TORONTO – Perhaps now we know why it took a quarter-century for a Major League Baseball team to repeat as World Series champions. Now that the Los Angeles Dodgers have done it, we understand how harrowing, hair-raising and humbling a feat it really is.
These Dodgers took their repeat bid to the limit – Game 7 of the World Series against a talented Toronto Blue Jays team, down to their final two outs and looking for all the world like those three-peating New York Yankees from 1998-2000 would maintain their status in the baseball pantheon.
And then Miguel Rojas stepped to the plate, a light-hitting utilityman when he climbed into the batter’s box, an October legend when he returned from his trip around the bases.
Rojas’s home run off Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman saved them from the brink, they survived a bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the ninth and their most underrated star, catcher Will Smith, finally delivered them the title so many expected.
His long home run to left field off Shane Bieber with two outs in the top of the 11th inning gave the Dodgers their first lead of the night, and Game 6 starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto stranded the tying run at third as the Dodgers secured a 5-4 victory and back-to-back championships.
It was their ninth title in franchise history, eighth since moving to Los Angeles and third in the past five years. Yet it also went from preordained – thanks to a superstar-studded roster and a total investment of half a billion dollars in payroll – to unlikely.
After all, it was the Blue Jays who brought a 3-2 World Series lead back to Canada, nine innings from their first title since 1993.
Instead, it was Smith, exhorting his baseball over the wall, screaming “Come on!” as it whistled over the wall.
And it was Yamamoto, completing one of the gutsiest pitching performances in baseball history: Winning Games 2 and 6 as a starter, then pitching 2 ⅔ innings of scoreless relief on zero days rest to win Game 7.
It was Randy Johnson who ended the Yankees’ dynasty by winning 2001 Game 6 and then coming back a night later to win Game 7 in relief. It took a similarly unbelievable act from Yamamoto to do what those Yankees could – go back-to-back.
— Gabe Lacques
Here’s how Game 7 unfolded in Toronto:
Will Smith home run puts Dodgers up in 11th
Shane Bieber came in to pitch the 11th for the Blue Jays and retired the first two batters, getting Shohei Ohtani to break his bat for the second out. Then, Dodgers catcher Will Smith launched a solo home run to left field, what could be a World Series-winning blast in Game 7.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto tosses scoreless 10th for Dodgers
Seranthony Dominguez escapes bases-loaded jam in 10th
A Mookie Betts walk, Max Muncy Single and Teoscar Hernandez walk loaded the bases with one out in the top of the 10th, but the Dodgers couldn’t scratch out a run.
Andy Pages makes unbelievable catch to send Game 7 to extra innings
TORONTO – This World Series Game 7 is going extra innings – and getting even more insane with every subsequent sequence.
The Los Angeles Dodgers escaped a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the ninth when Andy Pages – inserted into the game for defensive purposes moments earlier – staggered into the left center field gap and hauled in Ernie Clement’s long fly ball that could have walked it off and crowned the Blue Jays.
The twist: Left fielder Kiké Hernandez had designs on the ball, too. But Pages is 6-1. Hernandez is 5-11. Tall man wins – and barely hung on to the ball as Hernandez tumbled to the warning track.
On to the 10th.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto walks into a ninth-inning jam
Some 27 hours after starting the Dodgers’ Game 6 win, Yoshinobu Yamamoto is coming on in relief, replacing Blake Snell with runners on first and second and one out.
Miguel Rojas home run ties Game 7
TORONTO – Miguel Rojas, the afterthought addition to a struggling Los Angeles Dodgers lineup, hit one of the biggest World Series homers in franchise history to rescue the Dodgers – for now – in the top of the ninth in World Series Game 7.
With the Toronto Blue Jays just two outs away from clinching their first World Series championship since 1993, Rojas hammered a Jeff Hoffman pitch 387 feet out to left field, tying the winner-take-all battle 4-4 heading to the bottom of the ninth.
