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sports Thursday 29 OcTOber 2020
Fitting finale: Dodgers win title, Turner tests positive

By STEPHEN HAWKINS ated Press on condition of ries trophy to Los Angeles The Dodgers had played in the league," Cash said.
AP Baseball Writer anonymity because details — a jarring reminder of all 5,014 regular-season "Mookie coming around
ARLINGTON, Texas (AP) were not released. Eichner that's been different in this games and were in their for the third time through, I
— No large dogpile, no told Halem the result was season where the perenni- 114th postseason game value that. I totally respect
champagne and a mask inconclusive. MLB receives ally favored Dodgers finally since Orel Hershiser struck and understand the ques-
on nearly every face — many inconclusive results, broke through. out Oakland's Tony Phillips tions that come with it.
the Los Angeles Dodgers so Halem told Eichner to run The end of a frustrating for the final out of the World They're not easy decisions."
celebrated their first World Tuesday's pregame sam- championship drought Series in 1988, the same Randy Arozarena, the pow-
Series title since 1988 in a ple from Turner. That result for LA — and perhaps just year Kershaw — the three- erful Tampa Bay rookie,
manner no one could have came back positive in the the start for Betts and the time NL Cy Young Award extended his postseason
imagined prior to the coro- sixth inning, the person said. Dodgers, whose seventh winner who won Games 1 record with his 10th homer
navirus pandemic. Halem called Chris Young, World Series title was their and 5 of this Series — was in the first off rookie right-
They started the party with- MLB's senior vice president sixth since leaving Brooklyn born in nearby Dallas. hander Tony Gonsolin, the
out Justin Turner, too, after of baseball operations, for the West Coast in 1958. Los Angeles had come up first of seven Dodgers pitch-
their red-headed star re- who was in Manfred's box "I had a crazy feeling that short in the World Series ers. The Rays never got an-
ceived word of a positive at Globe Life Field, then came to fruition," Rob- twice in the previous three other runner past second
COVID-19 test in the middle called Dodgers president erts said. "It's just a special years. Betts was on the oth- base as LA's bullpen gave
of their clinching victory. of baseball operations An- group of players, organiza- er side two years ago and reliever-reliant Tampa Bay
Turner was removed from drew Friedman. He notified a taste of its own medicine
Los Angeles' 3-1 win over the the dugout or clubhouse, while allowing only two hits
Tampa Bay Rays in Game and Turner was removed and no walks over 7 1/3 in-
6 on Tuesday night after from the game after the nings.
registering Major League seventh inning. About 2 1/2 weeks after the
Baseball's first positive test "It was obviously a really un- Lakers won the NBA title
in 59 days. He wasn't on the fortunate endpoint of this while finishing their season
field initially as the Dodgers incredible series and defi- in the NBA bubble in Or-
enjoyed the spoils of a title nitely affected some of the lando, Florida, the Dodgers
earned during a most un- joy of winning just because gave Los Angeles another
usual season. of what JT has meant to us," championship.
He returned to the dia- Friedman said. The MLB season didn't start
mond about an hour after When asked about what until late July and was ab-
the game, hugging long- happened after the game, breviated for the shortest
time teammate Clayton Friedman said Turner want- Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts and third baseman regular season since 1878.
Kershaw and sitting front- ed to take a picture with Justin Turner pose for a group picture after the Dodgers defeat- The expanded postseason,
and-center for a team the trophy. Friedman stat- ed the Tampa Bay Rays 3-1 in Game 6 to win the baseball World with 16 teams making it in-
photo next to manager ed several times that those Series, Tuesday, Oct. 27, 2020, in Arlington, Texas. stead of 10, ended when
Dave Roberts with his mask around Turner had previ- Associated Press Urías got the last two outs
pulled down under his ously been in close contact on called third strikes, with
bushy beard. and said the team would tion, all that we've kind of homered in the clinching catcher Austin Barnes stuff-
"Thanks to everyone reach- take another round of tests overcome." Game 5 for the Boston Red ing the last pitch in his back
ing out!" Turner said on before determining when Betts bolted from third for Sox, who before this season pocket. The Rays had 16 Ks
Twitter. "I feel great, no to leave Texas. the go-ahead run on Sea- traded the 2018 AL MVP and the Dodgers 11, the
symptoms at all. Just expe- "Now the subsequent tests ger's grounder in the sixth, to the Dodgers. They later most combined strikeouts
rienced every emotion you we're going to take are re- even with the infield play- gave him a $365 million, 12- in a nine-inning World Series
can possibly imagine. Can't ally important," Friedman ing in, then had a punctu- year deal that goes until he game.
believe I couldn't be out said. ating homer leading off the turns 40 in 2032. Chants of "M-V-P!, M-V-
there to celebrate with my The 35-year-old Turner has eighth. Betts' 3.2-second sprint P!" broke out when Betts
guys! So proud of this team been a staple in the Dodg- "It was absolutely phe- home was just enough to hit his double in the sixth
& unbelievably happy for ers' lineup for seven of their nomenal. This team was beat the throw by first base- off reliever Nick Anderson,
the City of LA." eight consecutive NL West incredible," said Seager, man Ji-Man Choi, pushing who allowed runs in seven
Major League Baseball in- titles. A late-blooming slug- also the NLCS MVP who set Los Angeles ahead 2-1 mo- consecutive relief appear-
sulated postseason teams ger who helped reshape franchise records with his ments after Rays manager ances, the longest streak in
in neutral-site bubbles after the game by succeeding eight homers and 20 RBIs Kevin Cash pulled ace left- MLB postseason history.
traveling them across the with an upper-cut swing, this postseason. "We were hander Blake Snell despite Those chants got even
country during a shortened Turner is LA's career leader ready to go as soon as the a dominant performance louder — even with the a
60-game season. Turner with 12 postseason home bell was called. Once it over 5 1/3 innings. limited crowd of 11,437 —
was the first player since runs, including a pair in this did, we kept rolling." "It was kind of like a sigh when Betts went deep on
the playoffs began to be Series, in which he hit .364 Kershaw was warming in of relief," Betts said. "It was an 0-2 pitch by hard-throw-
flagged for the coronavi- and also played stellar de- the bullpen when Julio Urías the Cy Young Snell that ing right-hander Pete Fair-
rus. fense. struck out Willy Adames to pitched tonight." banks.
MLB received Turner's "It's gut-wrenching," World end it and ran alongside Snell struck out nine — in- There were plenty of fans
Monday sample from the Series MVP Corey Sea- teammates to celebrate in cluding the first time all in Dodgers blue at the
Sports Medicine Research ger said. "If I could switch the infield, later joined by season that Betts, Seager new $1.2 billion home of
and Testing Laboratory in places with him right now, family who had been in the and Turner each struck the Texas Rangers, the sta-
Utah in the bottom of the I would. That's just not right." bubble with them in North out in their first two at-bats. dium with the retractable
second inning, when lab "We're not excluding him Texas. But the 2018 AL Cy Young roof where they played 16
president Dr. Daniel Eich- from anything," teammate Players were handed face Award winner didn't see games over three weeks.
ner called deputy com- Mookie Betts said. masks as they gathered, the top three batters for the And the roof was closed
missioner Dan Halem, who Commissioner Rob Man- although many of their em- Dodgers again. for the final one, with misty
was in New York, a person fred confirmed Turner's braces came mask-free "The only motive was the conditions and a game-
familiar with the call said, positive test moments after even after Turner's positive lineup the Dodgers feature time temperature of 39 de-
speaking to The Associ- presenting the World Se- test. is as potent as any team grees outside.q