World Series: Dodgers head to Toronto on brink of elimination after Game 5 loss to Blue Jays
The Blue Jays hit back-to-back home runs in the first inning off Dodgers pitcher Blake Snell and never looked back.
Toronto beat Los Angeles 6-1 in Game 5 of the World Series Wednesday night and are one win away from winning the championship.
For the Dodgers, their struggles on offense continued and their shaky bullpen was unable to get the outs needed after Snell left in the seventh with the score 3-1. Toronto tacked on two more runs in the inning to essentially put the game out of reach.
The Dodgers’ only run of the game came in the third inning with a home run by Kiké Hernández.
Davis Schneider and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. homered on Snell’s first and third pitches, the first consecutive homers to start a Series game.
Trey Yesavage, the Blue Jays’ 22-year-old right-hander, was stellar in seven innings pitched. He allowed just three hits, struck out 12 and gave up no walks.
Snell, a two-time Cy Young Award winner, dropped to 0-2 in the Series, allowing five runs, six hits and four walks over 6 2/3 innings.
Roberts shook up his slumping batting order, dropping Mookie Betts as low as third for the first time since 2021 and benching outfielder Andy Pages in favor of Alex Call. It didn’t spark an offense that is hitting .202 in the Series and has solo shots on seven of its eight home runs. Los Angeles has scored just four runs in its last 29 innings.
Shohei Ohtani went 0-4 at the plate.
The Dodgers also threw four wild pitches in a span of two innings.
“We’ve got to make some adjustments,” Dodgers manager Dave Roberts said. “We’ve been in elimination games, a core group of these guys, and we’ve got to find a way to win a game. That’s it.”
The series now shifts to Toronto where the Blue Jays can clinch at home.
Yoshinobu Yamamoto is expected to start for the Dodgers in Game 6, while Toronto will start Kevin Gausman in a pitching rematch of Game 2.
Yamamoto pitched a four-hitter for the first World Series complete game since 2015 and has pitched the first consecutive postseason complete games since Curt Schilling had three in a row in 2001. Gausman allowed three runs in 6 2/3 innings.