Freeman set for Opening Day debut; Canadian star to build off classic World Series moment

Dodgers star first baseman and Canadian national Freddie Freeman appears set to make his season debut on Thursday in Los Angeles in the team's home opener against the Detroit Tigers.

Freeman, 35, missed the first two games of the season in Tokyo as he continues to deal with a rib injury.

The veteran has played in 11 games in spring training and hit three home runs. Manager Dave Roberts thinks he has seen enough.

"It was good, it was good," Roberts said after Monday's game. "[Freeman]'s certainly not pleased with where his swing is at, but physically, for him to be able to [play] two nights in a row, he'll take three at-bats [on Tuesday] and he'll
be ready to go for the home opener."

It's reassuring news for Dodgers fans, as last time they saw Freeman on the field, he was pummelling New York Yankees pitching en route to a World Series MVP award and an eighth title for the storied franchise.

Freeman went 6-for-20 in that five-game series, with four home runs and 12 runs batted in. His biggest moment was a walk-off grand slam in the 10th inning of the first game of the series.

The blast into right field was the first walk-off grand slam in World Series history, and the 18th walk-off home run of any kind in World Series history.

“Hands-down the best sports moment I’ve ever witnessed,” Roberts said to reporters after the game.

“I wanted to throw up,” Yankees catcher Austin Wells added.

Freeman has risen to the upper echelon of Canadian baseball lore through his 15-year career with the Atlanta Braves and Dodgers. The native of Villa Park, Calif., born to Canadian parents, has represented Canada at the last two editions of the World Baseball Classic, and is expected to make a third appearance in 2026.

Freeman's .300 career batting average ranks third amongst Canadians with at least 1,000 plate appearances, and his 343 home runs also rank third. He is one of four Canadians to take home the MVP award (Joey Votto, Justin Morneau and Larry Walker), and only one to earn World Series MVP.

The slugger looked more mortal last season than in recent history, though. After six straight seasons of top-10 MVP finishes, Freeman finished with an .852 on-base plus slugging, his worst since 2015.

Part of the struggle may have connected to a medical problem with Freeman's son, Max, who was diagnosed with Guillain-Barre syndrome and spent time in the hospital through the summer.

"I’m not one to do anything after home runs. But it was almost like a culmination of the last three months the Freeman family went through," Freeman said to The Athletic. "All the grind, the heartache, everything just came out."

Freeman stood and watched the ball fly from home plate for a moment before dropping his bat in a 'mic drop' style and taking off around the bases.

"My wife was there and my kids were there. My dad was sitting in the front row. I don’t know what came over me. I just knew he was there and I just ran over. Everyone asks me what’d you say to him. I said nothing. I just screamed in his face."

Freeman stayed hot through the series, hitting home runs in each of the first four games before the Dodgers won it all in Game 5.

Los Angeles, with wins in their first two games of the year in Tokyo, has been chosen by many to repeat as World Series champs after adding star pitchers Roki Sasaki and Blake Snell in free agency over the off-season. 

Another strong season from their standout at first base would help propel that effort.