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The World Series is going to a decisive seventh game after the Dodgers kept their title defense dreams alive on Friday with a three to one win over the Blue Jays in Game 6.

The defending champions ended Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a dramatic game-ending double play, silencing a home crowd that had come ready to celebrate the city’s championship in over three decades.

Sixth Game Recap

The Dodgers generated all of their offense in the third frame. With two outs, Shohei Ohtani was purposely passed before Smith doubled to left to bring home Tommy Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to fill the bases, and Betts delivered with a two-run single to left, handing the Dodgers a three-run lead.

That key hit snapped a playoff dry spell and rekindled the defending champions’ aspirations of becoming the initial back-to-back championship winners since the Yankees captured three consecutive from 1998 through 2000.

Pitching Battle

Kevin Gausman had been nearly unhittable to that stage, striking out half a dozen of the initial seven batters he faced. He struck out 8 through three frames, matching a World Series record, but the third-inning barrage proved costly. The Toronto ace ended with 8 Ks over six frames, yielding three earned runs on three hits and two free passes.

Yamamoto, meanwhile, was steady again under pressure. The righty outdueled Gausman for the second occasion in a week, giving up a single run on five base hits over six frames with six Ks. He improved to 4–1 this playoffs with a 1.56 ERA.

The only run against him came on George Springer two-out single in the third, driving in Barger, who had doubled earlier in the inning. That single offered a brief spark in his return to the lineup after sitting out two games with an oblique injury.

Bullpen Heroics

From there, the Dodgers’ bullpen carried the load. Rookie Justin Wrobleski got out of a tight spot in the seventh, and another rookie Rōki Sasaki worked into the ninth before plunking Alejandro Kirk to start the inning. Addison Barger followed with a two-base hit that became wedged under the left-center-field fence, obliging base runners to stay at second and third base.

Glasnow, the Dodgers' Game 3 starting pitcher, entered in a relief role and got a pop fly before Giménez lined to left. Hernández made the catch and threw to second to retire Barger, sealing the victory and giving the pitcher his first-ever save.

Looking Ahead: Game 7

The series now boils down to one game. Scherzer will take the mound for Toronto, making him the only living pitcher to pitch in more than one World Series Game 7s after accomplishing that in the 2019 season with Washington. The 40-year-old signed a single-season contract to pursue another championship and has been a outspoken presence throughout this playoff run.

The Los Angeles squad, aiming to be the sport's first back-to-back champions in almost 25 years, are expected to lean on their two-way star for a short outing.