LA Dodgers Survive in Canada to Set Up Winner-Take-All Game 7 in Fall Classic

The championship series is going to a decisive Game 7 following the Dodgers kept alive their repeat dreams intact on Friday with a 3–1 win over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 6.

The defending champions ended Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a dramatic game-ending twin killing, stunning a Rogers Centre audience that had arrived prepared to celebrate the team's first title in over three decades.

Sixth Game Recap

Los Angeles produced all of their offense in the third frame. With two away, Shohei Ohtani was intentionally walked before Smith doubled to left field to score Tommy Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to load the bases, and Mookie Betts delivered with a two-run single to left, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 lead.

That key hit broke a playoff dry spell and revived the defending champions’ hopes of being the first repeat World Series winners since the New York Yankees won three straight from 1998 to 2000.

Pitching Duel

Kevin Gausman had been nearly unhittable to that point, striking out six of the initial seven batters he confronted. He fanned eight through three frames, tying a Fall Classic record, but the third-inning barrage proved decisive. The Toronto ace finished with 8 Ks over six innings, allowing three earned runs on three safeties and two free passes.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, meanwhile, was solid again under stress. The 27-year-old right-hander outpitched Gausman for the second occasion in a week, allowing one run on five hits over six innings with six Ks. He improved to four wins and one loss this playoffs with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him resulted from Springer’s two-out single in the third inning, driving in Addison Barger, who had doubled earlier in the inning. That single offered a momentary lift in his comeback to the starting nine after missing two games with an side strain.

Bullpen Heroics

From there, the Los Angeles relievers took over. Rookie Justin Wrobleski escaped a tight spot in the seventh, and another rookie Rōki Sasaki pitched into the ninth inning before plunking Kirk to open the frame. Barger then hit a two-base hit that became wedged under the left-center-field fence, forcing runners to stay at second and third base.

Glasnow, Los Angeles’ third game starting pitcher, came on in a relief role and got a pop fly before Andrés Giménez lined to left. Enrique Hernández caught the ball and fired to second base to double off the runner, clinching the victory and giving Glasnow his first-ever successful save.

Looking Ahead: Seventh Game

The series now comes down to a single contest. Scherzer will take the mound for Toronto, becoming the sole active hurler to pitch in multiple World Series Game 7s after doing so in 2019 with the Nationals. The 40-year-old inked a one-year deal to pursue another championship and has been a vocal leader throughout this playoff run.

The Los Angeles squad, looking to be the sport's initial repeat title winners in nearly a quarter-century, are expected to rely on their two-way star for a brief appearance.

Joshua Martinez
Joshua Martinez

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