TORONTO – Clayton Kershaw ended his storied career as a World Series champion. And he might have been the last guy to find out.

Kershaw, the greatest left-handed pitcher of his generation, spent many of his 18 years with the Los Angeles Dodgers as a tortured soul in October, often asked to shoulder too much or surrounded by a team just imperfect enough to sully his handiwork.

He ended it as a rank-and-file guy on the most potent pitching staff he’s ever been a part of, which is why he was warming up in the bullpen in the bottom of the 11th inning, the Dodgers two outs away from a championship, and their $325 million man, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, trying to keep the Toronto Blue Jays at bay.

Kershaw might have been responsible for the next batter, Daulton Varsho, but in the fog of extra-inning war, chaos reigned. Runners were at the corners. The Dodgers were nursing a 5-4 lead.

Kershaw’s only task at that moment was heeding the instructions of bullpen coach Josh Bardo. So he kept throwing, kept getting loose in that right field bullpen far beyond the playing surface, a couple fences blocking his view, the 44,713 partisans at Rogers Centre ready to erupt at a game-tying – perhaps World Series-winning – development.

And so when Alejandro Kirk rolled a gentle ground ball to shortstop Mookie Betts, who stepped on second and tossed to first for the final out of the season, Kershaw was oblivious.

“Bardo looked at me,” he says, “and said, ‘We just won the World Series!’

“And I said, ‘Are you sure?’”

Believe it.

A pitcher who endured 13 playoff runs in his 18 seasons, almost all of them as the Dodgers’ ace and expected Game 1 starter, was simply along for the ride on this one. Yet he went out healthy, and happy, and did his job to its fullest – even if that job was retiring just one batter in this World Series.

But oh, what a spot: Manager Dave Roberts called upon Kershaw in the top of the 12th inning of World Series Game 3. The bases were loaded, the score tied 5-5 and No. 2 batter Nathan Lukes at the plate for Toronto.

Kershaw threw him eight pitches, six of them sliders, the final tool in his 37-year-old kit he trusts. On the eighth, Lukes rolled a full-count slider over to second base, where Tommy Edman retired him for the final out.

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It was just one out, and Kershaw would never climb the mound again. But when the Dodgers won the game in 18 innings, and the Series in seven games, well, Kershaw could feel nothing but gratitude at being simply a cog rather than the engine in this title pursuit.

“I’m thankful I got to go back out there and get that last out. Have it be at Dodger Stadium. Have it be a big out. That’s just so cool,” says Kershaw. “I have to give Doc a lot of thanks. To trust me to do that.

“I’ve had a lot of ups and downs so for him to keep trusting me and get me in that spot.”

Now, scouting reports and arm care will be the last of his worries. Kershaw and his wife are expecting their fifth child. The lefty with a career 223-96 record and 2.53 ERA is going into full Dad Mode.

Dodgers president Andrew Friedman has left open the possibility of a front office job, probably on the cushy side, but that can wait for another time.

In July 2031, Kershaw will almost certainly be inducted into baseball’s Hall of Fame. And that plaque will say, “three-time World Series champion.”

Even if it took him a minute to realize that third ring would be on its way.

“It’s not a sad feeling. It really isn’t,” says Kershaw. “I will, forever, for the rest of my life, get to say, we won Game 7 of the World Series the last game I played. You can’t script it, you can’t write it up.

“Even if I was not throwing 88, I’d still be done. It’s just the perfect way to end it.”

DENVER – Nearly 100 nights a year, thousands of dollars in cash poured into a room the size of a broom closet in downtown Denver’s Ball Arena.  

Each night, Randy Kanai collected the cash and stashed it in a safe.   

The money came from the charity 50/50 raffle held for a decade at Colorado Avalanche, Denver Nuggets, Colorado Mammoth and Colorado Rapids home games. As the state-certified raffle manager, it was Kanai’s job to ensure the money reached its intended recipients.  

Half the jackpot went to the winner. The other half was supposed to go to charity – primarily the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association, the nonprofit USA Hockey governing body that regulates the sport in the state. Kanai was its president.   

The money could have been used to offset the costs of a notoriously expensive youth sport, in which ice rental, equipment and travel costs routinely exceed $10,000 a year for a single child. But instead of going to the hockey nonprofit and its member teams and leagues, a USA TODAY investigation found that 1 in 3 dollars the raffle raised from late 2016 through 2022 was misspent or remains missing.  

More than $300,000 was never deposited into the raffle bank account. Another $275,000 was paid to outside groups with little or no connection to hockey. And $25,000 more was spent on travel and entertainment, including $2,000 plane tickets and season tickets to Nuggets games.  

At the same time money was going missing, Kanai made a string of large cash deposits into his private bank account, court records show. Asked to explain them during an April 2025 civil trial – in which he was found liable for stealing money from the hockey association unrelated to the raffle – Kanai said the cash came from bags he found lying around his parents’ house.  

“I see exactly why it looks suspicious,” Kanai, who denies all wrongdoing, told USA TODAY. “But I’m telling you, I operated that raffle the best that I could. I did the best job that I could with the resources that I had.”  

Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, which owns the National Hockey League, National Basketball Association, National Lacrosse League and Major League Soccer franchises that hosted the raffle at their games from 2013 to 2022, declined to answer specific questions about the raffle from USA TODAY. Its nonprofit arm, Kroenke Sports Charities, received a portion of the proceeds. 

‘We have been disappointed and saddened to learn what CAHA and its members have had to endure through this process,” Kroenke Sports & Entertainment communications director Jim Mulvihill said in an emailed statement. 

“The raffles in question were overseen by the former CAHA president who was the subject of the underlying litigation. All raffle proceeds received by Kroenke Sports Charities were fully distributed to our nonprofit charitable partners.’ 

To track the raffle money, USA TODAY obtained and analyzed more than 3,000 pages of the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s bank statements, check images, tax returns, emails, court filings and quarterly reports to the Colorado Secretary of State detailing its raffle activity. The news organization spoke to dozens of hockey parents, raffle volunteers, state officials, attorneys and two accountants who signed off on the methodology.  

The investigation reveals how Kanai skirted the state’s charitable gaming laws for years while shortchanging the hockey families whose interests he was supposed to serve. It also raises the question of why the entities that oversee the nonprofit’s finances – the Colorado Secretary of State and USA Hockey – both failed to notice.  

State launches investigation 

The Colorado Amateur Hockey Association ran the raffle from 2013 to 2022 under a license from the Colorado Secretary of State, which regulates charitable gaming. 

