NEW YORK — Just when it appeared Aaron Judge and the New York Yankees were right back in this World Series, they all but handed away the trophy.
An epic meltdown of defensive miscues, beginning with Judge’s embarrassing error in center field, helped the Los Angeles Dodgers rally in a five-run fifth inning that tied the score at 5.
Young shortstop Anthony Volpe and ace pitcher Gerrit Cole also committed costly mistakes. New York’s bullpen squandered a one-run lead in the eighth, and the Dodgers held on for a 7-6 victory Wednesday night in Game 5 that wrapped up their eighth championship and second in five years.
Finally back in their first World Series since 2009, the Yankees didn’t last long.
It was the latest autumn failure for baseball’s most successful franchise — one that used to own October.
Not anymore. Not lately, at least. And in the Yankees’ universe, 15 years is a long time between titles.
On deck, an offseason of uncertainty as New York tries to retain free agent slugger Juan Soto, who is expected to have several eager suitors and command a massive contract.
After losing the first three games to LA, the Yankees won 11-4 in Game 4 behind Volpe to prevent a sweep. That left them looking to become the first of 25 teams that fell behind 3-0 in the World Series to force a Game 6, which would have been back at Dodger Stadium.
And they got off to a rollicking start, too, with back-to-back homers by Judge and Jazz Chisholm Jr. in the first inning. Giancarlo Stanton went deep leading off the third, and the Bronx Bombers had a 5-0 cushion.
Cole cruised through four hitless innings, pitching around a leadoff walk in the fourth with the help of a remarkable catch by Judge as he crashed hard into the left-center fence.
California, here we come, right?
Wrong.
Kiké Hernández opened the fifth with a single, then Judge dropped Tommy Edman’s easy fly to center, putting runners at first and second with nobody out. It appeared Judge took his eye off the ball, which he tried snagging with just his glove hand.
After a mound visit, Cole buckled down and struck out Gavin Lux and Shohei Ohtani as the sellout crowd of 49,263 at Yankee Stadium roared.
And it looked as though Cole had wriggled out of the jam when Mookie Betts grounded a slow squibber to first baseman Anthony Rizzo. But because the ball was spinning so much, Rizzo waited back on it. Cole initially broke to cover first base, then stopped. And when Rizzo scooped up the ball, Cole was nowhere close.
Cole pointed toward first, but by then Rizzo had no chance to beat the speedy Betts to the bag. He was credited with an infield single that shaved New York’s lead to 5-1.
With the five-run advantage gone in a flash, the end almost felt inevitable.
Stanton put the Yankees back in front 6-5 with a sacrifice fly in the sixth, but reliever Tommy Kahnle loaded the bases with none out in the eighth on two singles and a four-pitch walk.
A catcher’s interference call on Austin Wells also hurt as Lux and Betts came through with sac flies off closer Luke Weaver to give the Dodgers a 7-6 lead that right-handers Blake Treinen and Walker Buehler refused to relinquish.
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