"Mets, Yankees were still unbelievable" - Dodgers pitcher calls beating Aaron Judge, Juan Soto, Francisco Lindor a 'fun challenge' in 2024 postseason
The likes of Aaron Judge, Juan Soto and Francisco Lindor from the New York teams came up short against the LA Dodgers en route to their eighth World Series title in 2024. While Judge seemingly struggled, Soto and Lindor did relatively well but not enough to overcome the Dodgers' challenge.
Yankees captain Judge struggled against the LA club, hitting .222 with a home run, three RBIs and two runs scored in five World Series games. His batting partner, Soto, batted .313 with a homer, an RBI and six runs scored. Meanwhile, Mets shortstop Lindor, who faced the Dodgers in the NLCS, batted .292 with a home run, two RBIs and five runs.
Recalling the postseason journey, Dodgers rookie ace Landon Knack found it "fun" to beat "unbelievable hitters" like Soto, Judge and Lindor.
"It was all those guys—talented hitters," Knack said Sunday on 'Dodgers Dugout' show (7:00 onwards). "I mean, obviously, the depth that the Padres had, top to bottom in that lineup, was absolutely unbelievable. But yeah, obviously, the Mets and the Yankees both had unbelievable lineups to go through as well.
"Especially facing Lindor and Vientos for the Mets, and then, of course, you’ve got Soto, Judge, and Stanton with the Yankees. So yeah, both of those lineups were absolutely stacked. Getting through those guys was a fun challenge."
A costly error in World Series Game 5 will forever be etched as regret in Aaron Judge's memory
The LA Dodgers were a far superior team in the 2024 World Series, with them jumping to a 3-0 lead to start the best-of-seven series. The Yankees avoided a whitewash by winning Game 4, but a few costly blunders potentially cost them their chance to win Game 5 and keep the series alive.
This included Aaron Judge dropping an easy fly ball in center field and a forced play not converted at first. This allowed the Dodgers to rally a comeback by erasing a five-run deficit before emerging triumphant 7-6.
After the game, Judge was regretful of not making an easy play, as he said:
“I think falling short in the World Series will stay with me until I die.”
“Just like every other loss, those things don’t go away. There are battle scars along the way. Hopefully when my career is over, there are battle scars, but also a lot of victories along the way,” Judge added.
Despite coming up short in the World Series, Judge and the Yankees still had a big season as they won the AL pennant for the first time since 2009. They will hope to do it consistently going forward.