If you have been a sports fan for any significant period of time, you’re familiar with the axiom – “The right man, in the right place, at the right time.”

Kirk Gibson was that guy in the first game of the 1988 World Series, and Freddie Freeman was the man 36 years later in Game 1 of the 2024 October Classic.

Perhaps you said – or thought – such in Game 1 of the 2024 World Series on Friday night when Yankees manager Aaron Boone made the fateful, 10th-inning decision to walk Mookie Betts and pitch instead to Freeman. I did.

With all due respect due to Shohei Ohtani and Betts, there isn’t another Dodger that I would rather have hit in that situation than Freeman. Those are the words I spoke to my wife last night as Mookie was trotting to first base. Freddie is, in my opinion, the best all-around hitter on the current Dodgers roster and one of the best ever – Brooklyn or Los Angeles.

Ohtani, Betts, Max Muncy, and Teoscar Hernández hit more home runs, but Freeman is a classic throwback to the best-of-the-best pure hitters in the Dodgers long and storied history. In the 70+ seasons I have watched Dodgers games, Freddie is comparable to Hall of Famers Duke Snider, Mike Piazza, and nine-time All-Star Gary Sheffield as all-around hitters.

So raise your voices in unison, Dodgers fans. Each time Freeman comes to bat, join the chant: FREDDIE, FREDDIE, FREDDIE, FREDDIE…

Go Dodgers!

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