Dodgers’ margin for error narrows in Game 5 with Gerrit Cole out

NEW YORK – This could be interesting. This situation can even be scary.

Let’s not deceive ourselves. This can be downright scary for them. Dodgers.

This World Series He will be starting his fifth game and Gerrit Cole will start for the New York Yankees on Wednesday night.

Jack Flaherty He will start for the Dodgers.

Suddenly, the impossible suddenly feels possible. Suddenly, an unlikely but visible path to victory emerged for the Yankees. 11-4 victory in Game 4 at Yankee Stadium on Tuesday after losing the first three games.

Or from the opposite perspective, the Dodgers could blow it.

Cole limited the Dodgers to more than six innings in the opener. He struck out Flaherty in the Dodgers’ 10th-inning victory. Walk-off grand slam by Freddie Freeman.

With their $324 million ace in hand and their offense finally doing what it needs to do, the Yankees can take Game 5.

What happens next?

The best of seven series will return to Dodger Stadium and anything can happen there.

Yankees first baseman Anthony Rizzo explored the possibilities before Game 4.

“Gerrit Cole is lurking tomorrow if we can get there,” Rizzo said. “If we can get there, we face an angry (Carlos) Rodón for Game 6. And Game 7 is always a farce.”

Rizzo saw this happen. He played for the Chicago Cubs in 2016 and overcame a three-game deficit to win the World Series against the Cleveland Indians.

As thirsty as Dodgers fans were to see their team win a home championship, how could the Yankees be allowed to hang around in this situation? Juan Soto, Aaron Judge And Giancarlo Stanton Is he on their roster?

Even though fans believe the Dodgers have the better team, how can they want this Series to drag on any longer when their franchise history is marked by so many failures?

If you still have nails, bite them. Eat your Jerry Tarkanian towel if you have it.

The slow journey can turn into a turbulent journey.

Worst-case scenario, instead of making their mark as the best team in franchise history, these Dodgers may forever be known as the only team with a three-games-to-none lead in the World Series.

They could be the Atlanta Falcons in Super Bowl LI. They can become Doc Rivers by taking a 3-1 lead in the NBA playoff series. They could have been Greg Norman at the 1996 Masters.

The Yankees woke up for the first time this Series in Game 4 and upset the Dodgers, who were playing a risky version of the game. Shohei Ohtani.

Ohtani hasn’t looked good in the two games he’s played since partially dislocating his shoulder. While he helped score some runs, he didn’t play like he was a threat to change the game with a single strike.

He continues to run the bases with a makeshift hanger he created by holding the collar of his jersey. He continues to make some ugly moves on outfield pitches, like the one he did in the seventh inning.

The Dodgers’ biggest concern should be their bullpen, especially their usage to this point.

Manager Dave Roberts He tried to run another bullpen game in Game 4 but couldn’t make it. The plan called for batting from inexperienced pitchers like him. I am Casparius and Landon Knack. As it turned out, the reliever who sank them was one of their high-leverage options. daniel hudsongiving up four runs in the third inning.

closer Michael KopechHe gave up the ninth inning in the Game 3 victory, which Roberts avoided using. Blake Trenen He has given up runs in each of his last three appearances.

Have the Dodgers exhausted their strength to get to this point? Did having only three starting pitchers finally catch up with them?

This is completely possible, in which case it becomes completely possible to blow up the series lead.

If there was anything to be encouraged by, it was the players talking as if they weren’t caught by surprise in Game 4.

“There was an emergency,” Freddie Freeman said. “We know what is at stake. “We had a chance to win the World Series tonight.”

Freeman played down concerns about how the disappointment might spill over into the next game.

“I think we’ll be fine,” he said. “This team knows what we need to do tomorrow.”

Mookie Betts said he expected the Yankees to react that way.

“They’re going to fight,” Betts said. “If you’ve made it this far, you’re resilient and will always fight. We expect this.

“So we’re up 3-1 right now. You feel pretty good about that, but you know they’re going to fight. It doesn’t matter what the score is. No lead is safe until we win the fourth game.”

There could be anxious moments between now and the fourth victory.