A week after receiving detailed questions from USA TODAY about Kanai’s management of the raffle, the Secretary of State’s office on Oct. 23, 2025, launched an investigation into the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s “past operating practices.”  

“It is illegal to submit false information regarding charitable gaming activities to this office,” deputy communications director Kailee Stiles said in an emailed statement to USA TODAY.  

“The Department takes its enforcement role seriously, reviews submitted information to ensure compliance with Colorado law, and investigates failure to comply with the law whenever it has the basis and evidence to do so.”  

The Colorado Amateur Hockey Association will fully cooperate with the state’s investigation, Tom McGann, the nonprofit’s current president, told USA TODAY.  

“Mr. Kanai has a demonstrated lack of transparency with both USA Hockey and former CAHA Boards of Directors,” McGann said. “Similarly, his information sharing on the 50/50 Raffle which he operated was less than transparent.”  

Bill Brierly, the association’s executive vice president, encouraged county and state prosecutors to investigate its former president’s handling of the raffle, too.  

“If what you’ve found is true, then this is money that was diverted from CAHA that should have been used to make hockey more affordable and provide other opportunities for youth and amateur hockey players in Colorado,” Brierly said.   

“It’s just not a proper way to be running a nonprofit.”  

Stacks of raffle cash  

When the 50/50 raffle started in 2013, it was clear where the money was flowing.  

But within four years, money started to disappear.  

The idea for the raffle originated with Kanai.  

A hockey parent whose kids played in Colorado’s youth leagues, Kanai in 2009 co-founded a Tier I hockey club – the top level of youth competition. Three years later, he was elected Colorado Amateur Hockey Association president.  

Kanai approached Kroenke Sports & Entertainment with the idea soon after he took office, he later testified in court. Under their partnership, the hockey nonprofit would run the raffle and share the proceeds with Kroenke Sports Charities, the company’s nonprofit arm.   

The two organizations worked closely with the Secretary of State’s office to make sure they complied with state laws, according to a July 2013 report on the agency’s website. The office touted the partnership as a resounding success.   

Kroenke Sports Charities’ portion of the money would fund sports programs for underserved children, the report said. The hockey association’s share would go to local hockey teams and leagues and help improve its SafeSport program for protecting young athletes from abuse.  

With more than 100 home games a year among the four pro teams, the raffle quickly grew into one of the state’s biggest charitable gaming operations. Fans bought hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of raffle tickets each year. Some swiped credit cards. Many paid cash.  

Roughly once every two weeks during the pro teams’ 2016-17 seasons, Kanai took stacks of raffle cash out of the safe in the arena and brought them to one of two KeyBank branches within five miles of his house in Wheat Ridge, Colorado, bank records show.   

There, he deposited the cash into the hockey nonprofit’s segregated raffle bank account, where state law required it to store all raffle revenue. It was from that account that the nonprofit paid the winners, charities and other raffle expenses.  

Practically every penny was accounted for in bank statements that year. But the next year, a gap started to appear between the amount the raffle recorded making and the amount Kanai deposited.  

The gap grew for five years – and never closed.  

The raffle sold at least $1.8 million in tickets from October 2016 through the last one in June 2022, according to quarterly reports Kanai submitted to the state and jackpot results on the official raffle website.   

But less than $1.5 million was deposited into the raffle bank account during that time, bank statements show – a $300,000 shortfall.    

Kanai told USA TODAY he was unaware of the gap. Almost every game, $100 or $200 would go missing, he said, but he never calculated the total amount lost over the 351 raffles in question. He suggested that the volunteer ticket sellers could have pocketed cash, that it could have fallen out of their aprons, or that they did not turn in raffle tickets printed in error that should have been voided.   

Kanai said he did not always count the money after each game. Sometimes, he let it sit in the arena safe for weeks before reconciling the receipts against sales.   

“Since I’m there every single night, I didn’t want to hang out there longer than I needed to, so I’d just gather up all the cash and credit card receipts and throw it in a safe and walk out the door without counting it,” he said. “I didn’t reconcile every night. I didn’t have the staff to reconcile.” 

Kanai later added that he sometimes posted inflated jackpot amounts on the scoreboard at games to boost ticket sales, which he said could cause the online jackpot results to be inaccurate. Still, it does not explain the $300,000 gap between the deposits and revenue figures he reported to the state, which he affirmed under penalty of perjury were true and correct.  

Nonprofit officers have a fiduciary duty to be good stewards of their organizations’ resources, said Laurie Styron, the executive director of CharityWatch, a nonprofit that rates and investigates other nonprofits. If Kanai didn’t have the resources to manage the raffle properly, he shouldn’t have run it.  

“This is just another example of someone running a nonprofit as if it’s their personal proprietorship,” Styron said. “If you want to risk your own money, that’s your own business.  

“But this is not his personal money. This is the charity’s money.”  

Hockey orgs received a fraction of the money 

In the raffle’s first few months, the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association gave its entire share of the proceeds to its member teams and leagues.  

But by 2017, it stopped giving to its members almost entirely.  

Kroenke Sports Charities continued to get its share. But Kanai gave most of the hockey association’s cut to a handful of youth baseball, softball and collegiate club sports teams.   

For years, Kanai enlisted those outside groups to sell raffle tickets at games in exchange for a roughly 15% cut of the jackpot. As a result, $277,000 intended for hockey families was instead paid to non-member organizations with little or no connection to the association’s mission of regulating and growing the sport.   

Paying groups to staff raffles is illegal under Colorado laws and the state constitution, said Stiles, the Secretary of State spokesperson. Only “bona fide members” of a licensed nonprofit can volunteer to work games. No person or organization can receive compensation for working. The entire net proceeds must be “exclusively devoted” to the nonprofit’s lawful charitable purpose.   

Twice in the last five years, Colorado voters rejected ballot measures that would have amended the constitution to let nonprofits pay raffle workers. Opponents argued that the measures would have diverted money away from nonprofits’ core missions and made charitable gaming more like “for-profit gambling.”   

By signing each of the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s annual raffle license renewal applications, Kanai repeatedly affirmed under penalty of perjury that he read, understood and was responsible for following Colorado’s raffle laws. Yet over and over, he continued paying organizations to sell tickets.  

The University of Denver and University of Northern Colorado club sports departments each got $47,000 in raffle funds for working games from October 2016 through 2022, quarterly reports, bank statements and check images show. Another $57,000 went to three youth travel softball teams. No one organization received more – $55,000 – than Centennial Panthers Elite Youth Baseball, a nonprofit with no website and one officer, according to its tax filings: a treasurer.   

