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

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

The defending champions halted Toronto’s late-game comeback with a thrilling game-ending twin killing, silencing a Rogers Centre crowd that had arrived prepared to cheer the city’s first title in 32 years.

Sixth Game Summary

The Dodgers generated all of their offense in the third frame. With two outs, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Smith hit a two-bagger to left to bring home Tommy Edman. Freddie Freeman drew a walk to fill the bases, and Betts came through with a two-RBI hit to left, handing the Dodgers a three-run lead.

Betts’ hit broke a postseason slump and rekindled the defending champions’ hopes of being the first repeat World Series winners since the Yankees won three consecutive from 1998 through 2000.

Mound Duel

Gausman had been nearly unhittable to that point, striking out half a dozen of the initial seven batters he faced. He struck out eight through three innings, tying a Fall Classic mark, but the third-frame rally proved decisive. The Blue Jays' star ended with 8 Ks over six innings, yielding three runs on three hits and two walks.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, meanwhile, was steady again under pressure. The righty outpitched Gausman for the second occasion in a week, allowing a single run on five base hits over six frames with six Ks. He improved to 4–1 this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.

The lone score against him resulted from George Springer two-out base hit in the third inning, scoring Addison Barger, who had doubled previously in the frame. Springer’s hit offered a brief spark in his return to the starting nine after sitting out two games with an oblique injury.

Relief Effort

From there, the Los Angeles relievers carried the load. First-year pitcher Wrobleski escaped a jam in the seventh, and another rookie Sasaki pitched into the ninth inning before plunking Alejandro Kirk to open the frame. Addison Barger followed with a double that became wedged under the left-center-field fence, forcing runners to stay at second and third base.

Tyler Glasnow, the Dodgers' Game 3 starting pitcher, entered in a relief role and induced a pop fly before Giménez hit a line drive to left. Hernández caught the ball and threw to second base to retire the runner, sealing the victory and earning Glasnow his first-ever save.

Next Up: Seventh Game

The series now boils down to a single contest. Scherzer will take the mound for the Blue Jays, making him the only living pitcher to pitch in more than one World Series Game 7s after doing so in the 2019 season with the Nationals. The veteran inked a one-year deal to pursue another championship and has been a vocal leader throughout this playoff run.

The Dodgers, looking to become baseball’s first back-to-back champions in almost 25 years, are projected to lean on Shohei Ohtani for a brief appearance.