Turns out, the plane so many people were tracking was not occupied by Ohtani but rather Robert Herjavec, a businessman known for his role on the reality show “Shark Tank.”
Well, now Ohtani really is Toronto-bound – along with the rest of his defending champion Dodgers – for the 2025 World Series that begins Friday night at Rogers Centre. The Blue Jays didn’t land Ohtani, but, behind the profound postseason put together by their signature star Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and the George Springer swing that swung Game 7, they landed enough punches in an incredible ALCS against the Mariners to advance to the Fall Classic for the first time in a generation.
“I know they have great players,” Guerrero said of the mighty Dodgers. “So do we. But on the field it’s when everything matters.”
While the Blue Jays haven’t been to this stage since going back-to-back in 1992 and ‘93, the Dodgers are trying to become the first team to go back-to-back since the 1998-2000 Yankees.
That makes this a fascinating study in contrasts between a Dodgers team that was World Series-or-bust from the beginning of this season and a Blue Jays team that rose from the ashes of last place last year to finally advance within October.
Rogers Centre will still be buzzing from that long-awaited Toronto triumph in Game 7, while the Dodgers will still be telling the tale of what they witnessed when Ohtani hit three homers and pitched six shutout innings with 10 strikeouts in the historic finishing touch to their nice-and-tidy sweep of the Brewers in the NLCS.
But come Friday night, it will be time to craft new stories, as the Blue Jays try to end the run of dominant starting pitching that has defined the Dodgers’ postseason and L.A. tries to tame the terrific power-and-patience-aided Toronto offense.
Game 1 is a big one. The winner of Game 1 in the World Series has gone on to win it all in 76 of the prior 120 series (63%) and, more pointedly, 24 of the 30 Fall Classics (80%) in the Wild Card Era (since 1995).
When is the game and how can I watch it?
Game 1 is on Friday at Rogers Centre, with first pitch scheduled for 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PT on FOX.
All series are available in the US on MLB.TV with authentication to a participating Pay TV provider. Games also are available live internationally, although not in Canada. Sportsnet is MLB’s exclusive English language broadcaster in Canada for every Postseason game, while TVA Sports will be covering the entire AL Postseason and the World Series in French and Broadcaster RDS will cover the entire NL Postseason in French.
Snell is coming off a gem of a start against the Brewers in NLCS Game 1, eight scoreless innings in which he struck out 10, walked none, allowed just one hit and faced the minimum. Overall this postseason, he is 3-0 with a 0.86 ERA (two earned runs in 21 innings) and 28 strikeouts against five walks.
Blue Jays: After the Blue Jays finally catch their breath Tuesday and Wednesday, they’ll have some options for Game 1. Kevin Gausman has pitched Game 1 of both the ALDS against the Yankees and ALCS against the Mariners, but he came out of the bullpen in Game 7 on short rest after his Game 5 start. The Blue Jays could always consider that a high-intensity bullpen day, but there’s also an argument to be made for starting rookie sensation Trey Yesavage in Game 1 with Gausman in Game 2.
Regardless of their order, Max Scherzer could be in line for a potential Game 3 with Shane Bieber in Game 4. The Blue Jays have also kept Chris Bassitt relatively stretched out despite his bullpen role, so there will be options.
What might the starting lineups look like?
Dodgers: Ohtani and Mookie Betts will be the top two and, beyond them, there could be some light shuffling in the order, depending on matchups. After tweaking the lineup quite a bit during the NLDS, the Dodgers used the same nine starters in all four NLCS games. By the end of that series, manager Dave Roberts had moved Will Smith up to the three-hole and Teoscar Hernández down to the sixth spot.
Blue Jays: If Bo Bichette returns for the World Series, and he says he will, then everything changes. Let’s work with the probability that Bichette needs to DH, which would slide Springer out to a corner outfield spot. Let’s also work with the likelihood of Snell starting Game 1, so the Blue Jays would be lining up for a lefty.
Blue Jays: Jeff Hoffman looks like a closer capable of shutting down games in the World Series, which wasn’t always the case in the regular season. He came up huge in Games 6 and 7 of the ALCS, and John Schneider is comfortable pushing him two innings in the right spot. Louis Varland has pitched in 10 of the Blue Jays’ 11 postseason games, so it’s just a matter of which inning you’ll see him in, while Seranthony Domínguez is the other setup man. One variable is Brendon Little, who had an ugly outing in the Game 5 ALCS loss, but the Blue Jays will need a lefty eventually. One of Braydon Fisher or Yariel Rodríguez could be asked to step into bigger spots, too, while Bassitt and Eric Lauer are the likely long relievers.
Any injuries of note?
Dodgers: Smith, who is dealing with a hairline fracture in his right hand, returned to the starting lineup during the NLDS and hasn’t missed a start since. Edman continues to manage his right ankle, which landed him on the injured list twice this year. Reliever Tanner Scott, who struggled in leverage in the regular season, believes he has recovered enough from a lower body abscess procedure to be an option for the World Series roster.
Blue Jays: Bichette’s left knee injury remains the big story leading into this series. While Bichette has said he’s ready, the Blue Jays will still need to see him bounce back well from running the bases Wednesday and Thursday.
Anthony Santander was removed from the Blue Jays’ ALCS roster in the middle of the series with a back injury, which makes him ineligible for the World Series. Springer is the only other injury of note after he took a 96-mph heater off his right kneecap in Game 5 of the ALCS, but judging by the heroic, three-run homer he hit in Game 7, he is just fine.
Who is hot and who is not?
On the other hand, Pages is just 3-for-35 this postseason. While he hasn’t done much at the plate, he will continue to start games because the Dodgers don’t have any other viable everyday options in center field, with Edman still managing his ankle.
Blue Jays: Is anyone hotter than Guerrero right now? The ALCS MVP is batting .442 with six home runs and a 1.440 OPS in the postseason, including six walks and just three strikeouts. The Dodgers will need to shape their entire pitching game plan around him. Springer is on a roll, too, while Clement may be the most underrated hitter coming into this series, batting .429. The Blue Jays would love to get a little more out of Kirk offensively, but at this point, that’s being picky. This entire lineup has been rolling since the ALDS and John Schneider’s only challenge is writing the names down in the right order. Every iteration has worked so far.
Anything else fans might want to know?
• This is the Blue Jays’ first trip to the World Series since 1993, the scene of Joe Carter’s famous walk-off home run in Game 6 against the Phillies.
