It was the Dodgers 23rd World Series appearance and second consecutive. The Dodgers successfully navigated through a 22–32 stretch from early July through early September to win the National League West for the 12th time in 13 seasons. They were looking to become the first back-to-back World Series champions since 2000, and were seeking their ninth title. The Blue Jays made their third appearance and sought after their third title following a 32-year absence from the series after back-to-back victories in 1992 and 1993. Toronto secured home-field advantage through the playoffs, clinching the top seed in the American League and winning the American League East for the first time since 2015. This marked a significant improvement from their 2024 season, where they ended last in their division.
The Fall Classic was a close contest for both Los Angeles and Toronto as each club equally matched each other's dominant performances. Toronto took Game 1 following an explosive offensive performance while the Dodgers took Game 2 with several late runs. The Dodgers won Game 3 in 18 innings, capped off by Freddie Freeman's walk-off home run. Toronto took advantage of the Dodgers’ struggling bullpen in Games 4 and 5, with the Blue Jays threatening to take the series with a 3–2 series lead. However, the Dodgers prevailed in a low-scoring Game 6 to send the series into a winner-take-all Game 7. During the latter, Toronto held control for a majority of the game, but Dodgers Miguel Rojas hit a crucial game-tying home-run followed by a narrow defensive stop by the Dodgers in the ninth to send Game 7 into extra innings. In the 11th, the Dodgers would get a go-ahead home run by Will Smith, then Yoshinobo Yamamoto withstood a late Blue Jays rally to end the game and the series, 4–3 in favor of Los Angeles.
The Dodgers won their ninth World Series championship and first repeat championship in franchise history, and they became the first team since the 2000 New York Yankees and first NL team since the 1976 Cincinnati Reds to repeat as champions. The Dodgers became the eighth franchise in MLB history to win back-to-back titles,[2] with several sports outlets beginning to refer to the Dodgers as a dynasty following the series.[3][4][5]The Blue Jays were subsequently handed their first World Series loss in franchise history.
The 2025 World Series has been cited as among the greatest World Series of all time.[6][7] The Series included several notable feats, and records that were either matched or broken during the series. Toronto's pinch hitterAddison Barger hit the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history in Game 1. Game 3 lasted 18 innings, tying the record for longest World Series game by innings with Game 3 of the 2018 World Series and becoming the second-longest World Series game in terms of time (behind the same 2018 game). Two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani also set multiple individual records. Toronto's utility playerErnie Clement broke the record for most hits in a single postseason with 30. Additionally, the Dodgers were the first team ever to trail in the 9th inning of a World Series Game 7 on the road and come back to win, with Rojas and Smith setting Game 7 home run firsts in the 9th and in extra innings.
The 2025 World Series logo returned to the classic, scripted white "World Series" wordmark in cursive, similar to the one used across 14 consecutive World Series logos from 1987 to 2000.[8] This was the ninth consecutive World Series to take place in either California or Texas. The Dodgers also joined the Philadelphia Phillies as the only teams in MLB history to play two different Canadian teams in the postseason. The Montreal Expos played the Phillies and Dodgers during their lone postseason appearance in 1981, and Philadelphia faced Toronto in the 1993 World Series.[9]
The Dodgers won two games out of three against the Blue Jays in a three-game series at Dodger Stadium from August 8–10.[10][11][12] In game three, the Dodgers blew a late game lead in the eighth and a tie in the ninth; had they won that game, the World Series would have started in Los Angeles instead of Toronto. This World Series marked the first postseason meeting between the Blue Jays and the Dodgers.[13] It also marked the first meeting between teams from Toronto and Los Angeles in a postseason series since the 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs.[14]
Blue Jays' bench coach Don Mattingly, the manager for the Dodgers from 2011 to 2015 and bench coach from 2008 to 2010, reached his first World Series.[15] Dodgers' outfielder Teoscar Hernández was a popular Blue Jays player from 2017 to 2022, and the Blue Jays pursued him as a free agent during the 2024–25 off-season.[16]
Two-way player Shohei Ohtani won the 2025 NLCS MVP with a three home run, six inning, ten strikeout, zero runs allowed performance in Game 4.
