LA Dodgers Survive in Toronto to Force Winner-Take-All Game 7 in World Series
This year's championship series is going to a final seventh game following the Dodgers kept their repeat hopes intact on Friday with a three to one win over the Blue Jays in Game 6.
The reigning title holders ended Toronto’s late-game comeback with a dramatic final double play, stunning a Rogers Centre audience that had come ready to celebrate the city’s championship in over three decades.
Game 6 Summary
The Dodgers generated all of their scoring in the third frame. With two away, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Will Smith hit a two-bagger to left to score Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to load the bases, and Betts delivered with a two-run single to left, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 lead.
That key hit broke a postseason slump and revived the title holders' hopes of becoming the initial back-to-back World Series winners since the New York Yankees captured three consecutive from 1998 through 2000.
Pitching Battle
Kevin Gausman had been dominant to that point, striking out six of the first seven Dodgers he confronted. He fanned 8 through three frames, matching a Fall Classic record, but the third-frame rally proved decisive. The Blue Jays' star ended with eight strikeouts over six frames, yielding three runs on three safeties and two free passes.
Yamamoto, meanwhile, was steady again under stress. The righty outdueled his counterpart for the second time in a seven days, giving up one run on five hits over six frames with six strikeouts. He boosted his record to 4–1 this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.
The lone score against him came on George Springer two-out base hit in the third, scoring Addison Barger, who had doubled earlier in the inning. Springer’s hit provided a momentary lift in his comeback to the starting nine after missing a pair of contests with an oblique injury.
Relief Heroics
After that, the Dodgers’ bullpen carried the load. Rookie Wrobleski got out of a tight spot in the seventh inning, and fellow rookie Rōki Sasaki worked into the ninth inning before hitting Kirk to open the inning. Barger then hit a two-base hit that became wedged under the outfield wall, obliging base runners to stay at second and third.
Glasnow, the Dodgers' third game starting pitcher, came on in relief and induced a pop fly before Giménez hit a line drive to left. Enrique Hernández caught the ball and fired to second to double off the runner, sealing the win and earning the pitcher his first career save.
Next Up: Seventh Game
The series now comes down to one game. Max Scherzer will take the mound for the Blue Jays, making him the only living pitcher to start more than one World Series Game 7s after accomplishing that in 2019 with the Nationals. The veteran signed a single-season contract to pursue another championship and has been a vocal leader throughout this postseason.
The Los Angeles squad, aiming to be baseball’s first back-to-back champions in nearly a quarter-century, are projected to rely on their two-way star for a short outing.