Blue Jays Exploit Dodgers' Biggest Weakness To Win World Series Game 1

TORONTO — In nan end, nan biggest ovation of nan nighttime mightiness person travel aft an out. There had been truthful overmuch to cheer already arsenic nan Blue Jays pecked distant astatine nan Dodgers’ lead, their bullpen and their consciousness of invincibility. Rogers Centre shook aft nan location runs. It roared astatine nan run-scoring singles. It rocked astatine nan walks and nan awesome plays and nan filthy pitches. And successful an 11–4 romp complete L.A. successful Canada’s first World Series crippled successful 32 years, location were plentifulness of those. But it was aft Daulton Varsho flied to near section to extremity nan six-hit, nine-run, game-deciding sixth inning that nan sellout crowd of 44,353 roseate to its feet arsenic 1 and applauded. 

They appreciated what was happening successful nan first World Series crippled successful Canada since Joe Carter deed nan biggest location tally successful Fall Classic history successful 1993, and nan first World Series crippled played by nan defending champion since nan Phillies tried and grounded to make it 2 consecutive successful 2009. And they appreciated really it was happening, successful classical Blue Jays fashion: at-bats that felt for illustration a trial of endurance, difficult interaction up nan mediate and past devastating slug. No 1 struck retired successful nan inning (and nan Jays were rung up conscionable 4 times each game). Everyone but Ernie Clement—who drove successful nan first tally of nan inning but was erased connected a fielder’s choice—scored. Addison Barger added nan first pinch-hit expansive slam successful World Series history. It marked nan astir runs scored successful a azygous Fall Classic inning since 1968. Carter is scheduled to propulsion retired nan first transportation of Game 2; they should person brought him retired early and fto him tee disconnected against nan Dodgers’ bullpen. 

Amid sport-wide consternation over whether nan Dodgers and their grounds $329 cardinal payroll are ruining baseball, it was easy to miss conscionable really bully a shot squad nan Blue Jays are. Sure, nan Dodgers’ lineup originates pinch 3 Hall of Famers—two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani, self-made shortstop Mookie Betts and first baseman Freddie Freeman. (Ohtani is particularly unpopular present because he spurned nan Blue Jays and chose nan Dodgers. This week Toronto head John Schneider jokingly asked him to return nan Blue Jays headdress and canine overgarment nan squad had fixed him during nan recruiting process.) But nan feline hitting 3rd successful Toronto, first baseman Vladimir Guerrero Jr., had six location runs and 3 strikeouts successful nan first 3 weeks of October. DH George Springer deed possibly nan 2nd astir celebrated three-run homer successful Blue Jays history past week to thief nan squad seizure nan pennant. And arsenic a group, nary 1 struck retired little this play than Toronto. 

The Blue Jays were besides enjoying a return by 1 of their champion players: At 2nd guidelines was Bo Bichette, nan two-time All-Star shortstop who had not played since suffering a near knee sprain connected Sept. 6 and had not played 2nd since he sewage 8 innings location astatine Triple A Buffalo successful 2019. 

He fought furiously to return successful clip to lend to this historical tally earlier his free agency dawns this winter, and finally, connected nan eve of nan World Series, he told Schneider he was ready. But successful deference to really good his replacement, protect wizard Andrés Giménez has played, Bichette offered to man second. 

Asked earlier nan crippled if he could estimate really adjacent to afloat wellness he was, Bichette demurred. “I don’t cognize astir a percentage, but I cognize I’m bully capable to play,” Bichette said. “And I consciousness bully capable to produce. So that’s each that matters to me.” The verdict was successful soon enough: He sewage nan greenish ray connected a 3–0 transportation successful nan first and singled, and it was his sixth-inning locomotion that keyed nan rally. 