Most of the Panthers’ entire budget in 2016 came from the 50/50 raffle, its tax filing that year shows. It spent most of it on a weeklong, summer baseball camp and tournament at Cooperstown Dreams Park, in the same upstate New York town as the National Baseball Hall of Fame.  

Kanai does not deny paying outside groups to staff the raffle. He told USA TODAY he did so to keep the raffle alive because hockey teams refused to volunteer. The Secretary of State’s office, he said, knew and approved of his practice of giving these groups “donations” in exchange for selling tickets.  

“I don’t ever recall sitting down and actually reading all the state raffle laws,” Kanai said. “I was operating under the belief that the state knew what I was doing, and if I was outside of the raffle law, they would let me know. And that never happened.”  

Stiles declined to answer specific questions about the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association, including whether the Secretary of State’s office knew of the arrangement. But the investigation notice the office sent the nonprofit on Oct. 23, 2025, ordered it to preserve all records on, among other things, “remuneration.”   

“Colorado law and the state constitution prohibit direct remuneration to individuals or groups for volunteering to run charitable games,” Stiles said. “Department staff regularly communicate with operators of charitable games to ensure that the legal and constitutional requirements are abundantly clear.”  

Kanai insisted that he kept the raffle going for the Colorado hockey community’s benefit. Based on its contract with Kroenke Sports & Entertainment, roughly a third of the net proceeds should have gone to the hockey nonprofit and its members.   

In fact, those hockey organizations got just 7% – $124,000.  

“That’s $124,000 that they would not have had otherwise,” Kanai told USA TODAY. “Had there been no raffle, there would have been nothing.”  

Raffle irregularities go undetected 

The 50/50 raffle came to a near total halt in March 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down in-person events across the country.   

The Colorado Amateur Hockey Association held a few online-only raffles through June 2022, when they ended. By then, the people charged with overseeing its finances had ample reason to question Kanai’s practices.  

In 2018 and 2019, Kanai made a series of unusual purchases from the raffle bank account that don’t appear to fall within the narrow list of expenses permitted under the state’s raffle laws, such as advertising, equipment and accounting fees.  

He spent $9,000 on airfare, hotels and ground transportation for three separate business trips in 10 months, which he logged in quarterly reports as “vendor meetings.” On one trip, he bought two plane tickets for $2,130 each.  

Kanai also made $16,000 worth of purchases at an online ticket seller for Avalanche and Nuggets games and other events. He listed them in quarterly reports as donations, describing one $5,460 transaction as “Nuggets season tickets for donations to charitable causes,” without specifying what.   

The trips were for training hosted by the association’s raffle software vendor, Kanai told USA TODAY. Some of the ticket purchases were for game tickets given out as jackpot prizes, he said, while others were for golf tournaments and galas hosted by Kroenke Sports Charities.   

He said he did not recall what charitable causes the Nuggets tickets benefited or why the plane tickets were so expensive. He later said Nuggets tickets were given to volunteer ticket sellers as incentives for working games.  

The Colorado Secretary of State’s six-person bingo-raffle team is responsible for reviewing 500-plus nonprofits’ charitable gaming reports each quarter for inconsistencies, discrepancies and missing information, Stiles said.  

The team, however, did not flag the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s high-dollar travel and entertainment expenses, hundreds of “donations” to outside groups that helped sell tickets, or the missing $300,000. Nor did it notice that the nonprofit’s reported revenue and expenses and its raffle bank account statements, which were attached to each report, almost never matched.  

Stiles declined to say whether the bingo-raffle team’s review processes should have flagged the issues. The team did not receive any complaints about the hockey nonprofit or have any independent reason to audit or investigate its legal compliance, she said, until USA TODAY raised the issues in October.  

The only enforcement action the state agency took against the nonprofit, she said, was issuing a Class 3 violation in 2014 for failing to keep copies of raffle tickets. The Colorado Amateur Hockey Association paid a $50 fine.  

No one on the hockey nonprofit’s board seemed to notice the issues, either. That includes its longtime treasurer and secretary, Shawn Tanaka, who filed its tax returns each year, had access to the raffle bank account and received $20,000 annually from the association’s main operating budget for “professional services.”  

Tanaka, who no longer serves on the board, did not respond to phone, text and email messages from USA TODAY seeking comment.  

USA Hockey – recognized by federal law as the sport’s national governing body – is supposed to conduct site reviews of each of its 34 affiliates’ finances every three years. Despite reviewing tax filings as part of the reviews, USA Hockey does not appear to have noticed that the Colorado Amateur Hockey Association’s tax filings, bank statements and quarterly reports all showed widely different charitable gaming revenue figures. 

USA Hockey spokesperson Dave Fischer did not respond to multiple requests for comment for this story. 

It wasn’t a regulator who finally noticed the discrepancies. It was a local hockey mom.  

Concerned about conflicts of interests involving Kanai and other board members, Brooke Wilfley, who runs a hockey academy in Denver, personally hired an accounting firm in late 2022 to examine the association’s finances. The firm’s January 2023 report found six-figure differences between its bank statements and internal books, “questionable raffle activity,” and financial records it called “illogical.”   

Only after receiving that report – and a whistleblower retaliation complaint from Wilfley – did USA Hockey hire an accounting firm of its own to forensically audit the association’s finances.   

USA Hockey’s accounting firm ordered Kanai to turn over numerous documents about both his private business and the raffle.  

Kanai refused to provide them. 

Wilfley said she is grateful to USA Hockey for intervening and supporting her. But she said there needs to be a better system for rooting out bad actors in a youth sport where, across the country, businesses and individuals are exploiting families for profit.  

“Families give up everything for their kids to play, and these programs take advantage of them,” she said. “Thousands of kids in our state are being impacted by the decisions that these people are making. And nobody’s doing anything.”  

‘Cash in bags, just sitting around the house’ 

Randy Kanai took the witness stand in Courtroom 550 of Jefferson County District Court, swearing to tell the whole truth and nothing but it.  

It was April 1, 2025 – his day in court to defend himself against allegations that he had stolen at least $180,000 from the hockey nonprofit he ran for over a decade.   

The Colorado Amateur Hockey Association filed a lawsuit against Kanai in October 2023, five months after the board voted him out of office. The lawsuit accused him of funneling the association’s money through his private business. Although it wasn’t one of the main charges, it also accused him of failing to keep adequate records on the raffle.   

At the civil trial, Thomas Krysa, an attorney representing the association, questioned Kanai about a string of large cash deposits into his personal bank account in 2020 and 2021 – specifically, whether the cash came from the 50/50 raffle.  

