Los Angeles Dodgers Survive in Canada to Force Decisive Game 7 in World Series

This year's championship series is going to a final Game 7 after the Dodgers kept alive their repeat dreams alive Friday night with a 3–1 victory over the Blue Jays in Game 6.

The defending champions halted Toronto’s late-game comeback with a dramatic game-ending double play, stunning a Rogers Centre crowd that had arrived prepared to celebrate the city’s championship in over three decades.

Game 6 Recap

The Dodgers generated all of their scoring in the third inning. With two away, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Smith doubled to left to score Edman. Freddie Freeman drew a walk to load the bases, and Betts came through with a two-RBI hit to left, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 lead.

That key hit snapped a playoff dry spell and revived the defending champions’ hopes of being the first repeat championship winners since the New York Yankees won three consecutive from 1998 through 2000.

Pitching Battle

Kevin Gausman had been nearly unhittable to that stage, striking out half a dozen of the first seven Dodgers he confronted. He struck out eight through three innings, tying a World Series record, but the third-frame rally proved costly. The Toronto ace finished with eight strikeouts over six frames, yielding three earned runs on three hits and two free passes.

Yamamoto, meanwhile, was solid again under stress. The righty outdueled Gausman for the second occasion in a week, allowing a single run on five base hits over six frames with six strikeouts. He boosted his record to 4–1 this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him came on George Springer two-out base hit in the third inning, driving in Barger, who had doubled earlier in the inning. Springer’s hit provided a momentary lift in his comeback to the starting nine after missing two games with an oblique injury.

Bullpen Effort

From there, the Dodgers’ bullpen took over. Rookie Wrobleski escaped a tight spot in the seventh inning, and another rookie Sasaki pitched into the ninth inning before plunking Alejandro Kirk to open the inning. Addison Barger followed with a two-base hit that got stuck under the outfield wall, forcing runners to stay at second and third base.

Glasnow, the Dodgers' third game starter, entered in relief and induced a pop fly before Andrés Giménez hit a line drive to left. Enrique Hernández made the catch and fired to second base to double off the runner, sealing the victory and earning the pitcher his first-ever successful save.

Looking Ahead: Game 7

The series now comes down to one game. Max Scherzer will take the mound for Toronto, becoming the sole active hurler to pitch in more than one seventh games of the World Series after accomplishing that in 2019 with the Nationals. The 40-year-old 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 the sport's initial repeat title winners in nearly a quarter-century, are projected to rely on their two-way star for a short outing.