After the ga ended, the Yankees players took the team bus back to their base in Los Angeles, and after the players dispersed, Lin Guanglai went to the physiotherapy room alone for a post-match relaxation massage.
In the just-concluded ga, he started and pitched for 8 innings, also took 4 at-bats, and the muscle strain was considerable; considering that there was another ga in less than 24 hours, muscle massage and relaxation were essential.
A night quickly passed. When the Los Angeles morning sunlight poured through the windows into Lin Guanglai's room, he awoke from deep sleep: although his body still retained so fatigue, it was enough to handle today's ga.
When the bus carrying the Yankees players arrived at Dodger Stadium again, the Yankees players, who were playing away, could clearly feel an unusual atmosphere in this stadium:
Obviously, the opening loss in the world series had so impact on the Dodgers. Yesterday's defeat also ant they lost the ho-court advantage and that today's ga was critical:
If they lost today's ga and let the series score beco 0:2, the consequences of going to the Bronx next were unimaginable for head coach Dave Roberts, the Dodgers players, and even the fans in Los Angeles and California.
With this consideration, the Dodgers adjusted the lineup sequence in today's starting list:
The shortstop Corey Seager, who perford excellently in hitting in the last ga, was promoted to the top part of the batting order, forming today's top four hitters with Taylor, Turner, and Bellinger.
The purpose of Roberts' adjustnt was simple: to establish an early lead against Severino, who was prone to fluctuations, by using offense to drive defense and ease the pressure on the pitchers.
Unlike yesterday's pitcher's duel that wasn't decided until the end of the ga, today's second ga saw the ho team Dodgers break the deadlock early.
In the bottom of the third inning, young left fielder Joc Pederson, in a situation where two were out and the count was 2 balls and 1 strike, hit Severino's misplaced 88 mph slider to the right field stands of Dodger Stadium, giving the ho-playing, large-score-lagging Dodgers a head start;
Subsequently, in the bottom of the fifth inning, Roberts' adjustnt to the lineup paid off significantly: with two outs and a runner on first base, and a count of 1 ball and 2 strikes, today's second batter, Corey Seager, hit a 98 mph outside four-seam fastball with a powerful swing, turning it into a two-run hor in the right field direction, bringing 2 more runs for the ho team.
I'm not sure if it was due to being overly excited after yesterday's ga, but the Yankees' offense was slow to connect and failed to respond—they couldn't close the gap by mid-ga, and the ho-playing Dodgers led the New York Yankees 3-0 with two ho runs, seemingly on the verge of tying the series.
"Looks like today's ga is tough for the Yankees, but getting one win on the road is already enough, right? After all, in this postseason, they haven't lost once at ho yet, have they?"
Looking at the content on the phone screen in front of them, in Japan's Hokkaido, in the player canteen of the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, Kondo Kensuke said this to Ohtani Shohei, who was also watching the ga.
As the results of the Central League matchup between Hiroshima Toyo and Yokohama BayStars had not been released yet, the Ham Team players had the chance to watch the World Series in Los Angeles across the Pacific on this rest day morning—
Considering the Dodgers had Yu Darvish and Maeda Kenta, and the Yankees had Lin Guanglai and Tanaka Masahiro among other Nippon Professional Baseball stars, the ga's viewership in Japan was also quite impressive.
Ohtani Shohei didn't respond, only nodded slightly; but his heart had already flown across the Pacific Ocean to the United States, the birthplace of baseball.
For Ohtani Shohei and the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, the 2017 season was also incredibly perfect:
Taking advantage of the SoftBank Team's adjustnt period after losing Lin Guanglai, they overthrew the SoftBank dynasty that had swept Japan for the past three years, winning the Pacific League's official victory;
Then, in the recently concluded playoffs, they defeated the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks once again with a total score of 4-2, earning a ticket to the 2017 Japan Series.
As the star player of the Ham Team, Ohtani Shohei was also the most popular candidate for the league MVP this season, winning the small triple crown as a pitcher and achieving the best hitting statistics in recent years.
He should be sowhat thrilled about his achievents, after all, at just 22 years old, reaching such accomplishnts was rare in Nippon Professional Baseball history;
However, in Ohtani Shohei's heart, who always took Lin Guanglai as his target to catch up, he only felt that the gap between him and Lin Guanglai was widening:
By the age of 22, Ohtani Shohei finally broke free from the predicant of frequent minor injuries and obtained a prestigious title for the first ti, leading the team to the Japan Series;
But Lin Guanglai, who was almost half a year younger, had already taken many steps ahead, even stepping onto the pinnacle of world baseball, aiming for glory on the highest stage as the brightest player…
Although knowing that everyone has their growth trajectory, the gap seed sowhat too large, and if this continued, Ohtani Shohei feared he would even lose the confidence to challenge Lin Guanglai.
"After this season ends, I must go to the United States—only Major League Baseball can make a better player!"
Even before the season started, Ohtani Shohei had submitted his posting application to the team, and related negotiations were officially underway;
In order to persuade the team to let him go to the United States, Ohtani Shohei set the promise of leading the team to league victory and championship, and winning the league MVP—most of these goals were now nearly achieved, only the last Japan Series championship remained.
"No matter who the opponent is, I will definitely fight and win! No one and nothing can stop from going across the Pacific!"
Looking at Lin Guanglai, who was full of spirit in the center of the cara, Ohtani Shohei secretly made up his mind, "Lin Guanglai, just wait, when the next season starts, you will no longer be the only dual-swordsmanship player in MLB—soday, I will also stand on this stage and compete with you!"
Thinking of this, Ohtani Shohei simply turned off the phone screen and stood up, heading towards the training ground.
As Los Angeles nights continued, the second ga between the Dodgers and the Yankees was still ongoing. Just as the Dodgers fans had hoped, they finally managed to defeat the Yankees, returning the series score to a 1:1 tie.
However, the process was not as easy as the Dodgers fans had anticipated.
After gaining a 3:0 lead by mid-ga, the visiting New York Yankees suddenly surged at the end of the ga, scoring consecutively and even briefly overcoming the top closer Kenley Jansen in the top of the ninth, tying the score;
The two sides battled fiercely, and it wasn't until the bottom of the 11th inning that the Dodgers, relying on a flash of brilliance from utility player Kike Hernandez, managed to narrowly defeat the Yankees with a right-field drop hit.
The final score of the ga was 7:6, with the ho-playing League No. 1 slightly ahead; after tonight, the players on both sides would cross the entire North Arican continent, from the warm West Coast to cold New York, and continue their next three-match battles in the Bronx.
Although they lost, the spirits of the Yankees players and fans were not much affected:
Facing the League No. 1 Los Angeles Dodgers, even the most optimistic Yankees had never thought about sweeping the opponent; securing one win on foreign soil was already quite satisfying, indicating that the New York Yankees had a chance to win the crown at their ho in New York.
As Lin Guanglai said during a post-ga interview: "It's a sha we couldn't claim victory in this ga, but at least we showed our spirit of not giving up no matter what challenges we face—if we can maintain this montum, I believe we can win against any opponent."
"The day after tomorrow night, see you in the Bronx!"
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