On Tuesday, Anthony Volpe, a native of New York, struck a grand slam to help the Yankees maintain their hopes of winning the World Series. Game Four of the series saw the Bronx Bombers defeat the Los Angeles Dodgers 11–4.
In front of a crowded home crowd, the 23-year-old shortstop, a lifelong Yankees supporter, emerged as the evening’s hero. He demonstrated his skill on the field by hitting a 390-foot home run to center field in the third inning and then crossing home plate once more in the eighth.
Catcher Austin Wells struck a solo home run, while outfielder Alex Verdugo added an RBI to join Volpe in the offensive assault. With a three-run homer, second baseman Gleyber Torres also left his mark. After a difficult series, slugger Aaron Judge finally turned things around by contributing an RBI to the Yankees’ total.
Upon contemplating his grand slam, Volpe revealed, “I pretty much blacked out as soon as I saw it go over the fence.” His longstanding relationship with the Yankees was highlighted when he recalled attending the team’s 2009 title parade. The Dodgers needed to be kept under pressure, he said, adding, “I think everyone had confidence in everyone in the lineup that somebody was going to get the big hit.”
Game Five will take place in New York on Wednesday after the Yankees’ triumph reduced the Dodgers’ series advantage to 3-1. The Yankees’ victory was especially important because no team in World Series history had ever recovered from a 0–3 deficit.
Freddie Freeman became the first player to hit a home run in the first four games of the World Series when he launched one in the first inning, giving the Dodgers the appearance of dominating the game at first. The Yankees were alerted by their early lead.
A bizarre twist was added to the evening’s proceedings when a spectator tried to take the ball from Dodgers outfielder Mookie Betts as he attempted to catch it along the right field line.
In the second inning, Verdugo energized the crowd by bringing in Volpe, who contributed to the Dodgers’ deficit. The Yankees fans’ thunderous cheers highlighted how intense the situation was.
In the next inning, with the bases loaded, Volpe responded to the enthusiasm of the crowd by hitting a huge home run over center field. “Hopefully, we can all look back on everything when we win the World Series and I’m with family,” he wrote. It was only a major game.
Even though catcher Will Smith hit a single homer and Freeman had an RBI in the fifth inning, the Dodgers were unable to close the distance and had to use a bullpen game.
In the sixth inning, Volpe scored off a double by Verdugo, and Wells added an insurance run. Judge completed a strong eighth inning by hitting right fielder Juan Soto home after Torres added three more runs to the Yankees’ lead.
