"I told him to stop... this is not worth it" - Freddie Freeman's father reveals how Dodgers star went against his wishes after ankle injury
Freddie Freeman played through an ankle injury throughout the postseason. this, he secured the Willie Mays World Series MVP trophy. After Game 1 where he hit a walk-off grand slam, he dedicated the hit to his father, who was in attendance at Dodger Stadium.
During the postseason, Freddie Freeman also found out that he had torn the coastal cartilage in his sixth rib. In an exclusive interview with ESPN's Jeff Passan, Freddie's father, Fred, advised his youngest son not to push through the injuries and to play for his team.
"I actually told him to stop," Fred was quoted as saying. "I said, 'Freddie, this is not worth it. I know you love baseball. I love baseball. But it's not worth what you're going through.'"
"And he looked at me like I was crazy, and he said, 'Dad, I'm never going to stop.'"
Freeman did miss three postseason games, including one against the San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series before missing two against the New York Mets in the Championship Series. However, he was confident that a few days of rest between the NLCS and the World Series would be sufficient for his recovery.
Freddie Freeman's wife Chelsea went to the World Series with no expectations
Freddie Freeman's wife, Chelsea, expressed that she had to watch her husband cope with two injuries while undergoing hours of treatment each day just to stay in the lineup.
As the World Series began, Chelsea mentioned that the couple moved forward without worrying about his performance, feeling only content to have made it to that stage.
"Freddie doesn't complain about really anything," Chelsea said. "He was getting over four hours of treatment a day, even on days that they weren't playing, just to be able to hope to play in the postseason. So going into the World Series, we had no expectations. We just were hoping he'd be able to play."
In the Fall Classic, he hit 12 RBIs in the five games including four homers in the first four games. He set multiple World Series records while tying the most RBIs for the showcase series.