2024 World Series Preview: Yankees vs. Dodgers

The Fall Classic will return to Yankee Stadium for the first time in 15 years, but Shohei Ohtani’s Dodgers have every intention of spoiling the party.

Yankees vs. Dodgers has probably been one of the most common World Series predictions of the past decade. They’re both consistent powerhouse teams with loads of star power, and both have made the playoffs in every season since 2017 (save for the Yankees’ 2023 absence). They also overlapped in the postseason in 1995, 1996, 2004, 2006, 2009, and 2015.

Yet the historic rivals have not squared off in a Fall Classic since Tommy Lasorda’s Dodgers closed out a championship at the old Yankee Stadium back in 1981 — long enough ago that skippers Dave Roberts and Aaron Boone were both Little Leaguers. Over half of Vin Scully’s legendary career behind the mic for the Dodgers remained ahead.

In 2024, the heavyweights are back in power together, ready to duke it out like Jackie Robinson vs. Yogi Berra, Sandy Koufax vs. Mickey Mantle, and Charlie Hough vs. Reggie Jackson. Here’s how to follow along as Shohei Ohtani and Mookie Betts knock gloves with Aaron Judge and Juan Soto.

World Series schedule

Game 1: Friday, Oct. 25, 8:08pm ET, Dodger Stadium
Game 2: Saturday, Oct. 26, 8:08pm ET, Dodger Stadium
Game 3: Monday, Oct. 28, 8:08pm ET, Yankee Stadium
Game 4: Tuesday, Oct. 29, 8:08pm ET, Yankee Stadium
Game 5*: Wednesday, Oct. 30, 8:08pm ET, Yankee Stadium
Game 6*: Friday, Nov. 1, 8:08pm ET, Dodger Stadium
Game 7*: Saturday, Nov. 2, 8:08pm ET, Dodger Stadium

*if necessary; all games will be televised on Fox

Now, how do these two teams stack up? As already noted, there are quite a few stars, but there are plenty of key contributors who are far from household names. Some positions of strength might surprise you; others will not.

Note: Cited statistics next to players’ names are from the regular season.

Catcher

Dodgers: Will Smith (128 G, .248/.327/.433, 20 HR, 2.7 fWAR)
Yankees: Austin Wells (115 G, .229/.322/.395, 13 HR, 3.4 fWAR)

Smith has a case for the most anonymous nine-figure athlete in American sports. The former first-round pick has been remarkably consistent across his first several years in the majors since debuting in 2019, and the Dodgers rewarded him with a 10-year, $140 million extension this past March. Smith celebrated with his second consecutive All-Star season and his third 20-homer campaign in four years. He’s not much of a pitch framer, but he does have a gun, leading the NL with a 33-percent caught-stealing rate. Smith is hitting just .158 in the playoffs, though two of his six hits have gone over the wall.

It’s not every year that you see a matchup of two homegrown catchers. The Yankees nabbed Wells 28th overall out of the University of Arizona in 2020, and while there was always confidence that his bat would make him an MLB hitter one day, there was understandable skepticism about his ability to stay behind the plate. Undeterred, the AL Rookie of the Year candidate has cemented his spot as the Yankees’ starting catcher by turning himself into an elite framer. In an ironic twist from his prospect days, Wells’ defense has been his carrying card in the postseason, as the once-cleanup hitter has gone ice cold. He has 11 hits in total since the beginning of September, so that .105 showing has him pushed down to eighth in the batting order.

Advantage: Dodgers. Neither has done much in October. We’ll defer to LA since Smith has a longer track record of success. Wells just doesn’t look like the dangerous bat he was for much of the summer.

First Base

Dodgers: Freddie Freeman (147 G, .282/.378/.476, 22 HR, 4.0 fWAR)
Yankees: Anthony Rizzo (92 G, .228/.301/.335, 8 HR, -0.2 fWAR)

If this article was written a month ago, I’d probably make some pithy comment and end with “lol of course it’s Freddie Freeman.” The problem is that this isn’t Freddie Freeman.

Nearly all the way through another stellar campaign in LA, Freeman badly sprained his ankle near the end of the regular season and under normal circumstances, he would’ve gone straight to the IL. He’s tried to gut through it this postseason. Freeman is 7-for-32 with just singles (albeit some shots) and one walk to his name. Roberts even sat him down in three playoff games because the ankle has been in agony and an alternate lineup with Max Muncy at first is still great. Freeman will at least start the series there in Game 1; perhaps the week off will help.

