Now, we’re down to two. The 2025 World Series will pit the AL champion Blue Jays against the NL champion Los Angeles Dodgers. The Dodgers will look to finish the job and win their second straight World Series title, while Toronto looks to end their 32-year title drought. Here’s how the two teams match up.
Scheduled Starters and Start Times
- Game 1: Blake Snell (Dodgers) vs. Trey Yesavage (Blue Jays)
- Game 2: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Dodgers) vs. TBD
- Game 3: TBD vs. TBD
- Game 4: TBD vs. TBD
- Game 5: TBD vs. TBD
- Game 6: TBD vs. TBD
- Game 7: TBD vs. TBD
Games 1 & 2 will take place on October 24 and 25, respectively, in Toronto. From there, Dodgers will host the next three games (Game 5 if necessary) from October 27 through October 29. Game 6 would take place on October 31 in Toronto, while a potential Game 7 would be played the next day in Canada.
All games are scheduled to begin at 8:00 PM ET/5:00 PM PT. Those in the United States can watch the games on FOX. Sportsnet will air the games in Canada.
A Look at the Offenses
| Stat |  |  |
|---|---|---|
| Runs Scored | 825 | 798 |
| Home Runs | 244 | 191 |
| OPS | .768 | .760 |
| Whiff% | 25.8% | 21.6% |
| Hard Hit% | 42.1% | 41.2% |
The Blue Jays’ offense has been nothing short of a well-oiled machine throughout the postseason. Toronto’s lineup has been the more productive between the two teams at least thus far. Seventy-one runs across 11 games for the Jays, compared to 46 over 10 for the Dodgers.
We’ll get more into the Dodgers‘ offense in a second. But back to the Jays, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. has been everything the team wanted when he signed his massive extension at the start of the year. He batted .442/.510/.930 (1.440 OPS) in the playoffs, earning him the ALCS MVP. Guerrero Jr. belted six home runs over the first two rounds.
But aside from Guerrero Jr., the Jays have received plenty of help. George Springer added four home runs, with his biggest coming late in Game 7 to give Toronto the lead. Alejandro Kirk has three.
Additionally, it hasn’t been just the long ball that’s helped the Blue Jays. As noted a few days ago, Toronto has mixed in power, along with putting the ball in play — even if it doesn’t result in a hard-hit ball — to win games.
Toronto, as a team, struck out 14.8% of the time across the first three rounds. And, the Jays could receive more help if Bo Bichette, who’s been getting work in the field, is ready to be activated.
Getting to the National League champions, there are a lot of storylines here. The obvious ones are Teoscar Hernandez facing his former team in the Fall Classic, as well as Shohei Ohtani and Roki Sasaki — former free agent targets of the Jays — set to face Toronto in the Fall Classic. But aside from that, it’ll be to do damage against Toronto’s starting pitching staff.
This series offers an opportunity for the Dodgers to face a lot of right-handed pitching. It’s important to note, especially since much of the team’s nucleus, like Ohtani, Freddie Freeman, and Max Muncy, are left-handed hitters.
Los Angeles faced a steady stream of left-handers in the NLDS against the Phillies. Milwaukee tried to do the same on a lesser scale, trotting out Aaron Ashby as an opener, as well as starting Jose Quintana in Game 4. Why is this important to note? Take a look at the splits:
| Handeness | PA | OPS |
|---|---|---|
| LHP | 171 | .656 |
| RHP | 221 | .864 |
It’s a stark difference compared to the Blue Jays. Toronto hitters have slugged over .500 and have a combined OPS above .800 against both lefties and righties.
A Look at the Pitching
| Stat | |  |
|---|---|---|
| Starters’ ERA | 3.69 | 4.34 |
| Relievers’ ERA | 4.27 | 3.98 |
| Strikeouts | 1,505 | 1,430 |
| Opponents’ AVG | .232 | .241 |
| Chase% | 27.9% | 28.4% |
As of now, the Blue Jays have confirmed just one of their probable starters. Rookie Trey Yesavage will start Game 1 in Toronto. Like in the ALDS, Yesavage’s job will be to keep a strong lineup off balance.
Between Yesavage and Kevin Gausman, who worked Game 7 of the ALCS in relief, expect a lot of splitters against left-handed hitters.
The Blue Jays had a hard time keeping the Mariners away from the long ball. Seattle hit 14 home runs in the ALCS. Toronto will face a team very capable of hitting home runs. However, as noted in the previous section, another storyline will be how Schneider works the matchups in this series.
In the ALCS, the Jays carried three left-handers — Mason Fluharty, Brendon Little, and Eric Lauer — against the Mariners. Something to keep an eye on.
The Dodgers, meanwhile, will trot out Blake Snell and Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the first two games of this series. It’s exactly the same formula that Dave Roberts followed in the NLCS.
It’s been a significantly different postseason for the Dodgers compared to 2024, particularly in terms of how Roberts utilized his bullpen. Last year, bullpen games became a regular occurrence; the Dodgers used one in Game 4 of the World Series, and Roberts also employed them in the NLDS and NLCS.
This time around, the starters have been front and center. Blake Snell went eight strong in Game 1 of the NLCS. Yamamoto went the distance in Game 2, and Ohtani went six plus in Game 4.
Healthy starting pitchers, as well as a bullpen in flux, have played a part.
One other note to watch for the Dodgers is Alex Vesia. The team announced that Vesia is away from the team due to a personal matter. Robers stated that the team is still working on how to manage their roster without Vesia, whether it be removing him or placing him on emergency family leave.
Tanner Scott, removed from the NLDS roster due to an abscess operation, indicated that he’s healthy.
Our Prediction
From a storyline perspective, this series has it all. United States vs. Canada, Ohtani and the Blue Jays, and Don Mattingly — formerly the manager of the Dodgers — are involved in his first World Series on the bench for the Blue Jays. But aside from all that, it should be a highly entertaining one.
As far as who has the edge, it’s hard not to go with the Dodgers. Los Angeles has the starpower & depth to win, even though the Blue Jays are not far away in that regard. Still, we’ll go with the Dodgers.
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