by Mark Langill
This time, the Dodgers didn’t need a Freddie Freeman’s slam.
They needed a run.
Preferably on a home run that counted.
Freeman helped rescue the Dodgers on Monday in Milwaukee during a 2–1 victory in the National League Championship Series opener at American Family Field.
Max Muncy’s near grand slam in the fourth inning instead turned into a bizarre 8–6–2 double play that threatened to ruin the storyline for Snell’s gem and give the Brewers the quick start at home in quest of their first World Series title.
Instead, the empire struck back.
Nothing personal, just business as usual for Freeman, the 2024 World Series MVP when he hit four home runs in five games against the New York Yankees.
His sixth-inning home run off Milwaukee reliever Chad Patrick , a towering 362-foot drive that cleared the right field wall, broke the tension. It appeared to be the only run the Dodgers needed as Freeman watched in amazement at Snell’s dominance.
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Snell became the first pitcher to face the minimum 24 batters in eight innings in the postseason since the Yankees’ Don Larsen, who pitched a perfect game against the Brooklyn Dodgers in the 1956 World Series.
“I can’t think of one that was just off the top of my head that was just so good from the start,” Freeman said of Snell. “Sometimes it takes an inning or two for someone to settle in. It was from the get-go.
“Just what he can do with the change-up against right-handed hitters, I think that’s from 82 to 88, he can throttle it whenever he wants. It’s not just one pitch. He’s throwing — it’s like three different pitches when you throw three different speeds for hitters. And then when you think you’re going to sit on something, here comes 96 — it was a masterpiece tonight.”
With Snell handling the baton the new postseason hero warming up in the bullpen for the ninth inning, what could go wrong?
An insurance run in the ninth inning gave the Dodgers a 2–0 lead, something they needed when Roki Sasaki reminded everyone he’s a rookie, although one already saddled with “Game Over” expectations after a sizzling start to October.
Instead of his third postseason save, it was Sasaki who needed the assistance after the Brewers staged a ninth-inning rally that finally ended with Blake Treinen fanned Brice Turang with the bases loaded to give the Dodgers a 1–0 series lead.
Freeman remains part of the Dodgers’ “business as usual” approach to a 13th consecutive postseason appearance. Previous championships with the 2021 Atlanta Braves and 2024 Dodgers have made Freeman’s October heroics par for the course.
Monday’s victory marked Freeman’s fifth career postseason game with a double and a home run, his second game as a Dodger.
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Even Freeman’s glove saved the Dodgers in the Division Series against the Phillies on Oct. 6 when he scooped a bounced throw by second baseman Tommy Edman with two runners on base for the game’s final out, giving the Dodgers a 4–3 victory and a 2–0 series lead heading back to Los Angeles.
The Dodgers have now gained at the very least a split in Milwaukee. They go for more on Tuesday.
But Freeman can’t look that far ahead because of the talent level of Milwaukee, the Central Division champs who went 6–0 aganst Los Angeles during the regular season.
“We knew coming into the series they play great defense, they pitch, they get the big hits when they need to,” Freeman said of the Brewers, who led the Majors with 97 wins. “That’s just who the Brewers are. It’s going to be a tough series from the beginning.
“And you saw it tonight. Every ball we seem to hit they caught it. They pitched great. We knew from the get-go it was going to be a battle.
“Getting on the road in an environment and taking the first one, it’s huge. You can’t understate that at all. Just kind of how we did it in Philly.”
2025 NLCS: Freeman powers Dodgers in opener was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.