You like unlikely heroes? Welcome to Rojas. The valued utilityman in his second stint with the Dodgers hit just seven home runs this season.
He only cracked the World Series lineup because center fielder Andy Pages was struggling so mightily, the Dodgers opted to move Tommy Edman to the outfield and drop Rojas at the bottom of the lineup.
Goodness, did he deliver, crushing a hanging Hoffman splitter out to left. Blake Snell will now attempt to suppress the Blue Jays in the bottom of the ninth.
Max Muncy home run makes it 4-3
The Dodgers cut the Blue Jays’ lead back to one run on Max Muncy’s solo homer in the top of the eighth off Trey Yesavage.
Blue Jays get another huge double play to end seventh
TORONTO – Helmets are flying, rookies are flourishing, the first baseman is performing acrobatics and Rogers Centre is roaring.
The Toronto Blue Jays are six outs away from their first World Series since 1993.
Andrés Giménez’s double cashed in Ernie Clement with a crucial insurance run, Clement tossing his helmet to round third and sprawl across home plate as the Blue Jays took a 4-2 lead over the defending champion Dodgers in Game 7 of the World Series.
Rookie Trey Yesavage made the margin stand up in his first relief appearance of his very young major league career. He walked Shohei Ohtani leading off the seventh, then retired the dangerous Will Smith on a fly ball to center field.
Then, he induced a ground ball from All-Star Freddie Freeman. Vladimir Guerrero fielded the ball, made a difficult throw to second for one out and then scampered back to the bag to complete the gorgeous 3-6-3 double play.
Yesavage raised both arms in triumph. Guerrero jogged off the field, screaming to the heavens.
They’re drawing ever closer in Toronto, a city ready to erupt.
Blue Jays get crucial insurance run: Toronto 4, Dodgers 2 through six
Ernie Clement led off the bottom of the sixth with a single against Tyler Glasnow and then stole second. Andres Gimenez scorched a run-scoring double to right, extending Toronto’s lead to 4-2 with nobody out. But Glasnow got George Springer, Nathan Lukes and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to escape further damage and send Game 7 to the seventh inning.
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Max Scherzer steps aside, Blue Jays lead 3-1 halfway through
TORONTO — Max Scherzer exited to a roaring standing ovation. Louis Varland made sure the Blue Jays did not stay with him too long.
In a pivotal fifth-inning sequence in Game 7 of the World Series, Varland retired Will Smith and Freddie Freeman on fly balls to center field and the Blue Jays retained their 3-1 lead at the game’s halfway point.
Scherzer, the 41-year-old aiming to win his third World Series championship, was pulled with one out in the fifth after giving up a single to No. 9 batter Miguel Rojas.
Varland, setting a major league record with his 15th appearance this postseason, gave up a single to Shohei Ohtani, putting the tying runs aboard.
But he got the dangerous Smith and Freeman on fly balls, pumping his fist and heading toward the dugout even before the ball settled in center fielder Daulton Varsho’s mitt.
Benches clear in World Series Game 7
TORONTO – The World Series championship is at stake in Game 7, high enough stakes already. Yet that alone wasn’t enough to prevent a benches-clearing incident in the bottom of the fourth inning.
Dodgers reliever Justin Wrobleski hit Andrés Giménez with a pitch with two outs, Giménez immediately dropping his bat and complaining to the lefty.
And an already passively tense Game 7 suddenly turned aggressive.
The benches cleared, and several shoving matches broke out, as Dodgers first baseman Max Muncy restrained Wrobleski and the Blue Jays hopped over the third base dugout railing to join the fray.
Wrobleski’s plunking of Giménez marked the sixth time Blue Jays batters had been hit in the World Series; the Dodgers have absorbed two hit-by-pitches. Giménez was also hit by lefty reliever Evan Dreyer in Game 4.
The tension between the dugouts had been brewing since the bottom of the first inning, when Dodgers starting pitcher and leadoff batter Shohei Ohtani took almost the entire between-innings break resting in the dugout. He emerged with about 40 seconds left and the countdown clock stopped.
