LOS ANGELES — Freddie Freeman blasted his second home run of the World Series as the Los Angeles Dodgers beat the New York Yankees, 4-2, to take a 2-0 stranglehold on the best-of-seven showdown on Saturday (Sunday in Manila).
Freeman — who smashed a sensational grand slam to seal victory in Friday's dramatic opener — followed a two-run home run from Teoscar Hernandez in a decisive burst of scoring in the third inning.
Game three of the series takes place in New York on Monday.
Los Angeles superstar Shohei Ohtani, meanwhile, suffered an apparent shoulder injury.
Ohtani was thrown out attempting to steal second base to end the bottom of the seventh inning.
He appeared to jar his left shoulder as he stretched to slide and stayed on the ground in pain, signaling for help from the team.
Broadcaster Fox reported he injured his shoulder, but there was no immediate word from the Dodgers on the exact nature or severity of the injury.
He walked off the field holding his left arm, elbow bent, near his body with a trainer in attendance.
While the Dodgers took a commanding 2-0 lead in Major League Baseball's best-of-seven championship series, the injury to Ohtani shocked the crowd at Dodger Stadium.
A two-time American League Most Valuable Player with the Los Angeles Angels before joining the Dodgers this season, Ohtani is expected to claim the National League MVP award this year after becoming the first player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in a season.
On the other hand, Aaron Judge is sinking ever deeper into a gruesome postseason slump, and the New York Yankees' championship chances are fading right along with him.
The Yankees' superstar slugger went 1 for 9 with six strikeouts in his first two World Series games at Dodger Stadium, dragging down New York's offense in two losses to Los Angeles.
Judge was 0 for 4 with three strikeouts in Game 2. He struggled even to make contact against Yoshinobu Yamamoto and reliever Blake Treinen, who fanned him with Juan Soto on second base for the first out of the ninth inning in the Dodgers' victory.
Judge swung and missed six times in his four at-bats in Game 2. The entire Dodgers roster only did that 12 times.
Judge will probably win his second American League MVP award after the season ends, but he is nobody's idea of an October hero.
He is 6 for 40 with two homers and a whopping 19 strikeouts in these playoffs, getting all six of his RBIs during a three-game stretch in the AL Championship Series. He is 0 for 8 with runners in scoring position, and he has just one hit in his last 22 at-bats in that situation dating to past postseasons.
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