by Mark Langill
This time it wasn’t a grand slam, but for the reeling Dodgers, Freddie Freeman’s bases-loaded heroics felt like a World Series celebration on a Wednesday afternoon in July.
Losers of 11 of their last 14 games and on the verge of wasting a dominating performance by starter Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers rallied for two runs in the bottom of the ninth inning for a 4–3 victory over the Minnesota Twins at Dodger Stadium.
Freeman’s two-out, two-run single that just eluded the glove of a diving Harrison Bader in left field let the Dodgers leave town with a series win and salvage a 2–4 homestand as the team embarks on a nine-game road trip to Boston, Cincinnati and Tampa Bay.
The Red Sox, Reds and Rays have winning records. The Dodgers are 26–28 against winning teams.
Glasnow had 12 strikeouts in seven innings while allowing one run on three hits. It was the second time in his Dodger career Glasnow struck out 12 batters in seven innings. The other time was also against Minnesota on April 9, 2024.
“I’m happy where I am, I feel good, I feel healthy,” said Glasnow, who began the season on the injured list. “As the game went on, the curveball started to get sharper.”
It was the fifth time in eight starts in 2025 that Glasnow pitched at least five innings, something he did 21 of 22 times during his abbreviated All-Star season in 2024 in which he didn’t pitch after August 11 because of inflammation in his shoulder.
Shohei Ohtani tied a franchise record by homering in his fifth consecutive game with a first-inning blast off Minnesota starter Chris Paddack.
Ohtani also tied the Dodger mark for most home runs in consecutive seasons with 91. Shawn Green, the Dodgers’ previous single-season home run leader until Ohtani, hit 49 home runs in 2001 and 42 home runs in 2002.
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Ohtani played a key role in the ninth without lifting the bat off his shoulders.
After Mookie Betts reached base on a two-out infield single, the Twins decided to intentionally walk Ohtani. Esteury Ruiz drew a walk from reliever Griffin Jax to give Freeman a chance.
“Give credit to the guys for getting on base and Tyler was amazing today,” Freeman said. “That was a huge win for us, a huge series win. I’m glad we were able to pull that off.”
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With his recent struggles at the plate, Freeman said one swing wasn’t going to “fix” his swing. But the momentum swung in favor of the Dodgers.
“It’s still a work in progress,” Freeman said, “I haven’t hit a line drive to left field in a while. Hopefully we can build on that going into Friday.”
Manager Dave Roberts hopes the team’s 36th comeback victory of the season marks a turning point in the season as the Dodgers are now 7–11 in July.
“I hope so,” Roberts said. “I think how we got here today, showing the fight, willing ourselves to get Freddie that at-bat. And for Freddie to take his best swing in about a month, I’d like to think that’s momentum building.”
Freeman delivers walk-off magic was originally published in Dodger Insider on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.