TORONTO -- The last time these two teams shared a field, it didn’t feel real. It stretched past logic — 11 innings, constant swings, and a Game 7 that ended with the Dodgers escaping as champions, a title sealed on the same field where the Blue Jays watched a season slip away.
Now they meet again, back in Toronto, with the memory still fresh. The Dodgers return as back-to-back champions, carrying the same core that survived that November night.
Dodgers (7-2, 1st in NL West)
If there were early concerns about the Dodgers’ offense, they didn’t make the trip east.
At 7-2, they arrive in Toronto playing their cleanest stretch of baseball so far, and the turnaround has been quick. What looked out of sync against Cleveland flipped almost immediately in Washington, where they poured in 31 runs over a three-game sweep and reestablished the identity this lineup is capable of when it finds rhythm.
This group looks awake now, but more importantly, it looks layered. Shohei Ohtani is settling in and impacting games in multiple ways, even when he isn’t the focal point. Freddie Freeman remains the constant, continuing to drive the offense with timely hits and extra-base production that sets the tone. Around them, the depth is beginning to show up in meaningful spots. Andy Pages has forced his way into the conversation with a torrid start, and contributions from role players have turned what could be isolated rallies into sustained pressure.
That depth is what allows this lineup to function the way it has over the last week. It showed up clearly in Sunday’s comeback win, where a five-run deficit didn’t force urgency so much as it revealed patience. The Dodgers didn’t need one big swing to get back into the game. They built innings, created traffic, and let the game come to them. That approach is what makes them difficult to put away, especially when the production isn’t concentrated in one or two spots.
Even the pitching, while not flawless, has done enough to support that identity. The starters have kept games within reach, and the bullpen has managed to limit damage in key spots. There have been moments where things have wobbled, but the group as a whole has avoided letting those moments spiral. When it has mattered, the offense has picked up the slack, reinforcing a balance that’s starting to take shape early in the season.
The biggest storyline coming into this series, though, isn’t who’s producing — it’s who isn’t.
Mookie Betts has been placed on the injured list with a right oblique strain, an absence that immediately reshapes the top of the lineup. The injury was confirmed after an MRI in Washington, and while manager Dave Roberts acknowledged the typical 4-6 week timeline associated with oblique issues, the club remains hopeful Betts could return sooner than expected.
Betts exited Saturday’s game in the first inning, and the ripple effects are already being felt. The Dodgers have called up Hyeseong Kim, who is expected to split time with Miguel Rojas on the left side of the infield, while Alex Freeland takes on a larger role at second base. It’s not a direct replacement, and it doesn’t try to be. Instead, it reflects the way this roster is built — leaning on versatility and depth rather than expecting one player to replicate Betts’ production.
There’s no clean way to replace what Betts provides at the top of the order. What the Dodgers can do is what they’ve already started to show over the past week: absorb the loss, distribute the responsibility, and continue to generate offense from multiple spots. They don’t come into this series searching for an identity. They’ve already started to establish one.
Blue Jays (4-5, 3rd in AL East)
If the Dodgers arrive with momentum, the Blue Jays are still trying to stabilize.
Toronto’s record doesn’t fully capture the tone of their last week. After a strong opening series, they’ve dropped five of their last six, including a sweep at the hands of the White Sox — a stretch defined more by missed opportunities than outright collapse.
The pitching has been uneven but workable, it’s the offense that’s been the issue.
Run production has stalled in key moments, and when opportunities have come, they’ve often slipped away — whether through situational hitting or defensive miscues that have compounded innings.
There’s also the matter of health.
Toronto enters this series with a growing injury list, including the absence of catcher Alejandro Kirk and multiple arms either sidelined or working their way back. It’s not a roster at full strength, and against a lineup like the Dodgers’, that margin becomes thinner.
Still, this is a team that doesn’t need much to flip a narrative.
A single series can reset the tone of an early season. And for a team that hasn’t forgotten how last year ended, this matchup carries a little more weight than the calendar suggests.
Pitching Probables
Monday, April 6: Justin Wrobleski (0-0, 6.75 ERA) vs. Max Scherzer (1-0, 1.50 ERA)
Tuesday, April 7: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1-1, 3.00 ERA) vs. Kevin Gausman (0-0, 0.75)
Wednesday, April 8: Shohei Ohtani (1-0, 0.00 ERA) vs. Dylan Cease (0-0, 2.79 ERA
Injury Report
Dodgers
Day-to-day: None
10-day IL: Tommy Edman, Mookie Betts
15-day IL: Blake Snell, Landon Knack, Brusdar Graterol, Brock Stewart
60-day IL: Kiké Hernández, Evan Phillips, Bobby Miller, Gavin Stone, Jake Cousins
Blue Jays
Day-to-day: Addison Barger
10-day IL: Alejandro Kirk
15-day IL: Yimi García, Shane Bieber, Trey Yesavage, José Berríos
60-day IL: Anthony Santander, Bowden Francis, Cody Ponce