That’s one injured first baseman, so why not two? Rizzo was already in the midst of his worst year since debuting with the Padres in 2011 when he broke his arm in mid-June. He didn’t return until September, and at the end of the month, the active leader in hit-by-pitches suffered a painful plunking when Pirates lefty Ryan Borucki broke two of Rizzo’s fingers. He missed the Division Series and still has gross postgame swelling, but he did manage to hit .429 across the five-game ALCS. Even if that’s not his true form, the former 2016 champion can at least offer a solid at-bat in crunch time.

Advantage: Dodgers. Although Freeman’s ankle is a complication, the Dodgers haven’t hesitated to simply slide Muncy over the cover for him. The position as a whole is an obvious LA edge.

Second Base

Dodgers: Kiké Hernández (126 G, .229/.281/.373, 12 HR, 0.7 fWAR)
Yankees: Gleyber Torres (154 G, .257/.330/.378, 15 HR, 1.7 fWAR)

Utilityman extraordinaire Hernández has started at three different positions this October. The most recent lineup that included Freeman had Kiké at the keystone, so we’ll put him here (the Dodgers could also deploy Gavin Lux or Chris Taylor). If you’re a believer in vibes, then you’re a big believer in this guy. He’s had one good regular season in the last six years, and that was in 2021. But the lifetime .889 OPS postseason hitter has thrived once again in October, tying Babe Ruth by reaching 15 career playoff homers. Go figure.

Torres has had a very strange season, as the impending free agent looked like someone on track to lose a lot of potential money. The leadoff hitter on Opening Day stumbled to a .231/.307/.347 first half, found himself hitting seventh for much of June, and even got benched a couple times. The Yankees mostly kept starting him though, and with no answers found at leadoff, they tried Torres there again in August. It clicked, and he’s found new life with a .313/.386/.454 showing over the season’s final month and a half. Gleyber has an .832 OPS in 45 plate appearances, capably setting the table for the big bats behind him in the Yankees’ lineup.

Advantage: With all due respect to Kiké’s vibes, Yankees. Gleyber just looks like his old self at this point.

Shortstop

Dodgers: Tommy Edman (37 G, .237/.294/.417, 6 HR, 0.9 fWAR)
Yankees: Anthony Volpe (160 G, .243/.293/.364, 12 HR, 3.4 fWAR)

Years from now, when you might find yourself answering trivia about the 2024 MLB postseason, you might be stumped about the Dodger who was named NLCS MVP. It wasn’t Ohtani, Betts, Freeman, Muncy, or even a Hernández. Instead, it was a guy who hadn’t played at all in 2024 when LA plucked him from St. Louis at the Trade Deadline: Edman. The combination of wrist surgery and an ankle sprain had kept the Stanford product out of action and the Cardinals had lost faith in him. So off he went to the Dodgers in a weird three-team, eight-player deal that also saw LA acquire reliever Michael Kopech. Edman was productive down the stretch and then dropped a 1.022 OPS and 11 RBI on the Mets in the six-game NLCS triumph.

Edman is a good, versatile defender who won a Gold Glove in 2021 at second base and held down the six with ease in the NLCS. Alas, he won’t be the best defensive shortstop in this series because Volpe is truly terrific. It’d be fair to quibble with his Gold Glove win from 2023 since Bobby Witt Jr. was elite, but no one questions that this kid can pick it. Although Witt will probably get that Gold Glove this year, Volpe has actually managed to improve on his own stellar 2023 defensive numbers. The bat is where it gets questionable because the once-acclaimed prospect has an unseemly .661 OPS and 83 OPS+ across 319 career games. Volpe does find his grooves, however, and he’s hitting .310 with a team-best .459 OBP this October (better than even Soto). If that’s the Volpe who shows up in the Fall Classic, then the 23-year-old could become a star on the national stage.

Advantage: Push. Thanks to Edman’s red-hot bat and Volpe’s tremendous defense, this one is too close to call.

Third Base

Dodgers: Max Muncy (73 G, .232/.358/.494, 15 HR, 2.4 fWAR)
Yankees: Jazz Chisholm Jr. (147 G, .256/.324/.436, 24 HR, 4.0 fWAR)

No one’s going to confuse the merely-adequate Muncy for Adrian Beltré out there on defense, but assuming that Freeman is healthy for the full series, Muncy will spend his time at the hot corner. This man is not a fun at-bat for any pitcher, as he is both patient and more than capable of popping out bombs, too. In the NLCS, Muncy had one hot streak where he reached base in 12 consecutive plate appearances, including eight walks and two homers. That short porch at Yankee Stadium will be especially enticing for the lefty swinger in the middle games. Roberts is happy to put Muncy anywhere in the middle of the lineup, from seventh to as high as cleanup.