After that half inning, Blue Jays manager John Schneider conferred at length with homeplate umpire Jordan Baker. After Ohtani batted in the third, he remained in the dugout from the 3:10 mark at the coundown’s start until 17 seconds remained.
The crowd booed. Homeplate umpire Jordan Baker said something to Ohtani. The clock stopped. As Springer stepped in, it’d been 4 minutes, 20 seconds since a pitch was last thrown. In a mid-inning interview with Fox Sports, Schneider called the delay ‘egregious’ and that the umpires said they’d discuss the delay with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts
The point became moot when the Blue Jays chased Ohtani, the pitcher, from the game on Bo Bichette’s three-run homer in the third.
Louis Varland was warming in the Blue Jays bullpen, readying to relieve Max Scherzer. He dropped everything and led his bullpen mates to the infield.
Both benches were warned and the next batter, George Springer, drilled a ball off Wrobleski’s foot, to the delight of the crowd. Wrobleski stayed in the game.
Daulton Varsho catch saves Blue Jays but Dodgers make it 3-1
TORONTO – Max Scherzer needed gallant efforts from his defense to escape the top of the fourth with the lead in World Series Game 7.
The 41-year-old found trouble his third time through the Dodgers order, giving up a double and single to Will Smith and Freddie Freeman, respectively, to start the inning, and a one-out walk to Max Muncy loaded the bases.
But center fielder Daulton Varsho made a remarkable catch on Teoscar Hernandez’s 109.8 mph drive to center, snaring the ball just off the turf for a sacrifice fly and a huge second out.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the first baseman far more spry than the casual observer imagined, then launched his body into foul ground to snare Tommy Edman’s soft liner, ending the inning.
It was a remarkable risk-reward play by Varsho: Miss it, and the game is tied, a runner at third and just one out. But Varsho did not miss, and Scherzer escaped the fourth with the lead.
Bo Bichette home run knocks out Ohtani: Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 0
TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani is not a mythical figure, but rather a real, live human being who simply does remarkable things on the baseball field.
And the Toronto Blue Jays did not hesitate to ambush him in Game 7 of the World Series.
Pitching on three days’ rest for the first time in his career, Ohtani looked wobbly from the start, and then Bo Bichette applied a lightning-fast knockout blow: A first-pitch, three-run homer that electrified Rogers Centre, gave the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead and a massive edge in this call-to-arms Game 7.
It exited the bat at 110 mph, Rogers Centre reaching an ear-splitting noise level before Bichette’s first career postseason home run settled 442 feet away from home plate. The longtime Blue Jays cornerstone, hobbled by a knee injury that robbed him of the first two rounds of the playoffs, enjoyed the view, taking a few steps down the first base line before beginning his trot.
In a game of leverage, the Blue Jays have a massive advantage: Not only are they up 3-0, but starter Max Scherzer has required just 28 pitches to complete three innings. The Dodgers, meanwhile, burned Justin Wrobleski, their best lefty of late, to take after Ohtani in the third.
Six innings to go. But a massive blast as the Blue Jays pursue their first title since 1993.
The home run gives Bichette a strong chance at World Series MVP honors. He’s batting .350 (7 for 20) with a .958 OPS. And for now, he owns the biggest hit in the Fall Classic.
Shohei Ohtani escapes bases-loaded jam in second inning
TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani survived the top of the second inning. Yet he can’t be long for this Game 7 of the World Series. Can he?
The Blue Jays loaded the bases on the Dodgers’ two-way superstar, forced him to throw 25 pitches, coaxed pitching coach Mark Prior out of the dugout for a calm-down session. Yet much like the late innings of Game 6, they could not cash in.
Ohtani summoned his reserves to fire a 99-mph fastball past Andrés Giménez, leaving the bases loaded and Game 7 scoreless through two innings.
