading a Braves uniform for Dodger blue.

Freeman broke down in tears during his first press conference back. Braves fans showered Freeman with a long and moving ovation as he received his 2021 championship ring — and Freeman cried again. He received another thunderous ovation prior to his first record appearance.

With the Dodgers, Freeman immediately picked up where he left off and was an All-Star in each of his three seasons in LA. Most importantly for the Dodgers, he has maintained his reputation as one of the most influential players in baseball.

Freeman had no home runs in the National League Division Series (NLDS) against the San Diego Padres, nor in the NLCS against the New York Mets. He entered the World Series with an injured ankle that cast doubt on his participation – let alone his effectiveness – in Game 1, and tried to run as little as possible as the Dodgers prepared for the series.

However, Freeman gritted his teeth and fought the pain, hitting a triple and later delivering an improbable walk-off grand slam to win the opener for LA – making him the first person ever to hit a walk-off grand slam in a world Series. He continued to show up when the team needed him most and hit home runs in Games 2, 3 and 4 to break a record – dating back to his time with the Braves – by homering in six straight Fall Classic games.

“He’s stronger than me, that’s for sure,” Frederick Freeman, Freddie’s father, told ESPN after Game 5. “I don’t know any other person who could have done that.”

Game 5 saw an end to the home run streak, but the first baseman continued to score, recording a two-out, two-RBI single as part of a remarkable fifth inning as the Dodgers came back from 5-0 down to tie the game. .

“To get through those situations, that’s what you dream about as a kid, that’s what you do in the World Series,” the 35-year-old told ESPN afterward. ‘It’s hard to talk about it now, but maybe in a few days, when I’ve let it sink in, I’ll have better answers for you. Right now I’m just ecstatic.”

Freeman is popular among fans for his elite and friendly personality, and is equally well regarded among his peers.

“I honestly don’t know what I would do without him,” Braves manager Brian Snitker said in 2021. “He’s my rock. I go to him with things. I’ve been with him since the first day he got here in the big leagues. He is everything the Braves stand for.”

It’s a view shared by his current manager, Dave Roberts. “All things considered, he’s my favorite player in terms of what he does for the culture, the organization and the team,” he said, according to ESPN.

This year, MLB players chose Freeman as the friendliest infielder to chat with on the bases, with one NL reliever describing him simply as “good guy.”

“He’s part Canadian, isn’t he?” added an AL infielder, noting Freeman’s legacy.

Freeman is quick to return the praise to his colleagues. After tying the all-time record for RBIs in a single World Series with 12, the first baseman’s response to questions about the feat was simple.

“12 RBIs means a lot of my teammates were on base,” he told Reuters.

Although he was born in the US, the 35-year-old chose to represent Canada internationally and has competed in two World Baseball Classics for the national team. He explained in 2023 that this was a choice he made for his mother.

“My mother passed away when I was 10 years old from melanoma skin cancer, and that’s why I play for Team Canada,” he said. “I don’t know if this is what she would want me to do, but deep in my heart I feel like I should do this.

“I know a lot of people don’t understand it. I was born in California, I’m sure. Yes, that was me. But in my heart it is the right decision for me to honor my mother and play for Team Canada.”