Jazz is … fascinating. There are times when he can look like the best athlete on the field in a crowd that features studs like Soto and Judge. He’s cocky, he can cause havoc on the bases, he can crush 400-foot bombs, and he picked up third base with remarkable ease midseason after coming over from Miami despite never having played there before. He also sometimes goes through stretches where it doesn’t like he can do anything right. October has been full of that for Chisholm, as he’s 5-for-34 (.147) with 11 strikeouts, a lot of bad swings, and ugly baserunning. If he still seems sluggish, then don’t be surprised if Roberts pitches around the likes of Soto, Judge, and Giancarlo Stanton to challenge Jazz.

Advantage: Dodgers. Chisholm has the higher ceiling; Muncy is the safer bet.

Left Field

Dodgers: Teoscar Hernández (154 G, .272/.339/.501, 33 HR, 3.5 fWAR)
Yankees: Alex Verdugo (149 G, .233/.291/.356, 13 HR, 0.6 fWAR)

Back in June, the Yankees and Dodgers met up in the Bronx for their only showdown of the regular season. Teoscar simply took over. The Yankees were accustomed to giving up shots to him from his days with the division rival Blue Jays, and this was no exception. Hernández went 6-for-12 with a trio of homers and nine RBI. It was a highlight from an impressive “prove-it” season from Teoscar, who didn’t like the multi-year offers he was getting in free agency and went for a one-year, $23.5 million deal to play with a known winner in LA. He was an All-Star, hit a new career-high in homers, and despite just turning 32, he’ll likely get a very nice deal in the offseason. But first, he wants that ring. The Yankees will have to hope they have the Mets’ NLCS success against him (2-for-22 with only singles) rather than the Padres’ NLDS woes (6-for-18 with a pair of homers).

Once upon a time, Alex Verdugo was traded for Mookie Betts. Whoops! To be fair, reducing the trade to that is simplistic since there was a lot of cash going around in that controversial winter 2020 deal between Boston and LA, but it is interesting to think about Verdugo as a former top Dodgers prospect. He’s generally been a productive big leaguer, if not exactly the guy once advertised among “the best pure hitting prospects in baseball.” Dealt again from Boston to New York this past offseason, Verdugo has slumped from his once league-average bat to a .647 OPS. But the Yankees are opting to keep his well-regarded glove out in left over the inexperienced Jasson Domínguez. You never know — Verdugo has already been essential to one playoff win this year and he has shown a tendency to play well against the teams who gave up on him.

Advantage: Dodgers. Easy peasy.

Center Field

Dodgers: Andy Pages (116 G, .248/.305/.407, 13 HR, 1.3 fWAR)
Yankees: Aaron Judge (158 G, .322/.458/.701, 58 HR, 11.2 fWAR)

The Dodgers have given Kiké and Edman looks in center, but assuming they stay at their allotted positions here, then the rookie Pages is the pick. He was about a league-average bat on the season, though he finished 2024 on a nice run with an .898 OPS in 28 games across the final two months. Pages was quiet in the playoffs until a multi-homer showing in NLCS Game 5 at Citi Field, one of LA’s few highlights from that loss. It might be enough to earn him a World Series Game 1 start, and Roberts doesn’t have to worry about his defense in center, either. The tough righty in Gerrit Cole could also push him to the bench in favor of Kiké in center and Lux at second. Stay tuned, as Pages should at least get a crack at lefty Carlos Rodón in Game 2.

It’s not novel to say at this point, and yet it still bears repeating: It is utterly remarkable that Aaron Judge hit 62 home runs in 2022 and it’s now no longer his career year. Judge clobbered 58 this past season while posting a higher average, OBP, SLG, OPS+, and WAR. He made better swing decisions and became an even more dangerous hitter. Judge’s playoff numbers since the start of 2021 are bad, but if you think that means opposing pitchers no longer feel queasy about facing him, then you are mistaken. Elite Cleveland closer Emmanuel Clase sure didn’t enjoy it.

Advantage: Yankees. As with the first-base situation, it doesn’t really matter who one team’s ultimate selection is, as there’s a clear favorite. Judge is a titan.

