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This year's championship series is going to a final Game 7 after the Dodgers kept their title defense dreams alive Friday night with a three to one win over the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 6.

The reigning title holders halted Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a dramatic final twin killing, stunning a Rogers Centre audience that had come ready to celebrate the city’s first title in 32 years.

Game 6 Summary

Los Angeles produced all of their scoring in the third inning. With two away, Ohtani was intentionally walked before Will Smith hit a two-bagger to left field to bring home Tommy Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to fill the bases, and Betts came through with a two-run single to the opposite field, giving the Dodgers a 3–0 advantage.

That key hit broke a postseason slump and rekindled the defending champions’ hopes of being the first repeat championship victors since the New York Yankees won three straight from 1998 through 2000.

Pitching Battle

Kevin Gausman had been dominant to that stage, fanning six of the initial seven batters he confronted. He fanned 8 through three frames, tying a World Series mark, but the third-inning barrage proved decisive. The Blue Jays' star finished with 8 Ks over six innings, allowing three earned runs on three safeties and two walks.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto, in contrast, was steady again under pressure. The righty outpitched Gausman for the second time in a week, giving up one run on five hits over six frames with six strikeouts. He boosted his record to 4–1 this playoffs with a 1.56 ERA.

The lone score against him resulted from Springer’s two-out single in the third inning, driving in Barger, who had hit a double earlier in the inning. That single provided a brief spark in his comeback to the lineup after sitting out two games with an side strain.

Relief Heroics

From there, the Dodgers’ bullpen took over. Rookie Wrobleski escaped a tight spot in the seventh inning, and another rookie Sasaki worked into the ninth inning before plunking Kirk to start the inning. Barger followed with a two-base hit that became wedged under the outfield wall, forcing runners to stay at second and third.

Glasnow, Los Angeles’ Game 3 starter, came on in a relief role and got a pop fly before Giménez lined to left field. Enrique Hernández caught the ball and threw to second to double off the runner, sealing the victory and earning Glasnow his first-ever successful save.

Next Up: Game 7

The best-of-seven now comes down to one game. Scherzer will take the mound for Toronto, making him the sole active hurler to start more than one World Series Game 7s after doing so in the 2019 season with Washington. The veteran inked a single-season contract to pursue one more title and has been a vocal leader throughout this playoff run.

The Los Angeles squad, looking to become baseball’s first back-to-back champions in nearly a quarter-century, are expected to lean on their two-way star for a brief appearance.