The Dodgers solidified their championship roster from the previous season by adding free agents starting pitcher Blake Snell, reliever Tanner Scott, and winning the bid to sign Japanese pitcher Roki Sasaki, while also re-signing Teoscar Hernández and Blake Treinen. As heavy favorites to repeat,[17] the Dodgers became the first defending World Series champion to begin their season 8–0, besting the previous record held by the 1933 Yankees, who started their season 7–0.[18] The Dodgers had a 56–32 record with a nine-game lead in the National League West on July 3. However, from July 4 through September 6, the Dodgers experienced their worst 54-game stretch (22–32) of Dave Roberts' tenure as team manager (2016–present).[19] At the heart of their struggles was an unreliable bullpen, including hitting rock bottom on a September 6 walk-off loss to Baltimore where Yoshinobu Yamamoto did not allow a hit for 8+2⁄3 innings. The bullpen could not get the final out and ended up blowing a 3–0 lead.[20][21][22] They rebounded towards the end of the season, winning five of their last six regular season series,[23] posting a 93–69 record and winning the NL West division for the fourth consecutive season and the 12th time in the last 13 seasons (2013–2020, 2022–2025).[24] At the All-Star game, Freddie Freeman, Shohei Ohtani, and Will Smith were fan-voted starters, while Yamamoto was an MLB selection and Clayton Kershaw, playing in his last season, was the "legend pick".[25]
As the third-best division winner by record, the Dodgers hosted and swept the sixth-seeded Cincinnati Reds in the Wild Card Series in two games.[26] They then defeated the second-seeded Philadelphia Phillies in four games in the National League Division Series, highlighted by an errant throw by Orion Kerkering that gave the Dodgers the series walk-off win.[27] In the National League Championship Series, they dispatched the postseason's overall top seed in the Milwaukee Brewers in a four-game sweep.[28] They allowed just four runs in the series and it was their first sweep in a seven-game series since sweeping the New York Yankees in the 1963 World Series. Unlike the 2024 team, which was reliant on relief pitching, the 2025 Dodgers' team strength was their starting pitchers, due to the signing of Snell, a return to pitching from two-way superstar Ohtani, a healthy second half of the season from Tyler Glasnow (who was absent from the team's playoff run the previous year due to an elbow injury), and a full season of Yoshinobu Yamamoto. Throughout the postseason, the staff pitched into the sixth inning in every start but one and did not allow more than three earned runs. After hitting three home runs and pitching six shutout innings with ten strikeouts in the decisive Game 4 of the NLCS, Ohtani won the NLCS MVP Award.[29] They entered the World Series winners of 24 of their previous 30 games (regular season and playoffs).
This was the Dodgers' 23rd World Series appearance and the fifth in nine seasons (2017, 2018, 2020, 2024, 2025).[30] They were the first reigning World Series champion to reach the World Series since the 2009 Phillies and were looking to become the first repeat champions since the 1998–2000 Yankees (who won three straight titles), as well as the first in the National League to repeat since the 1975–1976 Reds.[31]
The Blue Jays opened 2025 looking to improve on their dismal 2024 season, which had been their first losing season since 2019. In April, they extended star player Vladimir Guerrero Jr., who was set to become a free agent at season's end, to a 14-year, $500million contract.[32] As for the team, they did not find success until June 1, when they won eight of ten games to start the month. From June 29 through July 8, they won ten straight games, including a four-game sweep of the New York Yankees at the Rogers Centre. Their sudden hot play, coupled with a Yankees' swoon, saw the Blue Jays take the lead in the American League East on July 3, a division they had once trailed by eight games in late May. At the 2025 All-Star game, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. was named a starter, and catcher Alejandro Kirk was selected as a reserve.[33] After the All-Star break, the Blue Jays won eight of nine games, further expanding their lead in the AL East over New York. An injury to Bo Bichette and a late September surge from the Yankees threatened Toronto's AL East lead,[34] but they defeated the Tampa Bay Rays on the last day of the season, securing their first AL East division title since 2015.[35] The Blue Jays and Yankees finished tied, but by virtue of their 8–5 regular season head-to-head record against New York, Toronto won the division.[36]
