{"id":169714,"date":"2025-10-28T07:54:07","date_gmt":"2025-10-28T07:54:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/l-a-wins-world-series-game-3-on-freddie-freeman-walk-off-home-run-in-18th-inning-live-updates-and-reaction-the-new-york-times\/"},"modified":"2025-10-28T07:54:07","modified_gmt":"2025-10-28T07:54:07","slug":"l-a-wins-world-series-game-3-on-freddie-freeman-walk-off-home-run-in-18th-inning-live-updates-and-reaction-the-new-york-times","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/quixnet.net\/wpinstance\/l-a-wins-world-series-game-3-on-freddie-freeman-walk-off-home-run-in-18th-inning-live-updates-and-reaction-the-new-york-times\/","title":{"rendered":"L.A. wins World Series Game 3 on Freddie Freeman walk-off home run in 18th inning: Live updates and reaction – The New York Times"},"content":{"rendered":"

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The Los Angeles Dodgers<\/a> now hold a 2-1 lead over the Toronto Blue Jays<\/a> in the 2025 World Series after Freddie Freeman<\/a> ended an instant classic with a walk-off homer in the 18th inning.<\/strong>
Solo home runs by Teoscar Hern\u00e1ndez<\/a> and Shohei Ohtani<\/a> gave the Dodgers a 2-0 lead. Toronto then took a 4-2 lead in the fourth<\/a> on an Alejandro Kirk three-run home run followed by an Andr\u00e9s Gim\u00e9nez sacrifice fly<\/a>.
Ohtani ripped an RBI double<\/a> in the fifth before Freddie Freeman hit a single to tie the game<\/a>. Bo Bichette gave the Blue Jays a 5-4 lead with a single in the seventh<\/a> before Ohtani tied the game in the bottom half with another homer<\/a>.
After this heroic homer, neither team would score for another 11 innings despite both sides having ample opportunities to do so. Eventually, Freeman ended the madness and added to his playoff lore by crushing a walk-off home run to center field in the 18th inning<\/a>.
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Dodgers outlast Blue Jays in classic, 18-inning Game 3 to take 2-1 lead in World Series
Dodgers reliever Will Klein <\/strong>wasn\u2019t on the NLCS roster, and he might not have been on the World Series roster had Alex Vesia <\/strong>not stepped away from the team for a family matter.
But the Dodgers needed him tonight, and Klein delivered the performance of his career with four scoreless innings, punctuated by a strikeout of Tyler Heineman<\/strong> to finish the 18th inning with runners left stranded at second and third.
Klein had never before thrown more than two innings in a big league game.
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Here are your views on Game 3 of the 2025 World Series, which became an all-timer:
💬 Dom M:<\/strong> \u201cThis game came down to the better managed team winning. Schneider had Barger, Bichette, and Kirk out of the game while the Dodgers had all their key guys in til the end. He also used all his high-leverage guys early and was left with his worst pitcher at the end. In my mind, very questionable decisions.\u201d
💬 Anonymous:<\/strong> \u201cAny doubters about Freddie Freeman's Hall of Fame case will have to admit that two walk-off home runs in the World Series makes a strong impression!\u201d
💬 Matthew R:<\/strong> \u201cWhat a game. All credit to everybody involved, teams and fans alike, what a marathon. It is a shame anybody had to lose. See you all after an extended lunch break.\u201d
💬 Denny W:<\/strong> \u201cWill Klein should never have to buy his own drink in L.A. ever again.\u201d
💬 Marcelo T:<\/strong> \u201cShohei about to pitch 8 innings and hit 3 homers on 3 hours of sleep.\u201d
💬 Dan B:<\/strong> \u201cThis might as well have been Game 7. I think whoever won was winning the series, especially if it was LA. Toronto really needed that one.\u201d
Before the Blue Jays stopped pitching to him, Shohei Ohtani<\/strong> tried to single-handedly win this game for the Dodgers. In the first five innings he doubled, hit a home run, doubled in a run, and scored a run to tie the game.