Kanai said it did not. The money, he testified under oath, came from bags of cash he found lying around his parents’ house after they died in 1997.  

“That was all cash that I was pulling from stuff that they had laying around,” Kanai said.  

“I’m confused,” Krysa said. “So your parents had a lot of cash in bags just sitting around the house?”  

“Yeah.”  

Reading from Kanai’s bank statements, Krysa rattled off 10 of the cash deposits:  

$4,000 on July 20, 2020.  
$4,000 on August 25, 2020.  
$3,960 on September 24, 2020.  
$4,000 on October 22, 2020.  
$4,000 on November 18, 2020.  
$4,000 on December 18, 2020.  
$4,000 on January 20, 2021.   
$4,000 on February 24, 2021.  
$2,000 on March 17, 2021.   
$4,300 on May 11, 2021.   

“It’s not cash from the 50/50 raffle, right?”   

“No.”  

“Why were you depositing $4,000 at a time?”  

“It was just an easy way, the way my parents had the cash bundled.”  

Krysa asked if Kanai knew that banks must file currency transaction reports to the U.S. Department of the Treasury’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network when they process cash transactions exceeding $10,000.  

Kanai said he was aware.  

“Were you trying to avoid that?”  

“No,” Kanai said. “If I would’ve been trying to avoid that, I would’ve put in $9,900.”  

Why wait 23 years to deposit the money?   

Kanai said he and his siblings put all the money into a safe in one of their houses, “forgot about it, and just left it there.”  

“You forgot?”   

“Oh, we knew it was there, but there was no urgency to do anything with it.”  

“You didn’t want to earn interest on it?”   

“We were earning interest in other places, and nobody wanted to sit there and take the time to deposit that.’ 

“How much cash did you have in that safe at one time?” 

“I don’t know,” Kanai said. “Two, $300,000.”    

Six months after the trial, Judge Chantel Contiguglia issued her written verdict. It found Kanai liable for civil theft, unjust enrichment, conversion of funds and breach of fiduciary duty.   

Contiguglia ordered Kanai to pay the nonprofit $579,000 – three times the amount he stole, with interest – plus attorney fees, and turn over all his documents related to the nonprofit and its finances. The 47-page judgment, which centered on Kanai’s private business, did not mention the raffle.   

Kanai told USA TODAY he planned to appeal. He was disappointed with the ruling, he said, but will “sleep good every night knowing the truth.”   

That the cash he found in his parents’ house is about the same amount missing from the raffle fund, he said, is a “total coincidence.”  

“I’ll swear on a stack of bibles,” he said. “That’s not raffle cash.”  

Some of the money, he said, still sits in his personal safe. 

Kenny Jacoby is an investigative reporter for USA TODAY who covers college and youth sports. Email him at kjacoby@usatoday.com.

It’s been nine months since the NASCAR Cup Series grid kicked off the 2025 season in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Thousands of miles of hard racing later, it’s all come down to the Championship Race in Phoenix.

William Byron’s win in Martinsville last week secured his spot in the season finale. Chase Briscoe and Denny Hamlin already punched their ticket to the most important race of the season.

A fifth-place finish for Kyle Larson makes him the fourth contender on Sunday in Phoenix.

Larson’s the only one of the four who has won a championship before. He took home the title with a win in Phoenix in 2021 but hasn’t made it to victory lane since then at the track.

Hamlin’s one of the most successful drivers in Cup Series history. He’d finally lose the title of ‘best Cup Series driver without a championship’ with a victory on Sunday.

Larson’s teammate Byron and Hamlin’s teammate Briscoe means it’ll be Hendrick Motorsports versus Joe Gibbs Racing for the title come Sunday. For the first time since Larson’s title in 2021, a non-Team Penske driver will win the championship.

Will it be a repeat champion or a new one crowned at Phoenix Raceway? Here’s everything you need to know to get ready for the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race on Sunday, Nov. 7:

What time does the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race start?

The Cup Series Championship Race is scheduled to start at 3 p.m. ET on Sunday, Nov. 2 at Phoenix Raceway in Phoenix.

What TV channel is the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race?

The Cup Series Championship Race will be broadcast on NBC, the home of the final round of the Cup Series playoffs. Pre-race coverage will start at 2 p.m. ET.

Will there be a live stream of the Cup Series Championship Race?

Yes, the Cup Series Championship Race will be streamed on Peacock, HBO Max, Sling TV and Fubo, which is offering a free trial to new subscribers.

Stream the NASCAR Championship Race at Phoenix on Fubo

How many laps is the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race?

The NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race is 312 laps around the one-mile track for a total of 312 miles. The race will have three segments (laps per stage) — Stage 1: 60 laps; Stage 2: 125 laps; Stage 3: 137 laps.

NASCAR Cup Series Championship contenders

There are just four drivers who can win the title on Sunday in Phoenix. They are:

Chase Briscoe
Denny Hamlin
William Byron
Kyle Larson

Who won the NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race last year?

Joey Logano won just one race during the regular season in 2024 but stormed to three victories in the playoffs – crucially, the Championship Race in Phoenix. He captured his third Cup Series title, becoming the 10th driver in history to do so. He took the lead during the final stage and held off Team Penske teammate Ryan Blaney to take home the title. William Byron, Kyle Larson and Christopher Bell rounded out the top five.

NASCAR Cup Series Championship Race starting lineup

Denny Hamlin, No. 11 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
William Byron, No. 24 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Kyle Larson, No. 5 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Austin Cindric, No. 2 Team Penske Ford
Ryan Blaney, No. 12 Team Penske Ford
Carson Hocevar, No. 77 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Josh Berry, No. 21 Wood Brothers Racing Ford
Alex Bowman, No. 48 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Chris Buescher, No. 17 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Joey Logano, No. 22 Team Penske Ford
Kyle Busch, No. 8 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Chase Briscoe, No. 19 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ross Chastain, No. 1 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Daniel Suarez, No. 99 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Erik Jones, No. 43 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Ricky Stenhouse Jr., No. 47 HYAK Motorsports Chevrolet
Chase Elliott, No. 9 Hendrick Motorsports Chevrolet
Noah Gragson, No. 4 Front Row Motorsports Ford
Brad Keselowski, No. 6 Roush Fenway Keselowski Racing Ford
Christopher Bell, No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Ryan Preece, No. 60 RFK Racing Ford
Zane Smith, No. 38 Front Row Motorsports Ford 
Bubba Wallace, No. 23 23XI Racing Toyota
Tyler Reddick, No. 45 23XI Racing Toyota
Ty Gibbs, No. 54 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota
Austin Dillon, No. 3 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
Cole Custer, No. 41 Haas Factory Team Ford
John Hunter Nemechek, No. 42 Legacy Motor Club Toyota
Justin Haley, No. 7 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
Todd Gilliland, No. 34 Front Row Motorsports Ford 
Shane van Gisbergen, No. 88 Trackhouse Racing Chevrolet
Riley Herbst, No. 35 23XI Racing Toyota
Cody Ware, No. 51 Rick Ware Racing Ford
Ty Dillon, No. 10 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet
JJ Yeley, No. 44 NY Racing Team Chevrolet
Casey Mears, No. 66 Garage 66 Ford
Michael McDowell, No. 71 Spire Motorsports Chevrolet
AJ Allmendinger, No. 16 Kaulig Racing Chevrolet

