What Now?

Things to follow after the World Series

Up until the top of the fifth inning on Wednesday, I was looking forward to watching Game 6 of the World Series tonight. At that point, it looked like the Yankees had done enough to push the series to 3-2 and force it back to Los Angeles this weekend. A five run lead would be plenty under normal circumstances.

But weird stuff happened, as they tend to during the playoffs. Most mystifying to me was Gerrit Cole not covering first base on a grounder to Anthony Rizzo. You can see that play and a few of the others that helped the Dodgers tie the game in the fifth inning that night:

And see Cole’s explanation of what happened:

For Yankees fans, that’s an inning that will probably haunt them for years, and rightfully so. No criticism of the players; it happens. It’s just maddening when it happens in so pivotal an inning. What might be an irritating loss if it takes place in July is nightmare fuel when it happens during the World Series.

New Yorkers might find some solace in knowing their team probably wasn’t winning the World Series anyway. No one has ever come back from a 3 games to none deficit before, and the way their offense performed for most of the series, the 2024 Yankees weren’t going to be the first.

However you feel about this World Series outcome, it means the offseason is upon us. It started rather quickly, too. The Braves traded Jorge Soler to the Angels on Thursday, and the White Sox announced that Will Venable is their next manager.

Baseball news can come in spurts during the winter, but here are some of the biggest stories to keep an eye on: