LA Dodgers Hold On in Toronto to Force Decisive Game 7 in Fall Classic

This year's World Series is headed to a decisive Game 7 after the Los Angeles Dodgers kept their title defense hopes intact on Friday with a 3–1 victory over the Blue Jays in Game 6.

The reigning title holders ended Toronto’s late-game comeback with a thrilling game-ending twin killing, stunning a Rogers Centre crowd that had arrived prepared to cheer the city’s first title in over three decades.

Game 6 Summary

The Dodgers produced all of their offense in the third inning. With two away, Ohtani was purposely passed before Will Smith doubled to left field to bring home Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to load the bases, and Betts came through with a two-RBI hit to the opposite field, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 advantage.

That key hit snapped a postseason slump and revived the title holders' hopes of becoming the initial back-to-back championship victors since the Yankees won three straight from 1998 to 2000.

Pitching Duel

Gausman had been dominant to that point, fanning six of the first seven Dodgers he faced. He struck out eight through three innings, tying a World Series record, but the third-frame rally proved costly. The Blue Jays' star ended with eight strikeouts over six frames, yielding three earned runs on three safeties and two walks.

Yamamoto, in contrast, was steady again under pressure. The righty outpitched Gausman for the second occasion in a week, allowing one run on five hits over six innings with six Ks. He boosted his record to 4–1 this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him resulted from George Springer two-out base hit in the third inning, driving in Addison Barger, who had hit a double earlier in the inning. Springer’s hit offered a momentary lift in his comeback to the starting nine after sitting out a pair of contests with an oblique injury.

Bullpen Effort

After that, the Dodgers’ bullpen carried the load. First-year pitcher Justin Wrobleski got out of a tight spot in the seventh inning, and fellow rookie Sasaki worked into the ninth before plunking Alejandro Kirk to start the frame. Addison Barger then hit a double that got stuck under the left-center-field fence, obliging base runners to stay at second and third.

Tyler Glasnow, Los Angeles’ third game starting pitcher, entered in a relief role and got a popout before Andrés Giménez hit a line drive to left field. Enrique Hernández made the catch and fired to second base to retire Barger, clinching the win and earning Glasnow his first-ever save.

Next Up: Seventh Game

The best-of-seven now boils down to a single contest. Max Scherzer will start for the Blue Jays, becoming the sole active hurler to start more than one seventh games of the World Series after doing so in 2019 with the Nationals. The 40-year-old signed a one-year deal to pursue one more title and has been a vocal leader throughout this postseason.

The Los Angeles squad, looking to be the sport's initial repeat champions in nearly a quarter-century, are expected to rely on Shohei Ohtani for a brief appearance.