TORONTO — The Los Angeles Dodgers are loaded with future Hall of Famers, MVPs, All-Stars and the greatest players on earth.

Yet, it was the heroics of 36-year-old journeyman Miguel Rojas who had the Dodgers celebrating wildly into the night Saturday, becoming the first team in 25 years to win back-to-back World Series championships.

The Dodgers pulled off a dramatic 5-4, 11-inning Game 7 victory over the Toronto Blue Jays on Will Smith’s two-out home run off Shane Bieber, but it was Rojas’ ninth-inning homer that will forever be remembered.

The stage was all set for the Blue Jays to end their 32-year drought when Rojas, who had not played in the World Series until Game 6, stepped to the plate with one out in the ninth inning and Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman on the mound.

Rojas, who had hit only two home runs since the All-Star break, worked Hoffman to a full count, and then sent Hoffman’s slider just over the left-field wall.

It was one of the most unlikely home runs in World Series by the man who is universally beloved in the Dodgers’ clubhouse for his veteran leadership and being a mentor for Dodgers shortstop Mookie Betts.

And, for an encore, when the Blue Jays rallied in the bottom of the ninth, loading the bases with one out, Rojas speared Daulton Vargas’ bouncer, and off-balance, threw a perfect strike to the plate, just nailing Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

Then, of course, there was Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who was the World Series MVP.

He won Games 2, 6 and 7, and after throwing 96 pitches in Game 6, and came back in relief in Game 7, closing it out with 2 ⅔ scoreless innings, going 5-1 this postseason.

“He just became the guy, the horse, kind of like everybody knew he was going to be,’’ Rojas said. “We got a lot of stats on Japan, that he did this for a long time there. We know he came to a different league to face different hitters and all that and last year was kind of an adjustment for him. And even though he was adjusting, he won the World Series, and he was the guy for us.

“This year he took it to a next level.’

The Dodgers are the first team since the 1998-2000 Yankees to win back-to-back titles, and the first National League team to pull off the feat since the Cincinnati Reds 1975-76 “Big Red Machine’’ team.

It was certainly a heart-breaker for the Blue Jays, who gave the Dodgers everything they had.

The sellout crowd of 44,713 had been screaming since Bo Bichette’s third-inning three-run homer that was about to be remembered in Blue Jays folklore, with the lead lasting right up to Rojas’ homer, the first game-tying, ninth-inning inning homer in World Series history.

Bichette’s homer not only knocked Dodgers starter Shohei Ohtani out of the game, yielding five hits and three runs in just 2 ⅓ innings, but brought back memories not only of Joe Carter’s World Series’ clinching homer in 1993, but also of Kirk Gibson’s pinch-hit homer for the Dodgers in the 1988 World Series.

Bichette wasn’t hobbling to the plate like Gibson, but he also was playing on just one good leg. He sustained a deep left knee sprain Sept. 6, and was out the rest of the regular season, the first two rounds of the playoffs, and not activated until the World Series.

He wasn’t going to let his free agency affect his decision to return.

Sure, he was taking perhaps a $200 million risk or greater by returning if he reinjured his knee, but this is the World Series.

This is the organization in which he has poured out his heart and soul. He wasn’t missing this.

Celebrate Dodgers’ championship with our book

“I mean, it’s the World Series, so none of that stuff really matters, to be honest,’ Bichette said. “I’ll put it all out there for this. So there was no tough decisions in it. I mean this is a no-brainer. …

“I’m super grateful that everybody believed in me to be able to come out here and produce. It’s been an incredible journey. I’ve obviously grown up here in so many different ways.

“I will look around the clubhouse and see what we did right and I’ll learn as much as I can from what this group does on its field, off the field, and see if we can do it again.’

It will be a painful winter for the Blue Jays, but when they sit back, they can be proud of what they accomplished.

“We’ve raised the standard and expectation of this organization a hell of a lot this year,’’ Blue Jays manager John Schneider said. “I think as a manager, you always want a team that any other team, any other coaching staff, any other person that is in the game you can look at a team and say, that’s what they stand for and that’s what is important to them, and I feel like we’ve accomplished that this year.

“So that’s what I look at. There’s so many moments throughout the regular season, postseason, that you’re going to remember forever, but the fact that this group, a huge group, players, coaches, front office, support staff, have taken the Toronto Blue Jays standard and expectation forward is something that I’m most proud about.

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TORONTO – Perhaps now we know why it took a quarter-century for a Major League Baseball team to repeat as World Series champions. Now that the Los Angeles Dodgers have done it, we understand how harrowing, hair-raising and humbling a feat it really is.

These Dodgers took their repeat bid to the limit – Game 7 of the World Series against a talented Toronto Blue Jays team, down to their final two outs and looking for all the world like those three-peating New York Yankees from 1998-2000 would maintain their status in the baseball pantheon.

And then Miguel Rojas stepped to the plate, a light-hitting utilityman when he climbed into the batter’s box, an October legend when he returned from his trip around the bases.

Rojas’s home run off Blue Jays closer Jeff Hoffman saved them from the brink, they survived a bases-loaded situation in the bottom of the ninth and their most underrated star, catcher Will Smith, finally delivered them the title so many expected.

His long home run to left field off Shane Bieber with two outs in the top of the 11th inning gave the Dodgers their first lead of the night, and Game 6 starter Yoshinobu Yamamoto stranded the tying run at third as the Dodgers secured a 5-4 victory and back-to-back championships.

It was their ninth title in franchise history, eighth since moving to Los Angeles and third in the past five years. Yet it also went from preordained – thanks to a superstar-studded roster and a total investment of half a billion dollars in payroll – to unlikely.