The Blue Jays must be encouraged by how vulnerable Ohtani looks, pitching on three days’ rest. Yet also thoroughly frustrated they are not leading this game. Bo Bichette drew a leadoff walk and Addison Barger drilled a single to right field. After a pair of popouts, an Ernie Clement single loaded the bases – but Bichette’s bum knee prevented him from scoring on the play.
Given a reprieve, Ohtani blew a 1-2 pitch past Giménez. Threat over – but one team concerned, the other frustrated.
Max Scherzer quickly through two innings
TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani wobbled just a bit in his first inning of work in Game 7 of the World Series, but the Blue Jays could not make him fall down.
George Springer rifled a leadoff single against Ohtani, but the two-way superstar rallied to strike out Nathan Lukes on a split-finger fastball and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. looking on a full-count, 99.6 mph fastball.
The Blue Jays sent Springer on the pitch, a dubious decision given Springer is hobbled by both knee and side ailments and it wasn’t too unlikely Ohtani would register a strikeout. Guerrero was caught looking and Springer stopped running two-thirds of the way there, perhaps caught off guard by homeplate umpire Adrian Johnson’s deliberate strike three call.
Meanwhile, Max Scherzer needed just 10 pitches to retire the side in each of the first two innings. Game 7 remains scoreless.
Shohei Ohtani leads off Game 7 with a hit
Shohei Ohtani singled to center field to lead off the top of the first against Max Scherzer and moved to second on a fielder’s choice. But Scherzer got Freddie Freeman to fly out to center and Mookie Betts to ground out, stranding Ohtani in scoring position.
World Series MVP odds
Odds via BetMGM as of 8:25 p.m. ET, Friday
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: +100
Shohei Ohtani: +110
Yoshinobu Yamamoto: +500
Dodgers lineup today
Starting pitcher: Shohei Ohtani
Shohei Ohtani (L) P
Will Smith (R) C
Freddie Freeman (L) 1B
Mookie Betts (R) SS
Max Muncy (L) 3B
Teoscar Hernández (R) RF
Tommy Edman (S) CF
Enrique Hernández (R) LF
Miguel Rojas (R) 2B
Blue Jays lineup today
Starting pitcher: Max Scherzer
George Springer (R) DH
Nathan Lukes (L) LF
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
Bo Bichette (R) 2B
Addison Barger (L) RF
Alejandro Kirk (R) C
Daulton Varsho (L) CF
Ernie Clement (R) 3B
Andrés Giménez (L) SS
Game 7 could define legacies for these players
TORONTO — For better or worse, Game 7 of this World Series won’t just be about determining a champion between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays.It will also determine, for better or worse, right or wrong, the legacies of the participants.
Alas, today’s ring culture can make perception reality. With that, here are five players whose reps may be burnished or burned a bit once the first champagne cork hits the floor:
Shohei Ohtani
Max Scherzer
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Mookie Betts
Trey Yesavage
– Gabe Lacques
Odds to win World Series Game 7
How many World Series have gone to Game 7?
Overall, there have been 40 Game 7s in World Series history, including a rare Game 8 in 1912 because of a tie in the second game of the series.
Here’s a look at the World Series Game 7s from the past 30 years:
Oct. 30, 2019 — Nationals 6, Astros 2
Nov. 1, 2017 — Astros 5, Dodgers 1
Nov. 2, 2016 — Cubs 8, Indians 7 (10 innings)
Oct. 29, 2014 — Giants 3, Royals 2
Oct. 28, 2011 — Cardinals 6, Rangers 2
Oct. 27, 2002 — Angels 4, Giants 1
Nov. 4, 2001 — Diamondbacks 3, Yankees 2
Oct. 26, 1997 — Marlins 3, Indians 2 (11 innings)
Oct. 27, 1991 — Twins 1, Braves 0 (10 innings)
Oct. 25, 1987 — Twins 4, Cardinals 2
Oct. 27, 1986 — Mets 8, Red Sox 5
Oct. 27, 1985 — Royals 11, Cardinals 0
What team has the most World Series titles?
