World Series 2024: Yankees v Dodgers - five talking points

The Dodgers were World Series runners-up in 2017 and 2018 before winning in the Covid-shortened 2020 season, while the Yankees are making their first appearance since winning in 2009

Hollywood versus the Big Apple. East meets West. An Asian superhero takes on an all-American titan. And two high rollers go all-in when only one of them can win.

Does this sound like a plot from a Marvel Cinematic Universe movie?

Welcome to Major League Baseball's 2024 World Series, as the New York Yankees face the Los Angeles Dodgers in a best-of-seven potential epic which begins on Friday evening.

Advertisers will lick their lips at the prospect of a 'Fall Classic' between two 'big-market' teams for only the second time since 2000, while fans of the other 28 clubs may mutter darkly about the predictability of two of MLB's three biggest Opening Day payrolls reaching the World Series, and call for a salary cap to provide competitive balance.

While home advantage appears to matter less than before, now that both leagues use a designated hitter, the Dodgers' superior regular-season record means the series begins in LA, with potentially four games at home.

Here are some stories to follow.

Match-by-match schedule

Game 1 (in LA): Friday, 25 October

Game 2 (in LA): Saturday, 26 October

Game 3 (in New York): Monday, 28 October

Game 4 (in New York): Tuesday, 29 October

Game 5* (in New York): Wednesday, 30 October

Game 6* (in LA): Friday, 1 November

Game 7* (in LA): Saturday, 2 November

*if required. Matches start 20:08 Eastern Time (early next morning UK time)

An old rivalry - from coast to coast

For once, the top-seeded team in each league made it all the way through the play-offs, with the Yankees beating the Kansas City Royals 3-1 and the Cleveland Guardians 4-1 in the American League.

The Dodgers had it a little less easy, overcoming the San Diego Padres 3-2 and the New York Mets 4-2 to take the National League pennant.

A Yankees-Dodgers contest is the most-played World Series match-up, with these teams meeting for the 12th time, although the previous 11 all took place between 1941 and 1981.

And for the first seven of those, it was a cross-city World Series as the 'Bronx Bombers' took on their bitter rivals, the Brooklyn Dodgers, whose franchise relocated to Los Angeles in 1957 to make it an East/West Coast rivalry.

And while both are often among the franchises that supporters of other teams love to hate, the Yankees and Dodgers can boast probably the widest array of celebrity fans in MLB.

Expect the cameras to linger on the likes of Justin Timberlake or Jay-Z in the expensive seats behind home plate.

Can Ohtani live up to the hype?

To say that Shohei Ohtani has had an eventful first year with the Dodgers would be the greatest of understatements.

Having moved across town after six years with the Los Angeles Angels, Ohtani signed a 10-year contract worth a record-breaking $700m (£558m), agreeing to defer the majority of his salary to allow the Dodgers to strengthen elsewhere.

Before he had even made his debut, Ohtani caused a social media stir in his native Japan by announcing he had married, sparking weeks of speculation before he revealed his wife's identity.

His long-time interpreter was fired by the Dodgers and arrested in connection with a multi-million-dollar fraud relating to illegal gambling, to which the interpreter has now pleaded guilty.

Back on the field, Ohtani's dog Decoy "threw out" the ceremonial first pitch in a game against the Baltimore Orioles in August, but the hound on the mound was eclipsed in September when his master became the first MLB player to hit 50 home runs and steal 50 bases in the same season. The '50-50 baseball', whose ownership is disputed, was sold at auction for $4.4m (£3.39m) earlier this week.

While part of Ohtani's allure comes from his rare status as a 'two-way' player, able to play at the highest level as both a hitter and a pitcher, elbow surgery has meant he has not pitched in 2024, but his batting stats continue to impress.

And in his first appearance in the post-season, the sky is the limit for this undoubted global star.

Will the Judge hold court in Fall Classic?

In opposition to Ohtani is another big-name World Series debutant - 6ft 7ins (2.01m) outfielder Aaron Judge, Yankees poster boy and a six-time All-Star.

Born in Sacramento, this Northern California native will be lining up in opposition to Southern California's Dodgers as the Yankees try to end one of the longest droughts in their history.

The Yankees last made the World Series in 2009, and only once before (1981-1996) have they been absent from MLB's showpiece finale for 15 years.

Drafted in 2013, Judge debuted in 2016 and has overhauled or equalled Yankees batting records previously held by legends such as Babe Ruth, Joe DiMaggio and Reggie Jackson.

Stats-wise, he has struggled to reach his own high standards in this post-season, but has an impressive record against the Dodgers.

Never before has a World Series featured two players who hit more than 50 regular-season home runs - but will Judge (58) or Ohtani (54) add a World Series ring that would be an important rung on the ladder to being an all-time great?

An elite supporting cast

Naturally, it is simplistic to just paint this series as Ohtani v Judge, which would diminish the contribution of the other players on both rosters.

As you would expect from teams with Opening Day payrolls* of the Yankees' $303m (£240m) and the Dodgers' $250m (£198m), both line-ups are stacked with elite hitters.

With the Yankees' Giancarlo Stanton, Juan Soto and Anthony Rizzo up against the Dodgers' Mookie Betts, Teoscar Hernandez and Freddie Freeman, who would be a pitcher?

Yet the Dodgers' injury-hit pitching staff recently tied an MLB record by throwing 33 consecutive scoreless post-season innings, while the Yankees' rotation is anchored by Gerrit Cole, 2023's unanimous winner of the American League's Cy Young Award for the best pitcher.

*figures taken from USA Today on 3 April, converted to sterling with that day's exchange rate

The Bahamian GB international who brings the Jazz

Jazz Chisholm Jr, who has sported a colourful array of cleats and shin pads on the field, was the cover star for the computer game MLB The Show 23 last year, while he was with the Miami Marlins

If a Great Britain international in MLB is a rarity, a GB player in the World Series is an absolute collector's item.

Three years after Houston Astros reliever Blake Taylor briefly made it out of the bullpen for a couple of blink-and-you'll-miss-him appearances, another GB international is preparing to suit up for the Fall Classic.

While there are high hopes for Seattle Mariners catcher Harry Ford, who is making his way through the minor leagues, the highest-profile GB player in the majors is Yankees infielder Jazz Chisholm Jr.

The 26-year-old hails from the Bahamas, whose status as a former British colony renders Chisholm eligible to represent GB, which he did in qualification for the 2017 World Baseball Classic (WBC).

He broke into the majors in 2020 with the Miami Marlins, earned All-Star recognition in 2022, and was traded to the Yankees in July - setting a franchise record with four home runs in his first three games.

Chisholm's progress has limited his availability for GB in recent years, but it would be a huge boost if he were available for future WBCs.