By Ty Anderson, 985TheSportsHub.com
After suffering World Series losses in 2017 and 2018, the Los Angeles Dodgers finally got over the hump Tuesday, winning the 2020 World Series over the Tampa Bay Rays in six games.
The win ended what was a 32-year title drought for the Dodgers, and was LA’s second straight pro championship, with the Dodgers providing a successful sequel to the Lakers’ NBA Finals win over the Miami Heat earlier this month.
It also came with a major loss for the analytic darling Rays, as they were undoubtedly undone by manager Kevin Cash giving ace Blake Snell the early hook despite some straight-up electric stuff from the lefty.
Holding the Dodgers to just two hits and nine strikeouts through 5.1 innings of work, Snell left the game with just 73 pitches to his name, and appeared to be in pure disbelief at Cash’s decision.
Speaking after the defeat, Snell did not hide the fact that he was deeply unhappy with the decision.
“I am definitely disappointed and upset,” Snell admitted. “I just want the ball. I felt good. I did everything I could to prove my case to stay out there, and then for us to lose, it sucks. I want to win, and I want to win the World Series.
“For us to lose, it just sucks.”
Predictably, the Rays immediately surrendered the game-tying and go-ahead runs, and never recovered before Mookie Betts added an insurance solo home run in the bottom of the eighth to give the Dodgers a 3-1 final.
Betts, acquired from the Red Sox in exchange for Alex Verdugo and minor-league prospects, finished the World Series with two homers, five runs (including the championship-winning score), and seven hits in 26 at-bats. Betts is also now the first player in MLB history to win MVP and two World Series titles with two different franchises before turning 30 years old.
The win did not come without some controversy, either, as the Dodgers’ Justin Turner was forced to be removed from the game after his once-inconclusive COVID-19 test came back positive.
The test was not a false positive, according to MLB insider Ken Rosenthal, but it did not stop from Turner being on the field for the postgame celebration.
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