DODGERS VS RED SOX II
MILWAUKEE— Los Angeles Dodgers center fielder Cody Bellinger acknowledged feeling “ice cold” late Saturday night.
He was referring to the champagne that had doused his uniform, not the struggles that threatened to sink his National League Championship Series.
Persistence flowed like clubhouse bubbly for several players as the resilient Dodgers booked a return trip to the World Series by defeating the Milwaukee Brewers 5-1 in Game 7.
Bellinger, the NLCS MVP, was a leading example. Though he hit .200 in the series, his home run on Saturday accounted for the go-ahead run, and he had the game-winning hit in the 13th inning of Game 4.
“All postseason, I felt fairly good,” Bellinger said. “I wasn’t seeing any results. And luckily for me I’ve got a lot of veterans on this team. They said stick with the process and the result will come. And that’s exactly what I did, and it showed.”
Yasiel Puig also hit a home run to back a strong effort from rookie right-hander Walker Buehler and four relievers, sending the Dodgers to the Fall Classic in consecutive years for the first time since 1977-78.
Game 1 of the World Series against the Red Sox is set for Tuesday night at Fenway Park in Boston.
The Dodgers (then known as the Brooklyn Robins) and Red Sox franchises met in the 1916 World Series won by Boston.