With a division title won, the Blue Jays also claimed a first-round bye and the top seed in the American League for the first time since 1985.[37] In the American League Division Series, they met the fourth-seeded Yankees for the first postseason matchup between the division rivals, where they won the series in four games.[38] Their Game 1 win ended a six-game postseason losing streak and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit the team's first ever postseason grand slam in Game 2.[39] In the American League Championship Series, they came back from losing the first two games and three out of first five to force a Game 7, then defeated the second-seeded Seattle Mariners in a comeback in that game, highlighted by a seventh inning George Springer go-ahead three-run home run, to reach the World Series for the first time since their 1993 championship season.[40][41] Guerrero Jr. won the ALCS MVP, as he altogether in the postseason had more home runs (six) than strikeouts (three).[42] As a team, the Blue Jays slugged 0.523 in 11 games prior to the World Series.[43]
Game 1 featured starters Blake Snell for the Dodgers and Trey Yesavage for the Blue Jays.[52] Singer and musician Pharrell Williams performed prior to the game while gospel choir Voices of Fire sang the American and Canadian national anthems accompanied by the Color of Noise Orchestra and also performed with Williams.[53]Cito Gaston, the manager of the 1992 and 1993 World Series champions, threw the ceremonial first pitch.[54]Bo Bichette, the Blue Jays' starting shortstop who last played on September 6, returned to the lineup as the second baseman, his first MLB appearance at the position.[55]
After Snell retired the first two Blue Jays, Vladimir Guerrero Jr, Bo Bichette, and Alejandro Kirk proceeded to load the bases before Daulton Varsho flied out to end the short-lived threat. In the top of the second inning, Yesavage allowed two runners to reach before Enrique Hernández's single scored Teoscar Hernández and gave the Dodgers a 1–0 lead. A Tommy Edman infield single proceeded to load the bases with just one out, but Yesavage managed to escape the jam, ending with a Shohei Ohtani groundout. In the bottom half of the inning, a base-running mistake led to an inning-ending 1–3–5 putout on Ernie Clement. After Springer hit a ground ball that Snell could not convert into a force at first, he then threw to third base, where Clement was tagged out. In the third, Yesavage walked Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman to lead off the inning before Will Smith's single scored Betts to make the score 2–0. However, Freeman was thrown out trying to advance to third, which helped Yesavage get out of the inning with just the one run allowed. In the bottom of the fourth inning, Daulton Varsho hit a two-run home run to tie the game 2–2 after Kirk led off with a single. Yesavage's outing ended after pitching four innings, allowing four hits, two runs, and walking three batters while striking out five.
In the bottom of the sixth inning, Bichette led off with a walk, Kirk singled, and Varsho was hit by a pitch. The Dodgers then turned to their bullpen in Emmet Sheehan, but Ernie Clement's single scored Isiah Kiner-Falefa (pinch-running for Bichette) to take a 3–2 lead. Nathan Lukes then drew a walk, scoring Kirk, and Andrés Giménez singled to extend the lead to three. Anthony Banda was then brought in to deal with the top of the order after George Springer grounded into a fielder's choice, but pinch hitter Addison Barger hit a grand slam, giving the Jays a 9–2 lead. Kirk then hit a two-run home run to center field to increase the lead to 11–2. Barger's slam was the first pinch-hit grand slam in World Series history,[56][57][58] part of a nine-run inning for the home team, one shy of the World Series record for runs in an inning.[59]
In the top of the seventh inning, Shohei Ohtani hit a two-run home run to right field to cut the Blue Jays' lead to 11–4. Blue Jays closer Eric Lauer finished the game by striking out Betts as the Jays took Game 1.[60]
Bebe Rexha sang the American national anthem while Alessia Cara sang the Canadian national anthem. Joe Carter, who hit a walk-off home run to win the 1993 World Series for the Blue Jays, threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[54] Pop-rock trio and 2025 Stand Up to Cancer ambassadors the Jonas Brothers performed their song "I Can't Lose" after the fifth inning,[61] with the performance receiving backlash from MLB fans for delaying the middle of the game.[62]