After all, it was the Blue Jays who brought a 3-2 World Series lead back to Canada, nine innings from their first title since 1993.

Instead, it was Smith, exhorting his baseball over the wall, screaming “Come on!” as it whistled over the wall.

And it was Yamamoto, completing one of the gutsiest pitching performances in baseball history: Winning Games 2 and 6 as a starter, then pitching 2 ⅔ innings of scoreless relief on zero days rest to win Game 7.

It was Randy Johnson who ended the Yankees’ dynasty by winning 2001 Game 6 and then coming back a night later to win Game 7 in relief. It took a similarly unbelievable act from Yamamoto to do what those Yankees could – go back-to-back.

— Gabe Lacques

Here’s how Game 7 unfolded in Toronto:

Will Smith home run puts Dodgers up in 11th

Shane Bieber came in to pitch the 11th for the Blue Jays and retired the first two batters, getting Shohei Ohtani to break his bat for the second out. Then, Dodgers catcher Will Smith launched a solo home run to left field, what could be a World Series-winning blast in Game 7.

Yoshinobu Yamamoto tosses scoreless 10th for Dodgers

Seranthony Dominguez escapes bases-loaded jam in 10th

A Mookie Betts walk, Max Muncy Single and Teoscar Hernandez walk loaded the bases with one out in the top of the 10th, but the Dodgers couldn’t scratch out a run.

Andy Pages makes unbelievable catch to send Game 7 to extra innings

TORONTO – This World Series Game 7 is going extra innings – and getting even more insane with every subsequent sequence. 

The Los Angeles Dodgers escaped a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the ninth when Andy Pages – inserted into the game for defensive purposes moments earlier – staggered into the left center field gap and hauled in Ernie Clement’s long fly ball that could have walked it off and crowned the Blue Jays. 

The twist: Left fielder Kiké Hernandez had designs on the ball, too. But Pages is 6-1. Hernandez is 5-11. Tall man wins – and barely hung on to the ball as Hernandez tumbled to the warning track. 

On to the 10th. 

Yoshinobu Yamamoto walks into a ninth-inning jam

Some 27 hours after starting the Dodgers’ Game 6 win, Yoshinobu Yamamoto is coming on in relief, replacing Blake Snell with runners on first and second and one out.

Miguel Rojas home run ties Game 7

TORONTO – Miguel Rojas, the afterthought addition to a struggling Los Angeles Dodgers lineup, hit one of the biggest World Series homers in franchise history to rescue the Dodgers – for now – in the top of the ninth in World Series Game 7. 

With the Toronto Blue Jays just two outs away from clinching their first World Series championship since 1993, Rojas hammered a Jeff Hoffman pitch 387 feet out to left field, tying the winner-take-all battle 4-4 heading to the bottom of the ninth. 

You like unlikely heroes? Welcome to Rojas. The valued utilityman in his second stint with the Dodgers hit just seven home runs this season. 

He only cracked the World Series lineup because center fielder Andy Pages was struggling so mightily, the Dodgers opted to move Tommy Edman to the outfield and drop Rojas at the bottom of the lineup. 

Goodness, did he deliver, crushing a hanging Hoffman splitter out to left. Blake Snell will now attempt to suppress the Blue Jays in the bottom of the ninth. 

Max Muncy home run makes it 4-3

The Dodgers cut the Blue Jays’ lead back to one run on Max Muncy’s solo homer in the top of the eighth off Trey Yesavage.

Blue Jays get another huge double play to end seventh

TORONTO – Helmets are flying, rookies are flourishing, the first baseman is performing acrobatics and Rogers Centre is roaring. 

The Toronto Blue Jays are six outs away from their first World Series since 1993. 

Andrés Giménez’s double cashed in Ernie Clement with a crucial insurance run, Clement tossing his helmet to round third and sprawl across home plate as the Blue Jays took a 4-2 lead over the defending champion Dodgers in Game 7 of the World Series. 

Rookie Trey Yesavage made the margin stand up in his first relief appearance of his very young major league career. He walked Shohei Ohtani leading off the seventh, then retired the dangerous Will Smith on a fly ball to center field. 

Then, he induced a ground ball from All-Star Freddie Freeman. Vladimir Guerrero fielded the ball, made a difficult throw to second for one out and then scampered back to the bag to complete the gorgeous 3-6-3 double play. 

Yesavage raised both arms in triumph. Guerrero jogged off the field, screaming to the heavens. 

They’re drawing ever closer in Toronto, a city ready to erupt. 

Blue Jays get crucial insurance run: Toronto 4, Dodgers 2 through six

Ernie Clement led off the bottom of the sixth with a single against Tyler Glasnow and then stole second. Andres Gimenez scorched a run-scoring double to right, extending Toronto’s lead to 4-2 with nobody out. But Glasnow got George Springer, Nathan Lukes and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. to escape further damage and send Game 7 to the seventh inning.

How to watch World Series Game 7: Dodgers-Blue Jays stream

TV channel: FOX
Live stream: Watch on Fubo

Watch World Series Game 7 LIVE on Fubo

Max Scherzer steps aside, Blue Jays lead 3-1 halfway through

TORONTO — Max Scherzer exited to a roaring standing ovation. Louis Varland made sure the Blue Jays did not stay with him too long. 

In a pivotal fifth-inning sequence in Game 7 of the World Series, Varland retired Will Smith and Freddie Freeman on fly balls to center field and the Blue Jays retained their 3-1 lead at the game’s halfway point. 

Scherzer, the 41-year-old aiming to win his third World Series championship, was pulled with one out in the fifth after giving up a single to No. 9 batter Miguel Rojas. 

Varland, setting a major league record with his 15th appearance this postseason, gave up a single to Shohei Ohtani, putting the tying runs aboard. 

But he got the dangerous Smith and Freeman on fly balls, pumping his fist and heading toward the dugout even before the ball settled in center fielder Daulton Varsho’s mitt. 

Benches clear in World Series Game 7

TORONTO – The World Series championship is at stake in Game 7, high enough stakes already. Yet that alone wasn’t enough to prevent a benches-clearing incident in the bottom of the fourth inning. 

Dodgers reliever Justin Wrobleski hit Andrés Giménez with a pitch with two outs, Giménez immediately dropping his bat and complaining to the lefty. 

And an already passively tense Game 7 suddenly turned aggressive. 

The benches cleared, and several shoving matches broke out, as Dodgers first baseman Max Muncy restrained Wrobleski and the Blue Jays hopped over the third base dugout railing to join the fray. 

