The Los Angeles Dodgers will return to the scene of high drama Monday night when they visit the Toronto Blue Jays for the sequel to the 2025 World Series.
The three-game set will have trouble living up to the classic series that took seven games — and 11 innings in the final contest — to decide, with the Dodgers winning 5-4 in Toronto to repeat as champions.
“Very exciting,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “I think the fans there want a piece of us. I think it’s going to be a great series. I think we’ll see (Max) Scherzer, which is always fun. I think we’ll see (Kevin) Gausman, which is going to be a challenge. That team — they’re a tough, gritty team, so it will be good to get back up to the Rogers Centre.”
Toronto manager John Schneider implied this series will have a bit extra oomph.
“I was joking with the guys that it’s not a three-game rematch of the World Series, it’s just three games you’ve got to cover and try to win,” he said.
The sequel will have a familiar beginning as Scherzer (1-0, 1.50 ERA) — Toronto’s Game 7 starter on Nov. 1 — is scheduled to start on Monday as the Blue Jays try to snap a four-game losing streak. They took a 3-0 road loss on Sunday to suffer a three-game sweep by the Chicago White Sox.
Meanwhile, the Dodgers rallied from a 6-1 deficit on Sunday for an 8-6 road win to complete a three-game sweep of the Washington Nationals. Shohei Ohtani homered and hit the go-ahead sacrifice fly for Los Angeles.
The last time Scherzer faced the Dodgers, he allowed one run and four hits over 4 1/3 innings in Game 7 of the World Series. The right-hander also pitched 4 1/3 innings in Game 3, allowing five hits and three runs in a game the Dodgers won 6-5 in 18 innings.
In the regular season, Scherzer — in his 19th season — has a 5-6 record and a 2.38 ERA in 19 career games (17 starts) against the Dodgers.
Justin Wrobleski (0-0, 6.75 ERA) is slated to start Monday for the Dodgers. Toronto faced the left-hander as a reliever four times in the World Series. He allowed no runs and four hits over five innings.
In one regular-season appearance against Toronto in 2025, he allowed no runs and one hit in two-thirds of an inning of a 5-4 loss on Aug. 10.
There were some tense moments in Game 7 when he hit Toronto’s Andres Gimenez with a pitch.
“They’re going to boo me, and it’s going to be really awesome,” Wrobleski said. “If I were a Toronto fan, I probably wouldn’t like me either.”
Game 7 ended when Toronto catcher Alejandro Kirk grounded to Los Angeles shortstop Mookie Betts to start a double play.
Neither will play in the rematch series. Kirk is on the injured list with a fractured left thumb, suffered when he was hit by a foul tip on Friday in the 10th inning of 5-4 loss in Chicago. Catcher Brandon Valenzuela was promoted from Triple-A Buffalo and singled in his first major league at-bat on Sunday.
Betts was put on the IL with a strained right oblique, incurred Saturday in Los Angeles’ 10-5 win at Washington. Hyeseong Kim was recalled from Triple-A Oklahoma City to share shortstop duties with Miguel Rojas.
On the Toronto injury front, Addison Barger left Sunday’s game with a sore ankle, adding to the Blue Jays’ woes.
Toronto was 0-for-6 with runners in scoring position in the contest.
“We’ve got to start playing in sync,” Schneider said Sundday after the loss. “Today we were fighting an uphill battle offensively, which is uncharacteristic of us.”
–Field Level Media
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