The Red Sox beat the Dodgers 5-1 in game 5 on Sunday night in Los Angeles to clinch their ninth World Series title in franchise history, and their fourth title since 2004.
"To see these guys compete on a nightly basis and finally win it. You try to put them in situations that they're going to be successful. And at the end, obviously they decide games and what they did was amazing, very proud of them," said Red Sox manager Alex Cora after the game.
Steve Pearce was named World Series MVP after going 4 for 12, with 3 home runs and 8 RBIs in the series.
"You know, baseball is a funny game. You never know where the game will take you. And I've gone through a lot in my life or in my career to be here, and I couldn't be more thankful," said Pearce after the game.
Red Sox pitcher David Price went seven innings and gave up three hits and one run to get the win.
It is his third straight postseason win after previously being 0-9 prior to game 5 of the ALCS.
"It was tough, absolutely. To answer that question in Spring Training day and day and day and day, and over and over and over and over, anytime it got to September, playoffs, I hold all the cards now. And that feels so good. That feels so good," said Price after the game.
Red Sox Cruise
The Red Sox jumped out to a lead in the first inning when Pearce belted a two-run home run off of Dodgers pitcher Clayton Kershaw to put Boston up 2-0.
In the bottom of the inning, LA’s David Freese would get the Dodgers on the board with a solo home run to right field off of Price to cut LA’s deficit to 2-1.
The home run came on Price's first pitch of the game.
However, the Red Sox offense would add to the lead.
Still leading 2-1 in the sixth, Mookie Betts homered to left field to extend the Red Sox lead to 3-1.
Betts’ home run ended a 0-for-11 slump in the World Series.
After Price got the Dodgers to go down 1-2-3 in the bottom of the sixth, Boston’s J.D. Martinez hit a home run to centerfield on a 1-1 count to give the Red Sox a 4-1 lead.
In the top of the eighth, Pearce would strike again, this time hitting a home run to left field to push Boston’s lead to 5-1.
Pearce joins Babe Ruth and Ted Kluzewski as the only players 35 or older to have a multi-home run World Series game.
"That's great company. Those guys were the best. And if my name gets to sit right next to theirs, I know I've accomplished something," said Pearce after the game.
Chris Sale came out of the bullpen in the ninth inning and sealed the win.
Historic Season
The World Series win caps off a historic season for the Red Sox.
Boston got off to a 17-2 start and then rolled to a franchise record 108 wins, winning the AL East for the third straight season.
When the playoffs begin, the Red Sox beat the New York Yankees in four games and the defending World Series champion Houston Astros in five games.
Boston then beat the Dodgers in five games to win the title.
Related Slideshow: Everything to Know About Red Sox vs Dodgers in World Series - October 2018
Boston's Chris Sale has not pitched since game 1 of the ALCS after he had to miss his game 5 start due to stomach issues.
"This place is going to be obviously going crazy. We have very passionate fans. It's going to be fun. I think we've all been waiting for this. And our fans, too. Our fans have been there the whole year, just like we've been grinding the whole year, and they've been showing up for us and I think they're just as excited as we are. I don't doubt this place is not going to be getting up and going," said Sale during his press conference on Monday.
Sale went just four innings and gave up two runs in his ALCS appearance.
In the NLCS, Dodgers ace Clayton Kershaw had an era of 4.09 in 11 innings pitched, giving up 9 hits and 5 runs.
Prior to that, in LA's NLDS series, Kershaw had an era of 0.00 in eight innings pitched.
He has never pitched at Fenway Park before.
Game 2: Hyun-Jin Ryu vs David Price
Boston's David Price is coming off the first postseason win of his career.
In game five of the ALCS, Price tossed six innings, while striking out nine batters and giving up just three hits to help the Red Sox get to the World Series.
Ryu comes into the start after posting an ERA of 8.59 in seven innings pitched during the NLCS.
In those innings, Ryu gave up seven runs on 13 hits in two games started.
"With Hyun-Jin he's been very good at Dodger Stadium, but if he's executing pitches and being on the road, we're not concerned. He's had a tremendous year. And pitching in big games, whether it be at home or on the road, his pulse, as we've talked about with a lot of our players, isn't a concern of ours," said Roberts.
Game 3: Walker Buehler vs Nathan Eovaldi
It could be argued that Nathan Eovaldi has been Boston's best pitcher to this point in the postseason.
Between the ALCS and ALDS, Eovaldi has tossed 14 innings and given up just three runs for an ERA of 1.88. He has a total of ten strikeouts in those two games.
In his first postseason, LA's Walker Buehler comes into the World Series with an ERA of 5.40.
He has given up five runs and 12 hits in just over 11 innings pitched between the NLCS and NLDS.
Game 4: Rich Hill vs Rick Porcello
Former Cy Young award winner Rick Porcello went from having an ERA of 1.59 in the ALDS to an ERA of 7.20 in the ALCS.
In his ALCS outing, Porcello went five innings and gave up seven hits and four runs.
A former member of the Red Sox organization, Rich Hill enters the World Series after posting a 1.50 ERA in the NLCS.
In his NLCS outing, Hill tossed six innings and gave up four hits and one run.
