Boston’s pitcher, often-maligned for his October work, provides seven solid innings and keys the Red Sox’ World Series clinching victory
The Boston Red Sox won the 2018 World Series because David Price pitched the best post-season game of his life, because Steve Pearce played the game of his life, and because Red Sox pitchers kept the ball in the park.
The victory gave Boston a fourth World Series championship since 2004. They also won in 2007 and 2013. Aside from the New York Yankees, only two other franchises in history have won four titles in a 15-season stretch. The Brooklyn/Los Angeles Dodgers won four World Series between 1955 and 1965; the St. Louis Cardinals won five times between 1931 and 1946.
The Dodgers became only the fourth team in the past half-century to lose consecutive World Series. The others were the 2010-11 Texas Rangers, the 1991-92 Atlanta Braves and the 1977-78 Los Angeles Dodgers.
They also became just the 13th team since the advent of the divisional era in 1969 to win the World Series after compiling the regular season’s best record. The last team to do it was the 2016 Chicago Cubs. The Red Sox also did it in 2007 and 2013.
And Red Sox manager Alex Cora became the first rookie manager to win the World Series since Bob Brenly accomplished the feat with the 2001 Arizona Diamondbacks.
The Red Sox dominated Sunday’s game virtually from start to finish. In fact the contest may have been determined by two careless Clayton Kershaw pitches in the first inning. With an 0-2 count on Andrew Benitendi, Kershaw laid a slider in the fat part of the strike zone and Benintendi drove it into center field for a single. On the very next pitch, Kershaw’s 91 mph fastball caught enough of the plate for Pearce to pound it into a maintenance area beyond the center field wall.
Here’s a deeper look at how the Red Sox captured in game 5, wrapping up the World Series title.