"I was so afraid" - Dave Roberts confides in Mookie Betts he feared facing Yankees in Game 6 in LA even with Yoshinobu Yamamoto on the mound to start

Los Angeles Dodgers manager Dave Roberts revealed to Mookie Betts that he was determined to close out the World Series as quickly as possible after taking a 3-0 lead over the New York Yankees.

Roberts said that he was scared at the prospect of heading back to L.A. for Game 6, where Yoshinobu Yamamoto would have started, as he feared that his team may succumb to pressure and blow out a three-game lead.

The Dodgers won the first two games of the World Series at home and Game 3 in New York before the Yankees opened their account by taking Game 4. In Game 5, the Yankees had a five-run lead, but defensive lapses allowed the Dodgers to pull off a stunning win and clinch the championship.

On Monday, on the 'On Base with Mookie Betts' podcast for Bleacher Report, hosted by the Dodgers outfielder, Roberts was asked about his mindset ahead of Game 5.

"When you're down 3–0, you're at the point where you have nothing to lose now," Roberts said. "When you're down 3–0 everyone is expecting you to lose anyway. So now, that, for me, is freeing. And they played free, won Game 4.

"And I will tell you this now, publicly, I was so afraid to come back to Los Angeles for Game 6," said Roberts. "I know we still had [Yoshinobu] Yamamoto in our back pocket. The point being, if we were to come back, [then] the noise, the pressure becomes real. Because then, you're going to start potentially being part of history in the wrong way."

Eventually, the Dodgers outclassed the Yankees to win their eighth World Series. It was the second title with the team for both Dave Roberts and Mookie Betts following their triumph in the COVID 19-shortened 2020 campaign.

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"I managed with urgency": Dave Roberts on his tactics in World Series Game 5

Mookie Betts and Dave Roberts won their second World Series title with the Dodgers (Photo Credit: IMAGN)

During his interview, Dave Roberts told Mookie Betts that he took nothing for granted against the New York Yankees despite having a comfortable lead ahead of Game 5.

Roberts was afraid that the Los Angeles Dodgers might become the first team to lose the Fall Classic after going up 3-0.

"We did it in the ALCS, the Yankees versus the Red Sox," Roberts said. "And for me, that was the fear.

"Yes, I managed with urgency," he added. "Even when we were down 5-0, I didn't know how we were going to finish this dang game."

Dave Roberts was a part of the 2004 Boston Red Sox team that beat the New York Yankees in the American League Champions Series, the only time an MLB team overturned a three-game deficit to win a best-of-seven playoff series.