Game 2 featured starters Yoshinobu Yamamoto for the Dodgers and Kevin Gausman for the Blue Jays.[63] The Blue Jays' Bo Bichette was ruled out for Game 2 as he continued to recover from a left knee injury. Isiah Kiner-Falefa took his place at second base and was placed eighth in the batting order.[64] The Dodgers scored in the top of the first inning with a double by Freddie Freeman followed by an RBI single by Will Smith to take a 1–0 lead. The Blue Jays tied the game in the bottom of the third inning on a single by George Springer, a single by Vladimir Guerrero Jr. that moved Springer to third base, and then a sacrifice fly by Alejandro Kirk that scored Springer. In the top of the seventh inning, Smith and Max Muncy hit solo home runs to give the Dodgers a 3–1 lead. Gausman pitched 6+2⁄3 innings, allowing four hits and three runs while striking out six batters. In the top of the eighth inning, Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman threw a wild pitch, scoring Andy Pages and extending the Dodgers' lead to 4–1. Smith then grounded into a force-out to score Shohei Ohtani and extend the Dodgers' lead to 5–1. Yamamoto pitched a one-run complete game to even the series, 1–1, becoming the first pitcher to throw a World Series complete game since Johnny Cueto in 2015, as well as the first to throw multiple complete games in the same postseason since Madison Bumgarner in 2014 and the first to do so in back-to-back games since Curt Schilling in 2001.[65][66][67]
Game 3
Freddie Freeman was the first player to hit walk-off home runs in consecutive World Series.Will Klein, the last man left in the Dodgers' bullpen, pitched four innings in scoreless relief.
Singer-songwriter JP Saxe sang the Canadian national anthem while country singer Brad Paisley sang the United States national anthem.[70] Coincidentally, Paisley also sang the national anthem for the 18-inning World Series game in 2018.[71]Hideo Nomo threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[72]Max Scherzer started Game 3 for the Blue Jays while Tyler Glasnow started for the Dodgers.[73]
In the bottom of the second inning, the Dodgers scored first with a solo home run by Teoscar Hernández. In the bottom of the third inning, Shohei Ohtani homered to extend the lead to 2–0. In the top of the fourth inning, Alejandro Kirk hit a three-run home run to take a 3–2 lead for the Blue Jays. Andrés Giménez then hit a sacrifice fly to center field, extending the lead to 4–2. Glasnow pitched 4+2⁄3 innings, allowing five hits, four runs, and walking only one batter while striking out five. Scherzer pitched 4+1⁄3 innings, allowing five hits, two runs, and walking only one batter while striking out three. Facing Mason Fluharty in the fifth inning, Ohtani hit an RBI double and scored on a single by Freddie Freeman to tie the game at 4–4. A ground ball hit by Bo Bichette in the top of the seventh inning ricocheted away from Teoscar Hernandez, allowing Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to score from first base, retaking a 5–4 lead. In the bottom of the seventh inning, Ohtani hit his second home run to tie the game at 5–5, becoming just the second Major League player (and the first since Frank Isbell in Game 5 of the 1906 World Series) to get four extra-base hits in a single postseason game. Roki Sasaki got out of a jam in the top of the eighth inning by getting Nathan Lukes to ground out to first base.[74] In the top of the tenth inning, Ty France hit a two-out single against the Dodgers' Emmet Sheehan, but was subsequently thrown out at home plate after trying to score on Nathan Lukes' double. In the top of the twelfth inning, after Emmet Sheehan loaded the bases, Clayton Kershaw came in and escaped a two-out, bases-loaded jam to keep the game tied, which would ultimately turn out to be his last career appearance.[75][76]
