Carlos Rodón crumbles, Aaron Judge keeps struggling as Dodgers ice Yankees for 2-0 World Series lead

LOS ANGELES — Shortly earlier Game 2 of the World Series began, Ice Cube emerged from an opening successful the halfway tract partition astatine Dodger Stadium.

Dressed successful a shiny bluish Dodgers jacket, a matching chapeau and Nikes, the rapper made his mode from the informing way to the mound and past location plate. Each measurement came with a bar, arsenic the Los Angeles autochthonal performed “Bow Down” and “It Was A Good Day” successful an effort to hype up his hometown crowd.

A dancing Alex Verdugo — a erstwhile Dodger — besides enjoyed the performance, adjacent if the archetypal opus ended with a changeable astatine his Yankees.

“Bow down to a squad that’s greater than you,” O’Shea Jackson Sr. demanded portion pointing toward the Yankees’ dugout. He past asked a roaring Chavez Ravine, “Are we going to triumph Game 2 oregon what?” earlier transitioning to his 2nd song.

The reply turned retired to beryllium yes, arsenic the Dodgers took Game 2, 4-2, connected Saturday. After getting walked disconnected successful Game 1, the Yankees present look a 2-0 bid shortage with the Fall Classic heading backmost to New York.

Ice Cube gets Dodger Stadium fired up for #WorldSeries Game 2! 🔥 pic.twitter.com/qBVBktrzjW

— MLB (@MLB) October 27, 2024

Carlos Rodón played a ample portion successful the Yankees’ inability to necktie the series, arsenic their No. 2 starter lone lasted 3.1 innings successful the archetypal World Series commencement of his career. The lefty allowed 4 earned runs and six hits, including 3 homers, implicit his abbreviated outing.

“This lineup’s beauteous potent,” Rodón foreshadowed connected Friday. “They tin decidedly plaything it.”

The Dodgers’ archetypal homer came from the red-hot Tommy Edman, who pulled a solo changeable successful the 2nd inning. Juan Soto rapidly tied the crippled with a bases-empty blast of his ain disconnected Yoshinobu Yamamoto successful the third.

However, well-established Yankees slayer Teoscar Hernández and Freddie Freeman — the Dodgers’ Game 1, expansive slam hero — deed back-to-back bombs successful the bottommost of the inning.

Hernández logged a two-run shot. Meanwhile, each 3 of the dingers Rodón surrendered came connected fastballs, which helium threw astatine a 60% clip.

While the longball victimized Rodón connected Saturday, Yamamoto didn’t flinch aft Soto took him deep.

The Japanese prima looked similar helium was worthy the 12-year, $325 cardinal declaration the Dodgers gave him — and outbid the Yankees with — past winter. With countless radical watching him and Shohei Ohtani backmost home, Yamamoto cruised for 6.1 innings.

Soto’s homer marked the Yankees’ lone deed disconnected the righty. They added a tally successful the ninth erstwhile a Giancarlo Stanton azygous ricocheted disconnected 3rd base, scoring Soto.

No different Yankee had a memorable nighttime astatine the plate, but Aaron Judge disappointed again portion going 0-for-4 with 3 strikeouts. The presumed American League MVP is present 6-for-40 with 19 strikeouts this October, continuing a agelong of mediocre playoff accumulation that dates backmost a fewer years.

“He’s truthful bully and truthful mentally pugnacious and bully astatine dealing with each of it,” Boone said of Judge earlier Game 2. “So I privation him to get results, obviously, and I privation him to get blistery and get going, but I consciousness similar helium will.”

It wasn’t each connected Judge, arsenic the Yankees failed to people with the bases loaded and 1 retired successful the ninth aft Anthony Volpe struck retired and pinch-hitter Jose Trevino flew out.

That said, the Yankees request Judge to find his groove if they privation to travel backmost successful this series. With Yankee Stadium acceptable to big its archetypal World Series crippled since 2009 connected Monday, the likelihood are not successful the Bombers’ favor.

But this radical has preached resiliency each play and shown an quality to bounce-back aft adversity. That didn’t hap Saturday, but the Yankees volition effort to alteration their fortunes with Clarke Schmidt making his archetypal World Series commencement successful Game 3.

Walker Buehler volition commencement for Los Angeles arsenic it seeks a 3-0 pb pursuing an disconnected day. At the clip of publication, it was unclear if Ohtani volition beryllium disposable for that game, arsenic the superstar wounded his enarthrosis connected a precocious stolen basal effort successful Game 2.