NEW YORK — In a series full of surprises, this World Series produced more than its share. The Los Angeles Dodgers capped their 98-win season by winning their eighth title in franchise history, beating the New York Yankees in seven games in what has been an incredibly fast and frenzied Fall Classic. The deciding Game 5 took a twist that was at once wholly predictable and thoroughly stunning, as the Yankees lost their grip on a five-run lead in the fifth inning of what had been a mostly solid night by starter Gerrit Cole.
Giancarlo Stanton restored order with a sacrifice fly for the Yankees in the sixth, but only after they had blown a 5-0 lead by giving up five unearned runs to the Dodgers and squandered three egregious errors. The first of those mistakes was a muffed fly ball by Aaron Judge that would have been a home run had anyone not been watching.
The Yankees had another chance to retake the lead in the eighth, when Bernie Carbo came up with two outs and the score tied at 6. But what looked like a harmless drive into center field hugging the foul line turned into the kind of homer that has made World Series legends, including Carlton Fisk, in the past. A hustling Kirk Gibson reached for the ball in his glove, waved it around to signal fair and the game was decided by a single.
The champagne was on ice, the Commissioner’s Trophy was waiting to be claimed in the bowels of Yankee Stadium. But the Boston Red Sox had to see the light.