Wrobleski’s plunking of Giménez marked the sixth time Blue Jays batters had been hit in the World Series; the Dodgers have absorbed two hit-by-pitches. Giménez was also hit by lefty reliever Evan Dreyer in Game 4. 

The tension between the dugouts had been brewing since the bottom of the first inning, when Dodgers starting pitcher and leadoff batter Shohei Ohtani took almost the entire between-innings break resting in the dugout. He emerged with about 40 seconds left and the countdown clock stopped. 

After that half inning, Blue Jays manager John Schneider conferred at length with homeplate umpire Jordan Baker. After Ohtani batted in the third, he remained in the dugout from the 3:10 mark at the coundown’s start until 17 seconds remained. 

The crowd booed. Homeplate umpire Jordan Baker said something to Ohtani. The clock stopped. As Springer stepped in, it’d been 4 minutes, 20 seconds since a pitch was last thrown. In a mid-inning interview with Fox Sports, Schneider called the delay ‘egregious’ and that the umpires said they’d discuss the delay with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts 

The point became moot when the Blue Jays chased Ohtani, the pitcher,  from the game on Bo Bichette’s three-run homer in the third.

Louis Varland was warming in the Blue Jays bullpen, readying to relieve Max Scherzer. He dropped everything and led his bullpen mates to the infield. 

Both benches were warned and the next batter, George Springer, drilled a ball off Wrobleski’s foot, to the delight of the crowd. Wrobleski stayed in the game. 

Daulton Varsho catch saves Blue Jays but Dodgers make it 3-1

TORONTO – Max Scherzer needed gallant efforts from his defense to escape the top of the fourth with the lead in World Series Game 7. 

The 41-year-old found trouble his third time through the Dodgers order, giving up a double and single to Will Smith and Freddie Freeman, respectively, to start the inning, and a one-out walk to Max Muncy loaded the bases. 

But center fielder Daulton Varsho made a remarkable catch on Teoscar Hernandez’s 109.8 mph drive to center, snaring the ball just off the turf for a sacrifice fly and a huge second out. 

Vladimir Guerrero Jr., the first baseman far more spry than the casual observer imagined, then launched his body into foul ground to snare Tommy Edman’s soft liner, ending the inning. 

It was a remarkable risk-reward play by Varsho: Miss it, and the game is tied, a runner at third and just one out. But Varsho did not miss, and Scherzer escaped the fourth with the lead. 

Bo Bichette home run knocks out Ohtani: Blue Jays 3, Dodgers 0

TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani is not a mythical figure, but rather a real, live human being who simply does remarkable things on the baseball field. 

And the Toronto Blue Jays did not hesitate to ambush him in Game 7 of the World Series. 

Pitching on three days’ rest for the first time in his career, Ohtani looked wobbly from the start, and then Bo Bichette applied a lightning-fast knockout blow: A first-pitch, three-run homer that electrified Rogers Centre, gave the Blue Jays a 3-0 lead and a massive edge in this call-to-arms Game 7. 

It exited the bat at 110 mph, Rogers Centre reaching an ear-splitting noise level before Bichette’s first career postseason home run settled 442 feet away from home plate. The longtime Blue Jays cornerstone, hobbled by a knee injury that robbed him of the first two rounds of the playoffs, enjoyed the view, taking a few steps down the first base line before beginning his trot. 

In a game of leverage, the Blue Jays have a massive advantage: Not only are they up 3-0, but starter Max Scherzer has required just 28 pitches to complete three innings. The Dodgers, meanwhile, burned Justin Wrobleski, their best lefty of late, to take after Ohtani in the third. 

Six innings to go. But a massive blast as the Blue Jays pursue their first title since 1993. 

The home run gives Bichette a strong chance at World Series MVP honors. He’s batting .350 (7 for 20) with a .958 OPS. And for now, he owns the biggest hit in the Fall Classic. 

Shohei Ohtani escapes bases-loaded jam in second inning

TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani survived the top of the second inning. Yet he can’t be long for this Game 7 of the World Series. Can he? 

The Blue Jays loaded the bases on the Dodgers’ two-way superstar, forced him to throw 25 pitches, coaxed pitching coach Mark Prior out of the dugout for a calm-down session. Yet much like the late innings of Game 6, they could not cash in. 

Ohtani summoned his reserves to fire a 99-mph fastball past Andrés Giménez, leaving the bases loaded and Game 7 scoreless through two innings. 

The Blue Jays must be encouraged by how vulnerable Ohtani looks, pitching on three days’ rest. Yet also thoroughly frustrated they are not leading this game. Bo Bichette drew a leadoff walk and Addison Barger drilled a single to right field. After a pair of popouts, an Ernie Clement single loaded the bases – but Bichette’s bum knee prevented him from scoring on the play. 

Given a reprieve, Ohtani blew a 1-2 pitch past Giménez. Threat over – but one team concerned, the other frustrated. 

Max Scherzer quickly through two innings

TORONTO – Shohei Ohtani wobbled just a bit in his first inning of work in Game 7 of the World Series, but the Blue Jays could not make him fall down. 

George Springer rifled a leadoff single against Ohtani, but the two-way superstar rallied to strike out Nathan Lukes on a split-finger fastball and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. looking on a full-count, 99.6 mph fastball. 

The Blue Jays sent Springer on the pitch, a dubious decision given Springer is hobbled by both knee and side ailments and it wasn’t too unlikely Ohtani would register a strikeout. Guerrero was caught looking and Springer stopped running two-thirds of the way there, perhaps caught off guard by homeplate umpire Adrian Johnson’s deliberate strike three call. 

Meanwhile, Max Scherzer needed just 10 pitches to retire the side in each of the first two innings. Game 7 remains scoreless. 

Shohei Ohtani leads off Game 7 with a hit

Shohei Ohtani singled to center field to lead off the top of the first against Max Scherzer and moved to second on a fielder’s choice. But Scherzer got Freddie Freeman to fly out to center and Mookie Betts to ground out, stranding Ohtani in scoring position.

