Dodgers reliever Joe Kelly knew the Yankees were in trouble before Game 5’s disgraceful fifth inning of the World Series.
After the Yankees choked away a 5-0 lead, the always outspoken Dodgers pitcher explained that Fat Joe was seen on the Jumbotron before the fifth inning signaling their opponent was about to surrender their advantage.
“They put Fat Joe up on the board, and I was like, ‘Oh, it’s an easy dub now,’” Kelly said after the Dodgers’ Game 5 World Series-clinching victory. “You know Fat Joe is the curse.”
The Bronx-born rapper was previously roasted on social media for his poor performance while leading the Yankees into Game 3 of the World Series.
New York radio legend Chris “Mad Dog” Russo previously criticized the decision, saying he wants no performances before games, including Fat Joe and Ice Cube, who performed ahead of Game 1 in Los Angeles.
“Come on, I don’t want rock and roll. I don’t want rap. I want nothing!” Russo said.
Kelly then dug into the Yankees’ weakness that cost them both Games 1 and 5 in the series.
“They started kicking the ball around and playing Yankee defense,” Kelly continued while laughing. “Oh, he was on the Jumbotron, I’m pretty sure, right before the fifth. I looked over at [Brent] Honeywell and said ‘The Fat Joe Curse, watch.’ and we started chipping away, chipping away, chipping away. And bad play, bad play, bad play. And I end up getting my second one with the Dodgers.”
The Yankees made two errors — Aaron Judge dropping a fly ball and Anthony Volpe one-hopping a throw to third base — along with Gerrit Cole and Anthony Rizzo getting beaten to the bag by Mookie Betts in that disastrous fifth that saw the Dodgers score five runs on their way to a 7-6 win.
Kelly, who pitched 32 innings all season and had a 4.78 ERA, was dealing with a shoulder issue that kept him off the Dodgers’ roster through all three postseason rounds.
Kelly infamously threw at Astros stars Alex Bregman and Carlos Correa in 2020 when he faced them for the first time since their 2017 sign-stealing arrangement came to light.
Kelly was suspended eight games but many in baseball came to his side during that time saying he had earned his teammates’ respect.