Right Field

Dodgers: Mookie Betts (116 G, .289/.372/.491, 19 HR, 4.4 fWAR)
Yankees: Juan Soto (157 G, .288/.419/.569, 41 HR, 8.1 fWAR)

Ohtani will be the near-unanimous NL MVP. For the first few months, however, it appeared as though the 2018 AL MVP and three-time runner-up would give him a run for his money. Although Betts had dipped oh-so-slightly in June, he still entered play on June 16th hitting .307/.407/.493 in 71 games, all while saving the Dodgers’ bacon at shortstop since they didn’t really have an answer at the six. Then Royals reliever Dan Altavilla broke his hand on a hit-by-pitch and that was that. Mookie returned to his more familiar right field upon being activated and has barely missed a beat. He also snapped a 6-for-54 playoff funk dating back to the 2021 NLCS, going yard in four of nine games with a 1.182 OPS since the start of NLDS Game 3.

And yet.

Mookie has Soto beat with defense and baserunning, but despite his own fearsome bat, that’s not nearly enough to surpass the birthday boy, a soon-to-be free agent who is about to receive the biggest contract in MLB history (non-wonky deferral edition). Watching Soto in the batter’s box is poetry in motion. This guy would have a Ph.D in hitting, and comparison to a young Ted Williams remain entirely deserving. Batting Soto in front of Judge in a lineup is just downright mean and yet the 26-year-old works the count better than anyone in the game. A 2019 champion with the Nats, Soto notched an 1.178 OPS in that Fall Classic, and he’s ready for more. The jury’s still out if this will be a one-and-done year for him in the Bronx. But hell if it hasn’t been worth it.

Advantage: Yankees. This has to be the only possible head-to-head in baseball among right fielders where Betts doesn’t come out on top. Soto is the best of the best.

Designated Hitter

Dodgers: Shohei Ohtani (159 G, .310/.390/.646, 54 HR, 9.1 fWAR)
Yankees: Giancarlo Stanton (114 G, .233/.298/.475, 27 HR, 0.8 fWAR)

Stanton is one of the best playoff hitters of this generation, with a 1.019 OPS and 16 career postseason homers in just 36 games. He’s more of a boom-or-bust hitter at this stage of his career, but when all four hits in the ALCS went for homers, no one complained. They came in huge spots, too, sinking the Guardians just when they felt like they were clawing back, and he won MVP honors. As an added bonus, Stanton grew up outside LA and spent many a day at Dodger Stadium, where he loves to hit (highlighted by both a 2015 moonshot out of the ballpark and his 2022 All-Star Game). Throw him a fastball at your own risk.

But Ohtani is one of one. Prevented from pitching in 2024 due to elbow surgery, he decided that it was simply time to show off that he can be a stolen-base threat as well. The pitching responsibilities had previously kept him from wearing himself out too much with thefts. Without ‘em, he became the first 50/50 player in MLB history, setting the Dodgers’ single-season home run record in the process. He has played for his country on the biggest stage and produced arguably the best international baseball moment of all-time. Ohtani will not be intimidated by anything.

Advantage: Dodgers. It’s Shohei. If only he could toss an inning of relief, too. Oh well.

Starting Pitchers

Dodgers: RHP Jack Flaherty, RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto, RHP Walker Buehler
Yankees: RHP Gerrit Cole, LHP Carlos Rodón, RHP Clarke Schmidt, RHP Luis Gil

Remember Tyler Glasnow? Remember Clayton Kershaw? Remember Gavin Stone? They’re all hurt and Bobby Miller was unconscionably bad, so the Dodgers have just three real starters at the moment. That’s all while only getting Yamamoto back from a serious shoulder injury in mid-September, too. The Dodgers have been careful with their $325 million rookie in the seven starts since his return, never pushing him past the fifth or to 80 pitches. He stymied the team he nearly signed with for seven shutout innings back in June; would Roberts let him last that long again?

Flaherty has his own interesting Yankees-related storyline, as New York had reportedly agreed to acquire him from Detroit at the Trade Deadline before backing out due to concerns over his medicals. No doubt he’ll be hoping to prove that GM Brian Cashman made a mistake. He shut out one New York team in his last Game 1 start in LA back in the NLCS; now he’ll try to do it again in the Fall Classic. As his shaky Game 5 in Queens indicated though, there are no guarantees. The same could be said for the struggling Buehler and the risky bullpen game that Roberts will have to deploy at least once.

