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This year's championship series is headed to a final seventh game following the Los Angeles Dodgers kept alive their title defense dreams alive Friday night with a 3–1 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 6.

The reigning title holders ended Toronto’s late-game comeback with a thrilling game-ending double play, stunning a Rogers Centre crowd that had come ready to celebrate the city’s first title in 32 years.

Sixth Game Summary

The Dodgers produced all of their scoring in the third frame. With two away, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Smith hit a two-bagger to left field to bring home Tommy Edman. Freeman drew a walk to load the bases, and Betts delivered with a two-RBI hit to the opposite field, handing the Dodgers a three-run advantage.

That key hit broke a postseason slump and rekindled the defending champions’ hopes of becoming the first repeat World Series winners since the New York Yankees captured three straight from 1998 through 2000.

Pitching Battle

Gausman had been nearly unhittable to that stage, fanning six of the first seven batters he confronted. He fanned 8 through three frames, matching a Fall Classic mark, but the third-inning barrage proved costly. The Toronto ace finished with eight strikeouts over six innings, yielding three earned runs on three hits and two walks.

Yamamoto, meanwhile, was steady again under pressure. The righty outpitched Gausman for the second occasion in a seven days, giving up one run on five base hits over six innings with six strikeouts. He boosted his record to four wins and one loss this playoffs with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him resulted from George Springer two-out base hit in the third, driving in Barger, who had hit a double previously in the frame. Springer’s hit offered a momentary lift in his comeback to the lineup after sitting out two games with an side strain.

Bullpen Effort

From there, the Los Angeles relievers carried the load. First-year pitcher Justin Wrobleski got out of a tight spot in the seventh, and another rookie Sasaki pitched into the ninth inning before plunking Alejandro Kirk to open the frame. Barger followed with a double that became wedged under the outfield wall, forcing base runners to stay at second and third.

Glasnow, the Dodgers' third game starting pitcher, came on in a relief role and induced a popout before Andrés Giménez lined to left. Enrique Hernández caught the ball and fired to second base to retire Barger, clinching the victory and giving Glasnow his first career save.

Next Up: Game 7

The series now boils down to a single contest. Scherzer will start for Toronto, becoming the sole active hurler to start multiple seventh games of the World Series after doing so in 2019 with the Nationals. The 40-year-old signed a single-season contract to chase another championship and has been a outspoken presence throughout this postseason.

The Dodgers, looking to become baseball’s initial repeat title winners in nearly a quarter-century, are projected to rely on their two-way star for a short outing.