At the start of the fifth inning Monday night, the Yankee Stadium scoreboard implored a quiet crowd in the Bronx.

“EVERYBODY GET LOUD,” it instructed.

“EVERYBODY SCREAM,” it begged.

The subdued 49,368 in attendance hardly reacted.

As he’d done so many times before this time of year, Walker Buehler had already zapped them of any life.

For much of this season — his first back from a second career Tommy John surgery — Buehler looked nothing like his old self. His once-overpowering fastball was getting crushed by opponents. His secondary stuff didn’t have the same life. His mechanics were so out of whack that, during a month-long stint on the injured list in the summer, he went to a private facility in Florida, searching for any shred of consistent effectiveness.

In his final season before a long-awaited free agency, he endured a frustrating six-month grind.

October, however, has been a different story. And on Monday night, it culminated in what could be a storybook finish.

In a 4-2 Dodgers win that gave them a 3-0 lead in the World Series, Buehler delivered a vintage October gem to put them on the doorstep of a championship. Game 4 was Tuesday night but ended too late for this edition.

Five innings. Zero runs. Five strikeouts.

All in what might be his final start with the organization.

“This is as confident as I’ve seen him,” manager Dave Roberts said in a mid-game interview with Fox. “This is as good as his stuff has been.”

Freeman on fire: Told he had tied a World Series record by homering in five straight games, Freddie Freeman grinned.

“Let’s hopefully make it six,” he said.

Freeman put the Dodgers ahead 15 pitches into Monday’s victory with a two-run homer off Clarke Schmidt.

He matched the mark set when George Springer homered in Games 4 through 7 in 2017 as the Astros beat the Dodgers for the title, then hit another in the 2019 opener against the Nationals.

Freeman homered in the Braves’ last two games against the Astros in the 2021 World Series, and he connected in the first three games of this one. He became the third player to homer in the first three games of a World Series after Hank Bauer in 1958 and Barry Bonds in 2002.

Freeman sprained his right ankle on Sept. 26 against the Padres and missed the Dodgers’ last three regular-season games. He didn’t have any RBIs in the NLDS against the Padres and just one in the NLCS against the Mets.

Freeman didn’t play in the NLCS finale against the Mets and had six days off entering the World Series, allowing his ankle to heal.

“We went to Freddie several times and said, ‘Hey we got you the last two series,’ ” Dodgers teammate Max Muncy said. “This is Freddie telling us, ‘Hey, I got you this time.’ ”

An eight-time All-Star and the 2020 NL MVP, the 35-year-old Freeman had seven RBIs in the Series entering Tuesday night’s game.

“Not surprised he’s performing at this level,” Roberts said. “He’s been very good in the postseason throughout his career.”