In the bottom of the thirteenth inning, after Eric Lauer loaded the bases with two outs by intentionally walking Ohtani and Betts, Lauer escaped a bases-loaded jam when Freeman flied out to center fielder Daulton Varsho. Neither team scored until the bottom of the eighteenth inning, when Freddie Freeman hit a walk-off home run off Brendon Little for the Dodgers to take Game 3 and a 2–1 series lead.[77][78] Freeman's home run was a mirror to Max Muncy's in Game 3 of the 2018 World Series, which also went 18 innings.[79] With his walk-off home run, Freeman became the first player to accomplish this feat in consecutive World Series, after his grand-slam walk-off in Game 1 of the 2024 World Series.[80] It was also his third career walk-off postseason hit, tying him with David Ortiz and Carlos Correa for the most in MLB history.[81] Dodgers reliever Will Klein, who entered the game in the fifteenth inning, got the win by pitching four shutout innings.[82][83] Ohtani reached base nine times (becoming just the fourth player to accomplish this in a single game, and the first since Stan Hack in 1942) and was intentionally walked four times, both World Series records.[84][85] Six outs were recorded on the base paths, which also shattered a World Series record.[86]
R&B singer and actress Deborah Cox sang the Canadian national anthem while R&B singer Tinashe sang the American national anthem. Orel Hershiser threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[88] The starting pitchers for Game 4 were Shohei Ohtani for the Dodgers and Shane Bieber for the Blue Jays.[89] After undergoing an MRI, Blue Jays outfielder George Springer was removed from the starting lineup for Game 4 due to right-side discomfort sustained during a swing in the seventh inning of Game 3. He was replaced as the designated hitter by Bo Bichette.[90]
In the bottom of the second inning, Enrique Hernández hit a sacrifice fly to right field, allowing Max Muncy to score and take a 1–0 lead for the Dodgers. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. hit a two-run home run for the Blue Jays in the top of the third inning. Bieber pitched 5+1⁄3 innings, allowing four hits, one run, and walking three batters while striking out three. Ohtani pitched six innings, allowing six hits, four runs, and walking one batter while striking out six. He allowed the first two batters to reach base in the seventh inning; Anthony Banda relieved Ohtani and allowed an RBI single to Andrés Giménez. Pinch hitter Ty France drove in another run with a groundout. Blake Treinen relieved Banda and allowed back-to-back RBI singles to Bichette and Addison Barger as the Blue Jays extended their lead to 6–1. In the bottom of the ninth inning, Tommy Edman scored Teoscar Hernández on a groundout to cut the lead to 6–2. The Blue Jays got the final out of the game after Alex Call lined out to Myles Straw to tie the series at two games each.[91]
Game 5
Davis Schneider hit a leadoff home run on the first pitch of Game 5.
Rufus Wainwright sang the Canadian national anthem in English and French while Dodgers anthem singer Keith Williams Jr., accompanied by organist Dieter Ruehle sang the American national anthem.[88] During the Canadian anthem, Wainwright sang "that only us command" instead of "in all of us command".[92] Singer and actress Sofia Carson was scheduled to sing the American anthem at the game, but was replaced by Williams for an undisclosed reason.[93]Magic Johnson threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[94] Game 5 featured a rematch from Game 1 between starting pitchers Blake Snell for the Dodgers and Trey Yesavage for the Blue Jays.[95][96]
On the first pitch of the game, Davis Schneider hit a solo home run off Snell, giving the Blue Jays a 1–0 lead. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. then homered two pitches later to extend the lead to 2–0. Enrique Hernández hit a solo home run off Blue Jays starter Yesavage in the bottom of the third inning to cut the Dodgers' deficit to 2–1. In the top of the fourth inning, Ernie Clement hit a sacrifice fly to score Daulton Varsho, extending the lead to 3–1. Snell pitched 6+2⁄3 innings, allowing six hits, three runs, and walking four batters while striking out seven. In the top of the seventh inning, Dodgers reliever Edgardo Henriquez walked Guerrero Jr. on a wild pitch, which enabled Addison Barger to score. Bo Bichette then hit an RBI single to extend the lead to 5–1. Yesavage pitched seven innings, recording twelve strikeouts (making him the youngest pitcher to strike out ten or more in a World Series game, breaking the record set by Smoky Joe Wood in 1912, and surpassing the previous rookie record of eleven set by Don Newcombe in 1949) while allowing three hits, one run, and no walks. In the top of the eighth inning, Isiah Kiner-Falefa hit an RBI single to extend the lead to 6–1. The Blue Jays got the final out of the game when closer Jeff Hoffman struck out Teoscar Hernández. The series then moved back to Toronto for Game 6, with the Blue Jays one win away from winning the World Series for the third time in franchise history.[97]
