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This year's World Series is headed to a final Game 7 after the Dodgers kept their title defense hopes alive on Friday with a 3–1 victory over the Blue Jays in Game 6.

The defending champions halted Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a thrilling final double play, silencing a home crowd that had come ready to cheer the team's first title in 32 years.

Game 6 Summary

The Dodgers produced all of their offense in the third inning. With two outs, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Will Smith hit a two-bagger to left field to bring home Tommy Edman. Freeman drew a walk to load the bases, and Mookie Betts came through with a two-RBI hit to left, handing the Dodgers a 3–0 lead.

Betts’ hit snapped a playoff dry spell and revived the title holders' aspirations of becoming the first repeat championship victors since the Yankees captured three straight from 1998 through 2000.

Mound Duel

Gausman had been dominant to that point, striking out half a dozen of the initial seven Dodgers he confronted. He struck out eight through three frames, matching a Fall Classic record, but the third-frame rally proved costly. The Toronto ace ended with 8 Ks over six frames, yielding three earned runs on three hits and two walks.

Yamamoto, in contrast, was steady again under stress. The 27-year-old right-hander outpitched his counterpart for the second time in a week, giving up a single run on five base hits over six innings with six strikeouts. He improved to four wins and one loss this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him resulted from Springer’s two-out base hit in the third, driving in Barger, who had doubled previously in the frame. Springer’s hit provided a brief spark in his comeback to the lineup after sitting out two games with an oblique injury.

Relief Heroics

After that, the Dodgers’ bullpen took over. Rookie Wrobleski escaped a jam in the seventh, and fellow rookie Sasaki pitched into the ninth inning before hitting Alejandro Kirk to start the inning. Barger followed with a two-base hit that got stuck under the left-center-field fence, obliging runners to hold at second and third.

Glasnow, Los Angeles’ third game starting pitcher, came on in a relief role and induced a popout before Giménez hit a line drive to left. Hernández made the catch and fired to second base to double off Barger, clinching the win and earning Glasnow his first-ever save.

Next Up: Game 7

The best-of-seven now comes down to a single contest. Max Scherzer will start for Toronto, making him the sole active hurler to pitch in multiple seventh games of the World Series after accomplishing that in the 2019 season with the Nationals. The 40-year-old signed a single-season contract to chase another championship and has been a outspoken presence throughout this playoff run.

The Dodgers, aiming to be baseball’s first back-to-back title winners in nearly a quarter-century, are projected to lean on their two-way star for a brief appearance.