Dodgers Pitcher Slams Yankees: World Series ‘Was Just a Mismatch’

Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Joe Kelly basked in the team’s World Series victory Friday when he and his teammates were paraded around the city of Los Angeles. The city had not enjoyed a World Series parade since 1988, and a reported 225,000 spectators came to celebrate the Dodgers’ five-game win over the New York Yankees.

Kelly’s victory lap was just getting started.

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Speaking on the “Baseball Isn’t Boring” podcast with host Rob Bradford, Kelly dug into the Yankees for everything from the easy path they enjoyed in the postseason to their lack of fundamentals in the World Series. The Dodgers scored six unearned runs in the five games, the Yankees none.

“We were saying it every single game, just let them throw the ball to the infield,” Kelly said. “They can’t make a play.”

Kelly was just getting started.

“I mean, you saw, Shohei (Ohtani) got an extra base going to third on a sloppy Gleyber (Torres) play,” he continued. “It’s well known. We all knew. We’re the Dodgers we know every little detail. But past that, it was a fun series. They almost snagged a couple of wins. It was just a mismatch from the get go. Like if we had a playoff re-ranking, they might be ranked eighth- or ninth-best playoff team.”

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Twelve teams reach the playoffs in baseball. The Dodgers beat the San Diego Padres in the National League Division Series, and the New York Mets in the NL Championship Series, to advance to the World Series.

The Yankees beat the Kansas City Royals and the Cleveland Guardians to advance to the World Series.

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The Yankees and Dodgers finished with the best regular-season records in the AL and NL, respectively.

“You’re putting the Padres ahead of them,” Kelly said of the Yankees. “You’re putting the (Philadelphia) Phillies ahead of them. You’re putting the Mets ahead of them. You’re putting the (Atlanta) Braves ahead of them and the Braves just got unlucky because they had to play that doubleheader (against the Mets on the final day of the regular season).

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“The Guardians played like crap but the Guardians played better D, better baseball all-around. It was just a complete mismatch.”

Kelly compared the 2024 World Series to the 2018 Series. That year, the Boston Red Sox beat the Dodgers in five games. Kelly was pitching for Boston that year and played an instrumental role in a bullpen that allowed three runs in 23.1 innings. That year, he said, “the Red Sox were just the way better team.”

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The Red Sox had the best record in the preseason, the regular season, and the postseason in 2018. The Dodgers had the best record in the Cactus League and in the MLB regular season before winning their first championship since the pandemic-shortened 2020 season.

“All we knew is that we had to play regular Dodger baseball,” Kelly said. “We didn’t have to do anything crazy, and we were going to win the World Series. Look at the team, look at the talent. We go through numerous scouting reports. We pay attention to every single detail. We have a lot of big superstars in our clubhouse, but our superstars also care and aren’t lazy and play hard. That’s the difference and the biggest separator.”

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