Game 6
Mookie Betts hit a two-run single in Game 6.Watch party in Toronto Nathan Phillips Square for Game 6
Chicago Cubs anthem singer John Vincent sang the American national anthem while Royal Canadian Air Force Band vocalist and Warrant Officer David Grenon sang the Canadian national anthem in English and French. Devon White threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[98]
Game 6 featured a rematch of the series' Game 2 starting pitchers, Kevin Gausman of the Blue Jays and Yoshinobu Yamamoto of the Dodgers.[99] After missing the previous two games, George Springer returned to the Blue Jays' starting lineup for Game 6.[100] The Dodgers scored first in the third inning after a double by Tommy Edman, an intentional walk to Shohei Ohtani, and an RBI double by Will Smith. Gausman loaded the bases with a walk to Freddie Freeman, and Mookie Betts drove in two runs with a single to extend the Dodgers' lead to 3–0. In the bottom of the third inning, the Blue Jays cut the Dodgers' lead to 3–1 when George Springer hit an RBI single, scoring Addison Barger. Gausman pitched six innings, allowing three hits, three runs, and walking two batters while striking out eight. Yamamoto pitched six innings, allowing five hits, one run, and walking one batter while striking out six. He was succeeded by relievers Justin Wrobleski and Roki Sasaki, who combined for six outs.[101]
The Blue Jays began building momentum in the bottom of the ninth when Alejandro Kirk was hit by an 0–2 pitch to lead off the inning. Barger then hit a long fly ball to left-center, which resulted in the ball lodging in the padding at the base of the outfield wall, resulting in a dead-ball ground-rule double, preventing Kirk from scoring, and leaving the runners at second and third, with no outs. Replacing Sasaki, Tyler Glasnow came into the game, got a quick pop-up out and then got the final two outs when Andrés Giménez lined into a double play. Left fielder Enrique Hernández caught the liner and one-hopped the ball to second baseman Miguel Rojas, forcing out Barger at second base and securing Game 6 for the Dodgers to force a winner-take-all Game 7.[102]
Game 7
Miguel Rojas was the first player in MLB history with a game-tying HR in the 9th inning or later of a World Series Game 7.Will Smith hit the first ever World Series extra-inning home run in a Game 7.
Pia Toscano sang the American national anthem and Noah Reid sang the Canadian national anthem.[105]Jack Morris and Paul Molitor threw out the ceremonial first pitch.[106] Blue Jays' Game 7 starter Max Scherzer was matched against two-way player Shohei Ohtani, making his first start ever on three days’ rest.[107] Scherzer became the oldest pitcher to start a winner-take-all World Series game.[108] Coincidentally, Scherzer also started in the last Game 7 of a World Series in 2019, while a member of the Washington Nationals.[109]
In the bottom of the second inning, Ohtani escaped a two-out bases-loaded jam by striking out Andrés Giménez to keep the game scoreless. In the bottom of the third inning, a single by George Springer and a walk to Vladimir Guerrero Jr. preceded a three-run home run by Bo Bichette to give the Blue Jays a 3–0 lead. Ohtani pitched 2+1⁄3 innings, allowing five hits, three runs, and walking two batters while striking out three. The Dodgers loaded the bases in the top of the fourth inning and scored a run on a sacrifice fly by Teoscar Hernández, scoring Will Smith. In the bottom of the fourth inning with one out, Justin Wrobleski hit Giménez with a pitch that resulted in a benches-clearing incident when Giménez argued with Wrobleski. Scherzer pitched 4+1⁄3 innings, allowing four hits, one run, and walking one batter while striking out three. In the top of the sixth inning, a sacrifice fly by Tommy Edman scored Mookie Betts to cut the Blue Jays' lead to 3–2. In the bottom of the sixth inning, Giménez hit an RBI double, scoring Ernie Clement to extend the lead to 4–2.[110] In the top of the eighth inning, Max Muncy hit a solo home run to cut the Dodgers' deficit to 4–3. Ernie Clement hit a leadoff double in the eighth inning, setting a record for hits in a MLB postseason with 30.[111] In the top of the ninth inning, Miguel Rojas hit a one-out home run off Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman to tie the game at 4–4. Rojas became the first player in MLB history with a game-tying home run in the ninth inning or later of a World Series Game 7.[112] According to ESPN Insights, the Blue Jays had a 91.7 percent chance to win Game 7 up 4–3 at the start of the ninth inning.[113]
In the bottom of the ninth inning, Blake Snell attempted to force the game into extra innings. Guerrero Jr flew out to center before Bichette hit a line drive single that then saw him taken out for Isiah Kiner-Falefa as a pinch runner. Addison Barger drew a walk to get Alejandro Kirk to the plate as Snell was taken out for Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who had thrown 96 pitches the previous night. On the second pitch, Kirk was hit in the arm to get Daulton Varsho to the plate with the bases loaded, but he grounded out to Rojas, who threw the ball to Smith at the plate before Kiner-Falefa could score (Kiner-Falefa did not have much of a lead off third, having been told by coaches to stay close to the bag to avoid a double play if the Jays hit a line drive).[114] Clement came up with two out and the bases loaded, but he flew out on a fly ball caught by the Dodgers' Andy Pages while colliding with teammate Enrique Hernández to escape a one-out bases-loaded jam and send a winner-take-all World Series game to extra innings for the sixth time in history, and the first since 2016.[115]
Seranthony Domínguez was sent to pitch for the Jays in the 10th. Mookie Betts drew a one-out walk before Max Muncy delivered a single and Teoscar Hernández drew a walk to load the bases, but the Jays got out of the jam with groundouts that didn't make it past the infield. The Blue Jays went down in order to send the game to the eleventh inning to make it the first Game 7 to go past the tenth since 1997 and the third overall. Shane Bieber pitched for Toronto in the 11th, and Will Smith hit a two-out home run off Bieber to give Los Angeles a 5–4 lead, also becoming the first player to hit an extra-inning home run in a Game 7.[116] In the bottom of the 11th, Guerrero Jr lined a leadoff double before Kiner-Falefa laid down a bunt to advance Guerrero to third base. Barger then drew a walk to set up Kirk at the plate with runners on the corners. Kirk grounded into a double play to end the game and series.[117] The plate appearances for Barger and Kirk were baseball’s first golden pitches—a situation where either team could win on that pitch—since the 2016 World Series. Ultimately, Toronto tied the record for most runners stranded on base in a World Series Game 7 set in 1924 by the New York Giants.[118] This marked the first time a Toronto-based team had lost in the championship round of the four major North American leagues since the 1960 Stanley Cup Final.
Postgame, Yoshinobu Yamamoto won the World Series Most Valuable Player Award, the first pitcher to win the award since Stephen Strasburg in 2019.[119] Yamamoto tallied three wins, a 1.02 ERA, and 15 strikeouts.[120][121] Yamamoto was the first pitcher to get three road wins in a World Series, and the second to be credited with three wins in a World Series, joining Randy Johnson in 2001.[122]
The Dodgers became the first team to repeat as World Series champions since the New York Yankees in 1999 and 2000 (as part of a three-peat that began in 1998), and the first National League team to do so since the Cincinnati Reds in 1975 and 1976.[124] This was the first Dodgers team to repeat as champion in franchise history (they went 0–2 in previous such opportunities in 1956 and 1966).[125]
The Dodgers were the fifth straight road team to win a Game 7 of a World Series, following the 2014 Giants, 2016 Cubs, 2017 Astros, and 2019 Nationals.[126] The Dodgers also became the first team to win the World Series after sweeping the LCS and with their opponent winning the pennant in a winner-take-all game since the Detroit Tigers did so in 1984.[127] With their ninth World Series victory, they moved into a three-way tie for third most with the Red Sox and Athletics. This was the sixth straight season either Will Smith (catcher) or Will Smith (reliever) has won a World Series.[128]
For much of the series, Toronto outplayed Los Angeles (collecting 22 more hits, three fewer errors, and scoring eight more runs throughout the course of the series), and were two outs away from clinching, but could not finish the job.[129][130] The Dodgers batted .203 in the World Series, the worst mark by a champion since 1966.[131] However, the Dodgers were more resourceful, winning all the close games in the series, while the Blue Jays’ won all three blowouts. ESPN baseball historian Tim Kurkijan called it the greatest World Series ever,[132] with others calling Game 7 one of the greatest World Series games of all time.[133][134]