The Red Sox bullpen has been shaky for much of the postseason, so much so, that Cora has used Sale, Porcello, and Eovaldi in relief duty.
If Cora is not going to a starter, expect to see Matt Barnes and Ryan Brazier used as set up men to Craig Kimbrel with Joe Kelly and Brandon Workman mixed in depending on the situation.
KImbrel has been shaky himself for much of the postseason, nearly giving away games against the Yankees in the ALDS and then in the ALCS against the Astros.
The key players for the Dodgers entering the World Series include Matt Kemp, Yasiel Puig, and Justin Turner.
Kemp is a bench player for LA, but makes the key player list after Roberts announced that he would serve as LA's designated hitter for games in Fenway Park.
Kemp batted just .200 in the NLCS, but saw only 10 at-bats. He batted .250 in the NLDS, but in only four at-bats.
Puig enters the World Series after batting .333 in the NLCS with seven hits, including a home run, and four RBIs.
Puig has also had his share of errors in the field and on the base paths.
"Yasiel has had some mental lapses; is that right? Certainly, our job as coaches is to continue to teach players. And there is certainly a lot of upside with Yasiel. There's a lot of energy. There's a little bit or maybe a little bit more of -- there's some recklessness. So my job, the coach's job, is to continue to embrace it to some extent but also harness it. So there is a balance. But certainly with Yasiel the net is certainly a positive," said Roberts.
Turner enters the World Series after batting .241 in the NLCS with seven hits and three RBIs.
Former Baltimore Oriole, now LA Dodger, Manny Machado is quickly turning into a "villain" in these baseball playoffs.
In the NLCS against Milwaukee, Machado stepped on the foot of Brewers' first baseman Jesus Aguilar and also had a questionable slide into second base earlier in the series.
Being a former Oriole, Machado has history with the Red Sox.
Last season, Machado made an aggressive slide into second base and took out Dustin Pedroia.
In response, Red Sox pitcher Matt Barnes then threw at Machado, which sparked a bench-clearing incident. Barnes ended up being suspended for it.
Pedroia essentially has not played a game since that incident.
"So I've heard a little bit about the history with the Red Sox, but when you're in the World Series I think that each team's goal is to win four baseball games. So I don't think that the history really has any effect on these next games," said Dodgers manager Dave Roberts.
Machado hit .296 in the NLCS with eight hits, one home run, and three RBIs.
The key players in the Red Sox lineup include right fielder Mookie Betts, left fielder Andrew Benintendi, DH JD Martinez, and outfielder Andrew Benintendi.
Mookie Betts comes into his World Series after batting .217 in the ALCS with five hits and just one RBI.
Overall in these playoffs, he is eight for 39.
Martinez enters his first World Series after batting .278 in the ALCS with five hits and three RBIs.
He is 10 for 32 in the playoffs to this point.
Benintendi enters the World Series after batting .2018 in the ALCS with five hits and one RBI.
However, it was his defense that propelled Boston into the Fall Classic, specifically a diving catch to seal Boston's game four win and put them up 3-1 in the series.
Red Sox outfielder Jackie Bradley Jr. is one of the hottest players on either team entering the World Series.
Hitting out of the nine spot, Bradley was named ALCS MVP after recording nine RBIs with a grand slam in game three, a solo home run in game four and a bases-clearing double in game two against the Astros.
He also drew four walks in the series.
If Bradley Jr. can keep up this pace, he could be holding a World Series MVP trophy.
When the series shifts to Los Angeles for games three, four and five, the Red Sox will lose the designated hitter.
This means that Boston manager Alex Cora will have to find another way to get JD Martinez's bat in the lineup.
One option, arguably the best option, is to put Martinez at one of the corner outfield positions, where he logged nearly 500 innings this season, and move Mookie Betts to second base.
“There’s always a chance, I guess. Those are the cool conversations that come with where we’re at," said Cora during his press conference on Sunday.
The managing matchup is Boston's Alex Cora against LA's Dave Roberts.
Cora and Roberts were teammates with the Dodgers during the 2004 season.
"I know it's going to sound bad, but not really. I love the guy. He means a lot to me but at the same time we have a job to do. And you start looking at my postseason this year, we had Boonie with the Yankees, A.J. with the Astros, and now we've got Dave. And at the end of the day we like each other, we're friends and we respect each other, but at the end they want to win four to win the World Series and we feel the same -- we want to do the same thing," said Cora during his press conferece on Monday.
In his first managing job, Cora led the Red Sox to a franchise record 108 wins and their first World Series appearance since 2013.
Dave Roberts is in his fourth season as manager of the Dodgers and has LA in the World Series for the second straight year after they lost to Houston last season.
Roberts is the former Red Sox player who famously stole second base in the 2004 ALCS to help the Red Sox avoid a series sweep against the Yankees.
Boston would, of course, come back from down 3-0 to beat the Yankees in the ALCS and go onto win their first World Series since 1918.
"It is great coming back to this great city. I've got nothing but great memories, even flying into Logan and just this time of year, this city, the leaves changing. And then you drive up to Fenway Park and it all just kind of comes back to you, 2004," said Roberts during his press conference on Monday.
