Dodgers-Yankees World Series history

It’s been a long time since the Yankees and Dodgers met in the World Series – but the most frequent Fall Classic matchup will add a new chapter in 2024.

The two most storied franchises in Major League Baseball will clash in the World Series for the 12th time beginning on Friday at Dodger Stadium. That’s five more meetings than any other matchup in World Series history (Yankees and Giants have squared off seven times).

Before the Yanks and Dodgers battle for another World Series trophy, let’s take a look back at each of their previous meetings:

1981 World Series
Result: Dodgers, 4-2

The Dodgers dropped the first two games of the series at Yankee Stadium, but it turns out a shift to Dodger Stadium changed everything. Fernando Valenzuela pitched Los Angeles to a much-needed 5-4 win in Game 3 — the first of three consecutive one-run victories for the Dodgers. That set the stage for L.A. to close out the series in the Bronx in Game 6 behind a huge effort from Pedro Guerrero, who went 3-for-5 with a triple, a homer and five RBIs.

1978 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-2

The Dodgers jumped out to a 2-0 series lead before the Yankees rattled off four straight wins to take the series. Lou Piniella evened the series with a walk-off hit in Game 4 before New York took the lead behind Thurman Munson’s five-RBI performance in Game 5.

Reggie Jackson hit a two-run homer in the decisive Game 6 — his fourth of the series — and Bucky Dent went 3-for-4 with three RBIs out of the No. 9 spot in the Yankees’ 7-2 win.

1977 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-2

Mr. October had his coming out party in the 1977 World Series. Reggie Jackson went 9-for-20 (.450) with five home runs, eight RBIs and 10 runs in just six games to lead the Yankees past the Dodgers. The only other players to hit five home runs in a single Fall Classic are George Springer (2017) and Chase Utley (2009) — and Utley is the only other to do so in fewer than seven games.

Jackson went 3-for-3 with three homers, five RBIs and four runs in New York’s decisive 8-4 win in Game 6. Jackson is one of only two players in postseason history to hit three homers in a potential World Series clincher. The other was Babe Ruth in the 1928 World Series.

1963 World Series
Result: Dodgers, 4-0

Sandy Koufax and Don Drysdale led the Dodgers to a sweep of the Yankees in which New York managed only four runs in four games. Koufax earned MVP honors after tossing a complete game in both the opener and the clincher, allowing only three runs and striking out 23 batters over 18 innings. Drysdale also threw a shutout in Los Angeles’ 1-0 win in Game 3.

1956 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-3

For the second straight year (more on that in a moment), the home team won each of the first six games of the 1956 World Series. But the Yankees rolled to a 9-0 victory at Brooklyn’s Ebbets Field in Game 7 behind four-RBI performances from both Yogi Berra and Bill Skowron. Berra hit a pair of homers in the winner-take-all clash while Skowron erased all doubt with a seventh-inning grand slam. Overall, Berra went 9-for-25 (.360) with five extra-base hits (including three homers), 10 RBIs and a 1.248 OPS.

But this World Series is remembered far more for what happened in Game 5. In arguably the most impressive performance in Major League Baseball history — let alone World Series history — Yankees right-hander Don Larsen retired all 27 batters to record the only perfect game in postseason history. Larsen racked up seven strikeouts, including getting Dale Mitchell looking to finish off New York’s 2-0 victory at Yankee Stadium. Mickey Mantle put the Yanks on the board with a fourth-inning homer that proved to be more than enough support for Larsen.

1955 World Series
Result: Dodgers, 4-3

The home team won each of the first six games of this series before the Dodgers bucked the trend with a 2-0 victory at Yankee Stadium in Game 7. Hall of Famer Gil Hodges drove in both runs in that game, but it was fellow Cooperstown inductee Duke Snider who carried the load for the series, racking up four homers, seven RBIs and a 1.210 OPS in the seven-game showdown.

1953 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-2

Billy Martin put together a remarkable series, going 12-for-24 (.500) with two homers, two triples, eight RBIs and a 1.478 OPS in the six-game series. He capped off his incredible showing with a World Series-clinching walk-off single in a 4-3 victory in Game 6. Mickey Mantle added two homers and seven RBIs, while Yogi Berra went 9-for-21 (.429) with a home run and four RBIs for the Yanks.

1952 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-3

The Dodgers used homers from a trio of Hall of Famers — Jackie Robinson, Duke Snider and Pee Wee Reese — to roll to a Game 1 victory. The teams then alternated victories over the next five games to set up a Game 7 showdown at Ebbets Field.

With the winner-take-all showdown tied at 2-2 in the sixth inning, Mickey Mantle hit a go-ahead homer that proved to be the difference in a 4-2 victory. Mantle finished 10-for-29 (.345) with two homers, three RBIs and a 1.061 OPS in the series. Yogi Berra added two homers while Johnny Mize went 6-for-15 (.400) with three home runs and six RBIs.

1949 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-1

The teams traded 1-0 victories at Yankee Stadium to start the series before the Yankees reeled off three straight wins at Ebbets Field to claim the title.

Yogi Berra went just 1-for-16 (.063) in the Fall Classic and Joe DiMaggio was 2-for-18 (.111), though DiMaggio’s lone homer came in a decisive 10-6 victory in Game 5.

1947 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-3

In a star-powered series, the Yankees jumped out to a 2-0 series lead behind a pair of wins at Yankee Stadium. But despite home runs from Joe DiMaggio and Yogi Berra in Game 3, the Dodgers rebounded for a victory. Brooklyn then evened the series with Cookie Lavagetto’s pinch-hit walk-off two-run double in Game 4.

DiMaggio homered again in Game 5 while Spec Shea earned a complete-game victory in a 2-1 win in Game 5. Jackie Robinson and Pee Wee Reese led the Dodgers to a win in Game 6, but the Yankees used a balanced effort in Game 7 to claim the trophy with a 5-2 victory.

1941 World Series
Result: Yankees, 4-1

In their first Fall Classic meeting, the Yankees beat their then-crosstown rival Brooklyn Dodgers behind some incredible pitching performances. Red Ruffing, Marius Russo and Tiny Bonham each turned in complete-game gems, allowing just one earned run apiece. Ruffing guided the Yanks to a Game 1 victory, Russo gave them a series lead in Game 3 and Bonham finished it off in Game 5.