In Spanish, play-by-play announcer Adrian Garcia Marquez and color analyst Edgar Gonzalez called the series for Fox Deportes, and were joined by announcer/reporter Carlos Alvarez, reporter/analyst Jaime Motta and reporter Michelle Liendo.[137] For the second consecutive year, Game 1 also aired in Spanish on Univision. Antonio de Valdés, Enrique Burak, Daniel Nohra, and Nelson Cruz called the game. Marie Claire Harp and Daniel Schvartzman served as reporters.[138]
Canada
In Canada, the World Series was televised in English by Sportsnet and streamed on Sportsnet+.[139] Play-by-play announcer Dan Shulman and color analyst Buck Martinez (who were the Blue Jays' lead television announcers during the regular season) called the English language broadcast of the games for Sportsnet, and were joined by Hazel Mae as field reporter. Jamie Campbell hosted the pregame and postgame shows alongside Madison Shipman and Joe Siddall.[140]
This was the first World Series to have a dedicated Canadian English-language broadcast; due to MLB rules, Canadian broadcasters were previously required to simulcast the American telecast during the Blue Jays' postseason appearances (such as the Blue Jays' World Series appearances in 1992 and 1993, where CTV simulcast the CBS coverage), which faced routine criticism from Canadian viewers. In 2020, Sportsnet — a sibling property to the Blue Jays under Rogers Communications which televises their regular season games — received the right to produce its own telecasts of postseason games as MLB's national Canadian broadcaster, which would allow the network to carry its "regional" production into postseason games if the Blue Jays were to advance.[140][141] Sportsnet used its own production resources, including 21 cameras and an aerial drone, to augment resources being provided by Fox Sports and MLB as part of the American production.[142]
Broadcast television network Citytv (also owned by Rogers Communications) also carried a simulcast of the U.S. Fox broadcast;[143] to protect Canadian advertising revenue, "simsub" regulations allow Canadian broadcast stations to require that feeds of U.S. stations carried by subscription television services be replaced with feeds of a Canadian channel if they are simultaneously carrying the same program.[144]
In French, play-by-play announcer Denis Casavant and color analyst Karl Gélinas called the series for TVA Sports; Casavant's long-time color analyst partner, Rodger Brulotte, was unavailable for the World Series as he was recovering from surgery to remove a cancerous tumor from his spine.[145]
For the 28th consecutive year, ESPN Radio broadcast the series in the United States. Jon Sciambi did play-by-play, with Jessica Mendoza (who was part of the Dodgers' television crew on Spectrum SportsNet LA during the regular season) and Eduardo Pérez providing color commentary and Buster Olney reporting from the field.[155]
Canada
Sportsnet Radio, via the Toronto Blue Jays Radio Network (both flagshipped at CJCL in Toronto), broadcast the series in Canada.[135] The Blue Jays' regular radio commentary team of Ben Shulman on play-by-play and Chris Leroux as color analyst announced the series.[156] This makes Dan and Ben Shulman the first father-son duo to call a World Series for a national broadcaster.[157]
Sponsorship and marketing
The 2025 World Series was sponsored by Capital One, as part of a five-year, reported $125 million deal which began in 2022 and includes advertising in the stadium and commercials during Fox's telecasts of the games.[158]
Throughout Game 2, an actor dressed as Colonel Sanders appeared in the seating area behind home plate as part of a promotion by KFC Canada. Some viewers speculated that the spectator was acting on his own to throw off the Dodgers' Japanese players, as a reference to the Curse of the Colonel involving the Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball, before KFC confirmed its involvement after the game. KFC is not an official sponsor of either MLB or the Blue Jays (the latter being sponsored by Canadian rival Mary Brown's), although the chain does have a separate sponsorship agreement with Sportsnet for its postgame programming.[160][161][162]
Celebrations
On November 3, 2025, the Dodgers held a parade in Downtown Los Angeles at 11:00 a.m.[163]
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