LA Dodgers Survive in Canada to Force Winner-Take-All Game 7 in Fall Classic
The World Series is going to a final Game 7 after the Los Angeles Dodgers kept their title defense dreams intact Friday night with a three to one victory over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 6.
The defending champions halted Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a dramatic final twin killing, silencing a Rogers Centre crowd that had come ready to celebrate the team's first title in 32 years.
Sixth Game Summary
The Dodgers generated all of their scoring in the third frame. With two outs, Shohei Ohtani was purposely passed before Smith hit a two-bagger to left field to score Edman. Freddie Freeman drew a walk to fill the bases, and Mookie Betts came through with a two-run single to left, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 advantage.
Betts’ hit snapped a postseason slump and revived the defending champions’ hopes of becoming the initial back-to-back World Series victors since the Yankees won three straight from 1998 through 2000.
Mound Battle
Gausman had been dominant to that stage, fanning half a dozen of the initial seven Dodgers he faced. He fanned 8 through three frames, tying a World Series record, but the third-frame rally proved costly. The Blue Jays' star finished with 8 Ks over six innings, allowing three earned runs on three hits and two free passes.
Yamamoto, meanwhile, was solid again under pressure. The righty outdueled his counterpart for the second occasion in a week, allowing a single run on five base hits over six innings with six strikeouts. He improved to 4–1 this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.
The only run against him came on George Springer two-out single in the third inning, scoring Addison Barger, who had hit a double previously in the frame. That single offered a momentary lift in his comeback to the lineup after missing a pair of contests with an oblique injury.
Bullpen Effort
After that, the Los Angeles relievers carried the load. First-year pitcher Wrobleski got out of a jam in the seventh inning, and another rookie Sasaki worked into the ninth inning before plunking Kirk to open the frame. Addison Barger then hit a double that became wedged under the left-center-field fence, obliging base runners to stay at second and third base.
Glasnow, Los Angeles’ Game 3 starting pitcher, came on in relief and induced a popout before Giménez lined to left. Hernández caught the ball and threw to second base to double off the runner, sealing the win and giving the pitcher his first career successful save.
Next Up: Seventh Game
The series now boils down to a single contest. Scherzer will take the mound for Toronto, making him the only living pitcher to pitch in more than one seventh games of the World Series after doing so in 2019 with Washington. The 40-year-old inked a single-season contract to chase one more title and has been a outspoken presence throughout this postseason.
The Dodgers, aiming to become baseball’s first back-to-back champions in almost 25 years, are expected to lean on Shohei Ohtani for a short outing.