Dodgers hold off Blue Jays to force World Series to Game 7

TORONTO — The Los Angeles Dodgers aren’t done yet.

For all the talk about missed opportunities and fading stars, for all the doubts that crept in after a sluggish start to this World Series, the Dodgers showed on Friday night that they still have the heart of a champion. Mookie Betts delivered the swing that saved their season, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched like the ace L.A. paid $325 million for — six strong innings of grit and poise — as the Dodgers held off the Toronto Blue Jays, 3–1, at Rogers Centre to force a decisive Game 7.

“Everything’s on the table,” Dave Roberts said after the game. “Everyone’s available tomorrow, everyone but Yamamoto.”

Tomorrow night, it’s winner-take-all for the 2025 World Series crown.

For two innings, it looked like Kevin Gausman might deliver one of the defining pitching performances in Blue Jays history. He was untouchable early — striking out Shohei Ohtani, Will Smith, and Freddie Freeman in order in the first inning, all on splitters. Eleven of his first 16 pitches were splitters, eight of them swung at, seven of them missed.

Through two innings, he had five strikeouts — all on that same pitch. The Dodgers were guessing, flailing, searching. But in the third inning, the Dodgers finally solved him. Tommy Edman doubled to right, Ohtani was intentionally walked, and Smith ripped a double off the left-field wall to score the first run. Freeman drew a walk to load the bases, bringing Betts to the plate in a spot that’s eluded him all series.

Betts — just 3-for-24 coming into the game — stayed on a 1–2 fastball and lined it into left field for a two-run single. He pumped his fist at first base as the Dodgers dugout erupted. That swing gave the Dodgers a 3–0 lead — and the momentum that would carry them the rest of the night.

Yamamoto didn’t have the untouchable stuff he showed in his Game 2 masterpiece, but he didn’t need it. What he did have was command, courage, and a steady hand when things got tense. After Max Muncy’s early error put him in a jam, Yamamoto induced a sharp 5-4-3 double play from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to escape the first inning on just 12 pitches. He bent but never broke. After allowing a run in the third — a two-out RBI single from George Springer — Yamamoto cruised through the middle innings, leaning on a sharp splitter and perfectly located fastballs.

By the time he left after six innings, the scoreboard still read 3–1. His final line: 6 IP, 5 H, 1 ER, 1 BB, 6 K.

Through two World Series starts, Yamamoto has now thrown 15 innings with just two earned runs allowed. If the Dodgers finish the job, his name will be etched alongside the franchise’s postseason legends.

The Dodgers’ offense went silent after Betts’ third-inning hit — 13 straight retired through the middle innings — but their defense and bullpen picked them up. Miguel Rojas made two brilliant double-play turns to erase potential rallies. The eighth inning nearly turned disastrous when Shohei Ohtani doubled and the Dodgers loaded the bases, only for Teoscar Hernández to strike out and strand them.

Then came the drama in the ninth.

Roki Sasaki — appearing for just the second time in 14 days — started the inning but quickly lost command, hitting Alejandro Kirk to bring the tying run to the plate. Roberts made the bold call to bring in Tyler Glasnow, and it paid off spectacularly.

Glasnow needed just three pitches to get three outs — capped by a rocket lineout from Andrés Giménez that Kiké Hernández snagged in left before doubling off Addison Barger at second.

Ballgame. The Dodgers stormed the field as the crowd in Toronto fell silent. Game 7 awaits. Only eight teams in MLB history have won both Games 6 and 7 of the World Series on the road. The last to do it: the 2019 Washington Nationals. Now, the Dodgers have their chance.

They’ll enter Saturday night with the momentum — and the mystery. Roberts hasn’t named a starter, saying only that “it’ll be all hands on deck.”. Betts’ bat has woken up, Yamamoto has done his part, and the Dodgers’ defense looks sharp again.