Cole is the quintessential ace and defending AL Cy Young Award winner. An elbow injury will prevent a repeat, though he looked like the same Cole in most of his 17 starts. One of the premier pitchers of his generation, Cole is just like his teammate Judge in that he still has yet to win a championship ring. He had to watch from the bullpen in the 2019 World Series in Houston as his teammates let Game 7 get away from them late. As if Cole needed any more motivation to put the Yankees on his back in two possible starts. (And hey, Juan Soto is on his team now!)

The Yankees’ situation gets less secure behind Cole. Rodón has been like Flaherty in that he’s had one good start, one bad start, and one in between. He showed more poise in the ALCS after the Royals took him apart during New York’s lone ALDS loss. The young guns, Schmidt and Gil, have had electric moments in 2024, but at this point in the season, Boone is clearly hesitant to leave them in for very long. They probably won’t see the lineup a third time through unless the Yankees have the game in hand or the bullpen is in dire need of a breather. The Gil start will be a fascinating test for the AL Rookie of the Year candidate, as while he can strike out anyone, he also led the league in walks and LA has a disciplined group of hitters.

Advantage: Yankees. The Dodgers need Johnny Wholestaff to pinch-hit a start, and there’s a case that a front three of Cole/Rodón/Schmidt might be better than Flaherty/Yamamoto/Buehler anyway. If LA can steal a Cole start, however, then the Yanks will be in trouble.

Bullpen

Top Dodgers relievers to know: RHP Blake Treinen, RHP Michael Kopech, LHP Anthony Banda, RHP Evan Phillips, RHP Daniel Hudson
Top Yankees relievers to know: RHP Luke Weaver, RHP Clay Holmes, RHP Tommy Kahnle, LHP Tim Hill, RHP Jake Cousins

The only reason why lefty Alex Vesia wasn’t included in the batch above is because he’s not yet certain for the World Series as of the time of writing. The southpaw left NLDS Game 5 with a rib injury and missed the NLCS. Yesterday, he said he was at “90 percent” confidence, so expect to see him. The Dodgers have been able to survive three bullpen games this postseason because the relief corps is excellent. To borrow from Nick Power at Pinstripe Alley, here’s what the best have done to date:

RHP Blake Treinen: 6 G, 1.13 ERA, 8 IP, 1 R, 2 BB, 11 K
RHP Michael Kopech: 6 G, 1.69 ERA, 5.1 IP, 1 R, 4 BB, 7 K
LHP Anthony Banda: 6 G, 1.59 ERA, 5.2 IP, 1 R, 2 BB, 7 K
RHP Evan Phillips: 5 G, 0.00 ERA, 6.2 IP, 0 R, 3 BB, 6 K
RHP Daniel Hudson: 5 G, 2.08 ERA, 4.1 IP, 1 R, 1 BB, 3 K

Now that’s effective relief, and few outings came on back-to-back days, too. Treinen has been nasty, and Roberts has managed all of them well. Banda and Vesia will be especially important in holding down their fellow lefty in Soto, and unless he’s the potential final out of the inning, the three-batter minimum means that they’ll have to contend with Judge and perhaps Stanton, too. They’re a touch anonymous and they’re better than you think.

At the beginning of September, the conversation around the Yankees’ bullpen would’ve been bleak. Once the (surprising) All-Star closer, Holmes was bumped from the role, tying a franchise record with 13 blown saves. Kahnle was reliable enough and Weaver had been a productive setup man, but was was this really a bullpen up to the challenges of October? Evidently, yes.

Weaver has been a revelation as the closer in all but name, pitching to a 1.33 ERA with 34 strikeouts and a mere pair of walks in 20.1 innings since Holmes’ demotion on September 8th. The few runs came in the ALCS—two on Jhonkensy Noel’s stunning shot—so perhaps the Dodgers can take heart in that he could be feeling the heavy work. Holmes bore the brunt too. He rebounded nicely in the less-stressful spotlight and threw up zeroes in his first six playoff appearances of 2024. His last two ALCS games were less rosy. Boone will still call his number, but he’s also comfortable with the changeup spammer Kahnle, the slider-happy Cousins (yes, he is really Kirk Cousins’ cousin), and soft-contact specialist Hill.

Advantage: Dodgers, though it’s closer than one would have guessed it would be a month ago. If Vesia is back, then LA has the edge without a doubt. Then again, the ‘pen was where Cleveland clearly had its biggest edge on New York, so make of that what you will.