But his biggest hit was an seventh-inning home run \u2014 an inning after the Blue Jays had taken the lead \u2014 to tie the score at 5 and basically set the stage for the incredible marathon to follow.
This is a two-for-one moment that mattered. In the bottom of the sixth, the Dodgers were threatening. Tommy Edman<\/strong> reached on a two-out, infield single, and Teoscar Hern\u00e1ndez <\/strong>saw an opportunity go from first to third.
It was going to take a perfect play to get him out, and the Blue Jays executed a perfect play. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. <\/strong>charged the throw to first and \u2014 with an arm that used to play third base \u2014 fired a bullet to the hot corner, where Ernie Clement <\/strong>applied a perfect tag to get Hern\u00e1ndez out by an inch.
Having just ended the sixth inning with a defensive gem, Guerrero then delivered a two-out single in the seventh and scored from first base \u2014 on a single, with a fancy slide \u2014 to put the Blue Jays in front 5-4.
We don\u2019t know how the inning would have played out \u2014 maybe this moment wouldn\u2019t have mattered at all \u2014 but after Bo Bichette<\/strong> opened the second inning with a single, Daulton Varsho<\/strong> took what appeared to be ball four.
Which would have been great for the Blue Jays, except home plate umpire Mark Wegner called it strike two.
Which might have been fine, except Wegner\u2019s call wasn\u2019t very loud or very clear, and both Varsho and Bichette seemed not to hear it.
Which might have been OK, except Varsho hesitated and then tossed his bat, which seemed to further convince Bichette that the pitch was a ball, and he started walking to second base.
Which was a definite problem, because Dodgers catcher Will Smith noticed Bichette was off the bag, yelled to Tyler Glasnow<\/strong> to throw to first, and Bichette was picked off easily.
Varsho wound up walking, and Alejandro Kirk<\/strong> singled him to third, but the Blue Jays didn\u2019t score in the inning. A strikeout and line out stranded the runners. Can\u2019t say for sure the rest of the inning would have played out the same way had Varsho walked the first time, but in theory the Blue Jays should have scored at least one run in the inning, and maybe a lot more. And one run would have made all the difference.
Clayton Kershaw <\/strong>will retire at the end of this season, meaning this is now the last stretch of games he will pitch at Dodger Stadium.
And if we just saw an all-time great on an MLB mound for the last time, what a way for Kershaw to go out.
He entered in the most stressful environment imaginable \u2014 bases loaded, two outs with Toronto\u2019s Nathan Lukes facing him. Lukes worked the count full before getting fooled on a vintage Kershaw slider and rolling over on a ground ball to Tommy Edman at second to end the threat.
Dodger Stadium gave Kershaw one of its loudest roars of the entire evening \u2014 one that, as our Fabian Ardaya put it in the moment, contained 18 years\u2019 worth of emotion and admiration for the Dodgers legend. Among those in the cheering crowd was Kershaw\u2019s friend and his only true peer in Dodgers history, Hall of Famer Sandy Koufax.
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A World Series game with the entire bullpens used? That\u2019s what happened tonight in Game 3. Here is a list of the bullpen pitchers used:
Blue Jays: <\/strong>
Dodgers:<\/strong>
By Fabian Ardaya, Mitch Bannon and Tyler Kepner<\/strong>
LOS ANGELES \u2014 Seven years and one day later, the Los Angeles Dodgers once again played a World Series Game 3 late into the night at Dodger Stadium. A 6-5 win against the Toronto Blue Jays found a way to match the marathon that their 18-inning walk-off win in 2018 against the Boston Red Sox was.
FREDDIE FREEMAN WALK-OFF HOME RUN IN THE 18TH INNING! #WORLDSERIES<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/wD1xbRxDbC<\/a>
— MLB (@MLB) October 28, 2025<\/a>