British Prime Minister Winston Churchill famously said in 1941 at the beginning of World War II, “Never give in, never give in, never, never, never, never-in-nothing, great or small, large or petty – never give in except to convictions of honour and good sense. Never yield to force; never yield to the apparently overwhelming might of the enemy.”
This lesson from the dark days of WWII apply well to every endeavor in life. Whether facing an enemy invasion, the treatment of life-threatening disease, or just the challenges of every day living, Churchill’s words are a good reminder when you find yourself losing hope.
The Los Angeles Dodgers might have lost hope in the last days of the recently completed World Series, but they didn’t. It’s doubtful that the words of Churchill were on their minds, but his lesson was embodied by their persistence in the face of mounting odds as they faced the last two games of the series, down three games to two to the Toronto Blue Jays and needing to win two games on the road.
After winning an exhausting, record breaking 18 inning Game Three, the Dodgers lost Games Four and Five and found themselves facing elimination as they returned to Toronto for Game Six. The odds of winning those last two games away were high, but not as high as the hurdle they faced in the bottom of the Ninth inning of Game Six. The Dodgers were winning 3-1, but the Blue Jays put runners on second and third with no outs. A single would tie the game and a home run would win the game and the series for Toronto.
The Dodgers brought in reliever Tyler Glasnow who ended the inning and the game in just three pitches. The first pitch produced a pop-up to the first baseman. Two pitches later a broken-bat blooper to left field looked to be a hit that would tie the game, but left-fielder Kike Hernandez got a good jump on the ball, made the catch and then threw out the runner on second who had expected the ball would fall in for a hit. Game over; Dodgers win and the series goes to Game Seven.
Game Seven produced an even more dramatic ninth inning. With the Blue Jays leading 4-3, and needing only two more outs to win the series, Miguel Rojas of the Dodgers hit a line drive homer to left field to tie the score, his only home run of the series.
But in the bottom of the ninth, the Blue Jays filled the bases with one out, needing only one run to win the game and the series. The situation looked hopeless for Dodgers fans. Dodgers’ manager Dave Roberts then made two strategic moves. He brought in ace-pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, even though he had pitched Game Six! He also substituted Andy Pages into center field for defensive purposes.
Yamamoto got Daulton Varsho to hit a sharp grounder to second base and Rojas made the play, throwing off-balance to home plate to just nip the runner who would have brought in the winning run. The next batter, Ernie Clement, had just set a single-postseason record with his 30th hit earlier in the game. Clement sent a long fly ball to left center that was over the head of left fielder Hernandez, but center fielder Pages leaped high and caught the ball just before it hit the wall, ending the inning. It is likely regular center fielder Tommy Edman would have been too short to reach that fly ball. The Dodgers were still alive.
The game would go on to the 11th inning when the Dodgers Will Smith hit a home run to take the lead. But Blue Jays star Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. led off the bottom of the 11th with a double and was sacrificed to third. After a walk to Addison Barger, Alejandro Kirk came to the plate with two on and only one out. The Blue Jays would tie the game with a hit and win with a home run. Kirk had been a thorn in the side of the Dodgers the whole series.
But Kirk hit a broken-bat grounder to shortstop Mookie Betts who started a double-play that ended the game and the series, giving the defending champion Dodgers their second World Series championship in a row. Despite a seemingly hopeless situation, the Dodgers had prevailed once again. They Never Give Up!
Author’s Note: For more on this historic Game 7, read Tyler Kepner’s New York Times article Why the Dodgers and Blue Jays just played the greatest Game 7 in World Series history.
