The third baseman recalled an eventful Fall Classic.
Jon Berti during the Yankees’ 5–4 loss to the Mariners on May 20, 2024. / Brad Penner-Imagn Images
When the dust settled on the 2024 World Series, few would argue against the notion that the Los Angeles Dodgers completely outclassed the New York Yankees. It’s true that the Yankees nearly pushed the Dodgers to a sixth game after going down 3–0, but Los Angeles emerged victorious.
However, according to Chicago Cubs (and ex-New York) third baseman Jon Berti, the Dodgers’ trash talk after finishing off their title crossed a line.
“I don’t know if I’ve ever heard a World Series-winning team talk as badly as they did about the World Series-losing team,” Berti said on Wednesday’s edition of Foul Territory. “It felt like we were being disrespected to the point of we didn’t even belong in the World Series.”
Benefitting from a down year in the American League, the Yankees downed the Kansas City Royals and Cleveland Guardians in the ALDS and ALCS, respectively. Berti slashed .182/.250/.182 in 11 postseason at-bats, managing a run in Game 4 of the ALCS.
“We won a lot of games last year. We won our division,” Berti said. “We went and took care of Kansas City and took care of Cleveland. So we deserved to be there, unfortunately we didn’t perform at our best.”