Dodgers Capture Game 7 Nail-biter To Capture Second Straight World Series

In a heartbreaking decorativeness to nan astir unexpected of seasons, nan Toronto Blue Jays mislaid Game 7 of nan World Series to nan Los Angeles Dodgers connected Saturday night, ending their bid for a first title successful 32 years.

The Blue Jays had leads of 3-0 successful nan 3rd inning and 4-3 successful nan ninth inning, but person Jeff Hoffman surrendered a game-tying location tally to Miguel Rojas.

In nan apical of nan 11th inning, Dodgers catcher Will Smith deed a solo location tally disconnected Toronto’s Shane Bieber, who had travel successful arsenic a reliever, for nan decisive changeable successful a 5-4 Los Angeles victory.

Toronto had a immense chance to triumph nan crippled successful nan bottommost of nan ninth but could not capitalize pinch nan bases loaded and 1 out.

Daulton Varsho grounded into a unit retired astatine home, and Ernie Clement deed a heavy alert shot that Dodgers outfielder Andy Pages was conscionable capable to catch.

Tight, tense, thrilling and frightening each astatine once, Game 7 was a cleanable capper to a rollicking, up-and-down World Series that contained much momentum shifts than a beat-up aged car pinch a surgery clutch.

The early advantage went to nan Blue Jays, though they were incapable to capitalize connected it.

Dodgers starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani, thrust into nan domiciled connected short remainder because Los Angeles head Dave Roberts had fewer options, struggled pinch his control.

But he survived nan first 2 innings unscathed, ending nan 2nd by striking retired Andres Gimenez pinch nan bases loaded.

In nan third, nan reservoir broke. George Spring led disconnected pinch a single, and aft Nathan Lukes bunted him to 2nd base, a chaotic transportation from Ohtani allowed him to return 3rd base.

Roberts promptly ordered Ohtani to locomotion Vladimir Guerrero, Jr., putting 2 runners connected for Bo Bichette.

Bichette past unleashed nan plaything of his life. He crushed an Ohtani transportation to heavy centre field, a no-doubt changeable that had nan full Rogers Centre, minus those wearing Dodger blue, connected their feet from nan infinitesimal it came disconnected nan bat.

The location tally gave nan Blue Jays a 3-0 lead, chased Ohtani from nan game, and astir importantly, meant that each of their early unit didn’t spell to waste.

The Dodgers rallied for a tally successful nan apical of nan adjacent inning.

Still, nan Blue Jays constricted nan harm pinch a brace of spectacular protect plays, nan first a diving drawback successful centre section from Daulton Varsho, nan 2nd a diving stab of a statement thrust beyond first guidelines from Guerrero.

These were nan kinds of plays that had team-of-destiny vibes.

Three innings later, nan Jays did it again. Schneider brought rookie Trey Yesavage successful to transportation for his first alleviation quality successful nan awesome leagues.

Yesavage walked Ohtani, and looked shaky doing it, but aft a Will Smith alert shot out, he sewage Freddie Freeman to deed a grounder to first base.

Guerrero made a superb play, hurling to 2nd guidelines for nan unit retired and past taking nan return propulsion astatine first for a double play. Just for illustration that, nan rally was over.

That play came aft nan Jays added a 4th tally acknowledgment to a brace of doubles from Ernie Clement and Andres Gimenez, nan eighth and ninth hitters successful nan lineup. As they had done each season, they sewage large plays from each complete nan place.

The nail-biting, rollercoaster bid included a pinch-hit expansive slam, nan first successful World Series history, successful Game 1 from Toronto’s Addison Barger. There was an 18-inning marathon successful Game 3 that was ended by a walk-off location tally from L.A.’s Freddie Freeman.

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There was besides a 12-strikeout capacity successful Game 5 from Blue Jays rookie Trey Yesavage, different World Series record, and a stunning extremity to Game 6, erstwhile Barger was doubled disconnected 2nd guidelines aft Dodgers outfielder Kike Hernandez caught a sinking liner and made a speedy propulsion to nan infielder.

It was nan first game-ending double play of that type successful World Series history.

The pre-Series narratives had nan Dodgers arsenic dense favourites. They were nan defending champions and won nan National League West contempt respective pitching injuries. Fully patient and pinch a pitching unit afloat of imaginable aces, they went 9-1 successful nan playoffs to scope nan Fall Classic.

The Blue Jays, meanwhile, had been nary one’s preseason favourites.

Toronto had slumped to a last-place decorativeness successful nan American League East successful 2024, and they were incapable to onshore their biggest free-agent targets, outfielder Juan Soto and pitcher Roki Sasaki.

On June 1, nan Jays were 5.5 games backmost of nan New York Yankees, but past Toronto started stacking wins down a resurgent offence, and a cardinal four-game expanse of their section rivals successful early July allowed them to prehend nan AL East lead for nan first clip since 2015.

Toronto held disconnected a hard-charging Yankees team, pinning down a four-game triumph streak to decorativeness nan regular season, and pinch nan champion grounds successful nan American League, nan squad earned a first-round playoff bye.

The Jays subsequently hit nan Yankees 3-1 successful nan American League Division Series and came backmost from an 0-2 spread successful nan American League Championship Series to conclusion nan Seattle Mariners successful 7 games.

The first World Series crippled successful Toronto successful 32 years went to nan location team, arsenic nan Blue Jays won it 11-4 astatine a raucous Rogers Centre, but Los Angeles won nan adjacent two: a sterling commencement from Yoshinobu Yamamoto successful Game 2 and that Game 3 that felt for illustration it would ne'er end.

Then it was Toronto’s move to bounce back, down a beardown commencement from trade-deadline acquisition Shane Bieber successful Game 4 and Yesavage’s brilliance nan pursuing night.

Another beardown commencement from Yamamoto successful Game 6 — and different hard-luck nighttime from Toronto’s Kevin Gausman, who had 8 strikeouts and 1 unsmooth inning — group up nan decisive Game 7.