Yankees – 27
Cardinals – 11
Athletics – 9
Red Sox – 9
Dodgers – 8
Giants – 8
Max Scherzer World Series wins
Three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer has won two World Series titles in his career: 2019 with the Washington Nationals and 2023 with the Texas Rangers. The 41-year-old also appeared in the 2012 Fall Classic with the Detroit Tigers and is the first player in history to pitch for four different teams in the World Series.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. rolls up to Game 7 in Marie-Philip Poulin jersey
World Series winners by year
2024: Dodgers
2023: Rangers
2022: Astros
2021: Braves
2020: Dodgers
2019: Nationals
2018: Red Sox
2017: Astros
2016: Cubs
2015: Royals
2014: Giants
2013: Red Sox
2012: Giants
2011: Cardinals
2010: Giants
World Series schedule 2025
Game 1: Blue Jays 11, Dodgers 4
Game 2: Dodgers 5, Blue Jays 1
Game 3: Dodgers 6, Blue Jays 5 (18 innings)
Game 4: Blue Jays 6, Dodgers 2
Game 5: Blue Jays 6, Dodgers 1
Game 6: Dodgers 3, Blue Jays 1
Game 7: Nov. 1 in Toronto – 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PDT
Dodgers vs Blue Jays Game 6 highlights
How many games are in the World Series?
The World Series is a best-of-seven series, meaning that a team needs to win four games in order to be crowned champions.
Who won the World Series last year?
The Los Angeles Dodgers won the 2024 World Series in five games over the New York Yankees.
Alejandro Kirk height
Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is 5 feet, 8 inches tall. A two-time All-Star, the 26-year-old has five home runs and 13 RBIs in 17 games this postseason.
Toronto Blue Jays World Series appearances
This is the Blue Jays’ third appearance in the World Series, winning championships in 1992 and 1993.
How many World Series have the Dodgers won?
Since the first World Series in 1903, the Dodgers have carved their name in history, claiming eight titles in their franchise history. The Dodgers’ title wins came in 1955, 1959, 1963, 1965, 1981, 1988, 2000 and 2024.
When was the last time the Blue Jays won the World Series?
Toronto’s last World Series championship came in 1993, the second of their back-to-back titles.
Shohei Ohtani contract
Shohei Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers prior to the 2024 season. The largest contract in the history of North American pro sports when he signed in, the deal defers $680 million of the package to payments that start in 2034.
Dodgers World Series roster 2025
Pitchers (12): LHP Anthony Banda, LHP Jack Dreyer, RHP Tyler Glasnow, RHP Edgardo Henriquez, LHP Clayton Kershaw, RHP Will Klein, RHP Roki Sasaki, RHP Emmet Sheehan, LHP Blake Snell, RHP Blake Treinen, LHP Justin Wrobleski, RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto.
Position, two-way players (14): SS Mookie Betts, OF Alex Call, OF Justin Dean, INF/OF Tommy Edman, 1B Freddie Freeman, INF/OF Kiké Hernández, OF Teoscar Hernández, INF/OF Hyeseong Kim, 3B Max Muncy, DH/P Shohei Ohtani, OF Andy Pages, INF Miguel Rojas, C Ben Rortvedt, C Will Smith.
Blue Jays World Series roster
Pitchers (12): RHP Chris Bassitt, RHP Shane Bieber, RHP Seranthony Dominguez, RHP Braydon Fisher, LHP Mason Fluharty, RHP Kevin Gausman, RHP Jeff Hoffman, LHP Eric Lauer, LHP Brendon Little, RHP Max Scherzer, RHP Louis Varland, RHP Trey Yesavage.
Position players (14): C Tyler Heineman, C Alejandro Kirk, INF/OF Addison Barger, INF Bo Bichette, INF Ernie Clement, INF Ty France, INF Andrés Giménez, INF Vladimir Guerrero Jr., INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa, OF Nathan Lukes, OF Davis Schneider, OF George Springer, OF Myles Straw, OF Daulton Varsho.