Bo Bichette, left, returned from wounded to man 2nd guidelines down Game 1 starter Trey Yesavage, right. / Nick Turchiaro-Imagn Images

The pitching was bully capable to get them there. The Blue Jays joke astir their gray-haired rotation—34-year-old Kevin Gausman, 30-year-old Shane Biever, 41-year-old Max Scherzer, 36-year-old Chris Bassitt and 31-year-old José Berríos mixed for 78% of nan team’s innings from starters—but connected Friday it was nan youngest man connected nan roster who took nan ball. Trey Yesavage, a 22-year-old who spent much clip this play pinch nan Single A Dunedin Blue Jays than pinch nan large club, entered October pinch 14 awesome convention innings pitched. Toronto head John Schneider vaguely remembered a “Hey, bully to meet you, kid. Welcome to nan organization,” relationship successful outpouring training; L.A. head Dave Roberts hadn’t heard of nan kid until he blanked nan Yankees for 5 ⅓ innings successful Game 2 of nan ALDS. 

Yesavage allowed 5 runs successful 4 innings against nan Mariners successful Game 2 of nan ALCS and 2 successful 5 ⅔ successful Game 5, but Schneider liked that nan Dodgers had ne'er seen him before. Yesavage releases nan shot from what feels for illustration location successful nan 2nd deck—7.1 feet successful nan aerial compared to nan awesome convention mean of 5.8 feet—and erstwhile opponents lamented that it took clip to set to nan unusual visual. 

It took nan Dodgers an inning. Yesavage group down Ohtani, Betts and Freeman successful bid successful nan first, but Smith walked, Teoscar Hernández grounded retired and Muncy singled to put runners connected nan corners. Kiké Hernández, arsenic he truthful often does astatine this clip of year, came done pinch a azygous up nan mediate to sheet nan first run. Schneider sewage nan bullpen up, but Yesavage—who was navigating nan astir listless worldly of his young career—induced Ohtani to crushed to first to extremity nan threat. An inning later nan Dodgers tacked connected different connected a Smith single. 

Meanwhile, Dodgers ace Blake Snell was making his ain adjustments. After escaping a bases-loaded, two-out jam successful nan first, he tweaked his posture and filled up nan onslaught zone. But successful nan fourth, he allowed a leadoff 328-foot azygous to nan slow-footed Alejandro Kirk and a first-pitch blast to halfway by Daulton Varsho to necktie nan game. It was nan first location tally Snell had fixed up to a lefthander each season. 

It looked for illustration it mightiness group nan shape for a classic, nan benignant of pitcher’s duel some teams judge they are positioned to win. Instead Bichette opened nan sixth inning pinch that walk, Kirk followed pinch a azygous and Snell deed Varsho pinch a pitch. Out came Roberts. 

All October, nan mentation had been that nan Dodgers’ bullpen was its weakness. This season, nan squad sewage 3.2 WAR (ninth successful baseball) from its starting pitchers. From nan bullpen it sewage –6.4 WAR, second-worst. Almost nary 1 tested nan premise this postseason, though, because nan starters sounded truthful exceptionally. In nan two-game, 18-inning chaotic paper series, Roberts called connected his alleviation corps for only 4 ⅓ innings; successful nan four-game, 38-inning NLDS, that fig was 14 ⅓ (but 5 of them successful Game 3, erstwhile they fundamentally punted); and successful nan four-game, 36-inning NLCS, conscionable 7 ⅔. 

On Friday, nan Blue Jays recovered retired it was true. They handed Snell his worst outing successful 2 years, and past they demolished everyone other who showed up. Emmet Sheehan sewage 1 retired and gave up 3 runs. Anthony Banda sewage 2 outs and gave up 3 runs. Justin Wrobleski and Will Klein, nan 2 lowest-leverage arms successful nan Los Angeles bullpen, each sewage done an inning mostly because everyone successful Toronto seemed to understand that it was clip to spell home. Even Ohtani sprinted astir nan bases erstwhile he homered successful nan seventh. When he batted pinch 2 outs successful nan ninth and nan crippled agelong decided, nan fans serenaded him: "We don't request you."

It was true. Ohtani walked, but Betts struck out. The Dodgers will person to hold different time to ruin baseball. First they person to cleanable up their ruined bullpen.