A game that was 2-2 in the top of the eighth ended in dramatic fashion with the Los Angeles Dodgers walking it off and winning 8-5 in extras. In front of a packed house that arrived to Dodger Stadium early to watch the 2024 World Series ring ceremony, the Dodgers delivered.

Facing former teammate Jack Flaherty, the Dodgers finally got to him in the sixth inning when Freddie Freeman belted a two-run homer to tie the game. Up until that point, the Dodgers had just one hit and two walks through five innings. Then, Mookie Betts came through in the bottom of the eighth to give the Dodgers a 3-2 lead with a solo homer.

But in the top of the ninth, the Tigers rallied against Tanner Scott, scoring a run to tie it and nearly taking the lead on a Riley Greene double had replay review not saved the day for the Dodgers.

Initially ruled safe (which would’ve made it 4-3 Tigers), the Dodgers challenged the play at the plate and somehow got it overturned. Even a rabid Dodgers fan must admit it’s hard to find the conclusive evidence that swayed the decision.

Had the call stood, the Dodgers would’ve lost the game after they went down in order in the bottom of the ninth against Tommy Kahnle.

Mookie Betts’ walk-off homer (and replay review) save Dodgers’ World Series ring ceremony

The Dodgers getting a second chance like that might be the most dangerous thing that can happen in baseball nowadays. Because even though they went down 5-3 in the top of the 10th after Luis Garcia gave up a two-run triple to Dillion Dingler, LA had a massive rally in its bones in the bottom half.

Michael Conforto clocked a leadoff double that scored a run to make it 5-4. Will Smith singled two batters later to score Conforto and tie the game. A Shohei Ohtani single put Smith in scoring position for Betts, who didn’t even need that.

He belted a three-run homer to walk it off and give the Dodgers an electrifying 8-5 victory to keep the vibes high after the ring ceremony.

After weeks on the shelf with a mysterious virus that caused him to lose 20 pounds, Betts brought the power with his two home runs and has looked like the same old MVP-caliber player in the two games he’s been back.

The Dodgers will go for the sweep on Saturday with Roki Sasaki making his stateside debut. Looking to go 5-0, LA will have Sunday off before they recharge the batteries and welcome the Braves to LA for a three-game set.