TC Martin

Dodgers Come Back to Go Back-to-Back  

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In what played out like a Hollywood ending, the Los Angeles Dodgers stormed back from two different deficits and finally won Game 7 of the World Series on Will Smith's solo home run to give the Dodgers their second consecutive championship in a thrilling 5-4 victory, 11 inning drama filled game Saturday night at Rogers Center in Toronto. 

 

It turned out to be one of the wildest Game 7s in World Series history as Los Angeles overcame 3-0 and 4-2 deficits and escaped a bases-loaded jam in the ninth to become baseball's first repeat champion since the 1998-2000 New York Yankees won three titles in a row.

 

The Blue Jays took an early 3-0 lead when Dante Bichette connected against Shohei Ohtani for his first homer since Sept. 2nd.  Ohtani was pitching on three days of rest while also playing every inning of every game was not in top form. His command was shaky and he appeared to run out of steam in the third inning. 

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The Dodgers slowly but surely came back as it looked like for most of the evening that the Blue Jays would be crowned champs.  That was until Max Muncy trimmed Toronto’s lead to 4-3 with a solo homer in the eighth and then Miguel Rojas hit the first tying home run in the ninth inning or later of a World Series Game 7.  Toronto was two outs away from celebrating until Rojas squashed their dreams with his one out homer in the left field seats to tie the game 4-4. 

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Toronto still had a chance to win it in the bottomo of the ninth inning. With the infield playing in to prevent the winning run, Miquel Rojas fielded Daulton Varsho’s grounder to second base and nearly fell over. He gathered himself and threw home, but the toss briefly pulled Smith off the plate. Smith’s toe barely reconnected with the plate in time to get the forceout, a call confirmed by video review. Then center fielder Andy Pages, who had just been inserted off the bench to provide better defense, collided with left fielder Kiké Hernández while catching Ernie Clement’s long fly on the left-center warning track. Pages held on for the final out of the inning despite knocking Hernández to the ground.

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Los Angeles loaded the bases with one out in the 10th inning, but Seranthony Domínguez got two quick outs to escape. Giménez threw out Mookie Betts at home plate on Pages' grounder to shortstop, then Guerrero fielded Hernández's grounder to first and flipped to Domínguez covering the bag on a close play.

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In the 11th inning, Smith hit a 2-0 slider from Shane Bieber into the Blue Jays’ bullpen in left field, giving the Dodgers their first lead of the night. It was the first extra-inning homer in a World Series Game 7.  

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Toronto had life in the bottom half of the 11th as Vladimir Guerrero Jr. led off with a double

and advanced to third on Isiah Kiner-Falefa's sacrifice bunt, and Toronto got the potential winning run on base when Addison Barger walked.  Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who came in relief, then induced a game-ending 6-6-3 double play from Kirk, cementing the Dodgers' second consecutive title and his World Series MVP award.

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While the Dodgers were sprayed with confetti during their celebration as visiting teams have now won five straight World Series Game 7's, the Blue Jays pondered how close they came and were devasted to lose in that fashion.