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The Toronto Blue Jays and Los Angeles Dodgers are facing off in the 41st winner-take-all Game 7 in World Series history.
The Blue Jays lead 3-1 in the fifth inning. Follow along for play-by-play, updates and analysis on both teams.
The scoreboard at Rogers Centre just showed José Bautista, microphone in hand, pumping up the crowd. The crowd responded accordingly. The decibel level at Rogers Centre has reached 113.
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With Bo Bichette leading off the fifth inning for the Blue Jays, here's some between-innings reading of a profile I wrote on Bichette, Vladimir Guerrero Jr. and Cavan Biggio when they were New Hampshire Fisher Cats — just babies!
From the players chat
Nesbitt: What’s the difference between Tyler Glasnow today and the guy you played with in Pittsburgh?
Steven Brault: Dude, that’s such a hard question to answer. It could be a million things. But we all knew he was gonna be this guy.
Chris Stewart: I think it just clicked for him. The stuff isn’t a whole lot different, he just knows where it’s going now. I would saw he was raw with us, and more refined now.
Trevor Williams: He had to be this guy. We knew it was in there.
Max Scherzer has reached an age where retirement questions are relevant. The 41-year-old future Hall of Famer gave the Blue Jays more than they could've anticipated in Game 7, but was his walk off the Rogers Centre mound his final one in Major League Baseball? Doubtful. If anything, Scherzer showed in this postseason that he can still pitch at a high level, even if his 5.19 regular-season ERA didn't indicate as much. Scherzer signed a one-year, $15.5 million deal with Toronto this winter and, it stands to reason, will receive another one-year deal this winter. His longtime friend and former college pitching coach Tony Vitello was just named manager of the San Francisco Giants. Might that be a perfect fit?
▶️ Louis Varland leaves the Dodgers stranded on first and second. Freddie Freeman flies out to Daulton Varsho at center field, ending the inning. The Blue Jays keep their two-run lead going to the bottom of the fifth. | Bottom 5th Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 1
No player has had more defining World Series moments over the past two years than Freddie Freeman.
Another massive one here in Game 7.
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▶️ Fly ball to center field from Will Smith. Daulton Varsho makes the catch. It is first and second two out for Freddie Freeman. | Top 5th Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 1
The slider Louis Varland threw the pitch before Shohei Ohtani’s single was the pitch. Execute it again. Don’t try to make it nastier.
▶️ Line drive for Shohei Ohtani, who hits into the outfield. It is now first and second one out for Will Smith. Big moment here for Louis Varland. | Top 5th Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 1
I'm mildly surprised this is Louis Varland against Shohei Ohtani and not Mason Fluharty, who has been in during these spots all series. Baking in the extra looks is important, but man…
Max Scherzer departs to a thunderous ovation from Rogers Centre, and as he's walking off the mound, he pounds his chest and salutes the crowd.
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With this appearance, Louis Varland has set the record for the most relief appearances in one postseason (15)
Could that be Max Scherzer’s last time walking off the mound in a major league game?
It seems like Mason Fluharty was warming up as a decoy (pun intended) for Shohei Ohtani.
He went. Close. That overhead camera does not really help for check swings.
▶️ Line drive, left field base hit for Miguel Rojas. With one out, Shohei Ohtani is up to bat. John Schneider comes out of the dugout. Max Scherzer leaves after 4 1/3 innings, giving up one run. Louis Varland into the game. | Top 5th Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 1
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▶️ Kiké Hernandez went around after the appeal to the first base umpire. It is another strikeout for Max Scherzer. Up to bat is Miguel Rojas. | Top 5th Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 1
Before today’s game, Blue Jays manager John Schneider said his plan was to stay out of the way. He’s leaving Max Scherzer in, who needed some elite defense to get out of last inning.
Surely, Scherzer will get just two more batters, with Mason Fluharty up for Shohei Ohtani. But this is a bold move by the Blue Jays manager to give Scherzer two more outs to get.
Perhaps John Schneider wants to squeeze two more outs from Max Scherzer, who will face the eight and nine-hole hitters to start the fifth inning. As Tyler said, southpaw Mason Fluharty makes sense for Shohei Ohtani when he comes to bat. Then, is it Trey Yesavage time?