World Series MVP odds

Odds via BetMGM as of 8:25 p.m. ET, Friday

Vladimir Guerrero Jr.: +100
Shohei Ohtani: +110
Yoshinobu Yamamoto: +500

Dodgers lineup today

Starting pitcher: Shohei Ohtani

Shohei Ohtani (L) P
Will Smith (R) C
Freddie Freeman (L) 1B
Mookie Betts (R) SS
Max Muncy (L) 3B
Teoscar Hernández (R) RF
Tommy Edman (S) CF
Enrique Hernández (R) LF
Miguel Rojas (R) 2B

Blue Jays lineup today

Starting pitcher: Max Scherzer

George Springer (R) DH
Nathan Lukes (L) LF
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. (R) 1B
Bo Bichette (R) 2B
Addison Barger (L) RF
Alejandro Kirk (R) C
Daulton Varsho (L) CF
Ernie Clement (R) 3B
Andrés Giménez (L) SS

Game 7 could define legacies for these players

TORONTO — For better or worse, Game 7 of this World Series won’t just be about determining a champion between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays.It will also determine, for better or worse, right or wrong, the legacies of the participants.

Alas, today’s ring culture can make perception reality. With that, here are five players whose reps may be burnished or burned a bit once the first champagne cork hits the floor:

Shohei Ohtani
Max Scherzer
Vladimir Guerrero Jr.
Mookie Betts
Trey Yesavage

– Gabe Lacques

Odds to win World Series Game 7

How many World Series have gone to Game 7?

Overall, there have been 40 Game 7s in World Series history, including a rare Game 8 in 1912 because of a tie in the second game of the series.

Here’s a look at the World Series Game 7s from the past 30 years:

Oct. 30, 2019 — Nationals 6, Astros 2
Nov. 1, 2017 — Astros 5, Dodgers 1
Nov. 2, 2016 — Cubs 8, Indians 7 (10 innings)
Oct. 29, 2014 — Giants 3, Royals 2
Oct. 28, 2011 — Cardinals 6, Rangers 2
Oct. 27, 2002 — Angels 4, Giants 1
Nov. 4, 2001 — Diamondbacks 3, Yankees 2
Oct. 26, 1997 — Marlins 3, Indians 2 (11 innings)
Oct. 27, 1991 — Twins 1, Braves 0 (10 innings)
Oct. 25, 1987 — Twins 4, Cardinals 2
Oct. 27, 1986 — Mets 8, Red Sox 5
Oct. 27, 1985 — Royals 11, Cardinals 0

What team has the most World Series titles?

Yankees – 27
Cardinals – 11
Athletics – 9
Red Sox – 9
Dodgers – 8
Giants – 8

Max Scherzer World Series wins

Three-time Cy Young winner Max Scherzer has won two World Series titles in his career: 2019 with the Washington Nationals and 2023 with the Texas Rangers. The 41-year-old also appeared in the 2012 Fall Classic with the Detroit Tigers and is the first player in history to pitch for four different teams in the World Series.

Vladimir Guerrero Jr. rolls up to Game 7 in Marie-Philip Poulin jersey

World Series winners by year

2024: Dodgers
2023: Rangers
2022: Astros
2021: Braves
2020: Dodgers
2019: Nationals
2018: Red Sox
2017: Astros
2016: Cubs
2015: Royals
2014: Giants
2013: Red Sox
2012: Giants
2011: Cardinals
2010: Giants

World Series schedule 2025

Game 1: Blue Jays 11, Dodgers 4
Game 2: Dodgers 5, Blue Jays 1
Game 3: Dodgers 6, Blue Jays 5 (18 innings)
Game 4: Blue Jays 6, Dodgers 2
Game 5: Blue Jays 6, Dodgers 1
Game 6: Dodgers 3, Blue Jays 1
Game 7: Nov. 1 in Toronto – 8 p.m. ET/5 p.m. PDT

Dodgers vs Blue Jays Game 6 highlights

How many games are in the World Series?

The World Series is a best-of-seven series, meaning that a team needs to win four games in order to be crowned champions.

Who won the World Series last year?

The Los Angeles Dodgers won the 2024 World Series in five games over the New York Yankees.

Alejandro Kirk height

Blue Jays catcher Alejandro Kirk is 5 feet, 8 inches tall. A two-time All-Star, the 26-year-old has five home runs and 13 RBIs in 17 games this postseason.

Toronto Blue Jays World Series appearances

This is the Blue Jays’ third appearance in the World Series, winning championships in 1992 and 1993.

How many World Series have the Dodgers won?

Since the first World Series in 1903, the Dodgers have carved their name in history, claiming eight titles in their franchise history. The Dodgers’ title wins came in 1955, 1959, 1963, 1965, 1981, 1988, 2000 and 2024.

When was the last time the Blue Jays won the World Series?

Toronto’s last World Series championship came in 1993, the second of their back-to-back titles.

Shohei Ohtani contract

Shohei Ohtani signed a 10-year, $700 million contract with the Dodgers prior to the 2024 season. The largest contract in the history of North American pro sports when he signed in, the deal defers $680 million of the package to payments that start in 2034.

Dodgers World Series roster 2025

Pitchers (12): LHP Anthony Banda, LHP Jack Dreyer, RHP Tyler Glasnow, RHP Edgardo Henriquez, LHP Clayton Kershaw, RHP Will Klein, RHP Roki Sasaki, RHP Emmet Sheehan, LHP Blake Snell, RHP Blake Treinen, LHP Justin Wrobleski, RHP Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

Position, two-way players (14): SS Mookie Betts, OF Alex Call, OF Justin Dean, INF/OF Tommy Edman, 1B Freddie Freeman, INF/OF Kiké Hernández, OF Teoscar Hernández, INF/OF Hyeseong Kim, 3B Max Muncy, DH/P Shohei Ohtani, OF Andy Pages, INF Miguel Rojas, C Ben Rortvedt, C Will Smith.

Blue Jays World Series roster

Pitchers (12): RHP Chris Bassitt, RHP Shane Bieber, RHP Seranthony Dominguez, RHP Braydon Fisher, LHP Mason Fluharty, RHP Kevin Gausman, RHP Jeff Hoffman, LHP Eric Lauer, LHP Brendon Little, RHP Max Scherzer, RHP Louis Varland, RHP Trey Yesavage.

Position players (14): C Tyler Heineman, C Alejandro Kirk, INF/OF Addison Barger, INF Bo Bichette, INF Ernie Clement, INF Ty France, INF Andrés Giménez, INF Vladimir Guerrero Jr., INF Isiah Kiner-Falefa, OF Nathan Lukes, OF Davis Schneider, OF George Springer, OF Myles Straw, OF Daulton Varsho.

Congratulations are in order to the Los Angeles Dodgers for winning the World Series. Now, what are you going to do for an encore?

There were plenty of surprises this past season, so success in 2025 doesn’t necessarily translate into being a playoff contender in 2026. But it’s as good a place as any to start.

While acknowledging that free agent signings, trades and injuries will certainly shift the relative strengths of the clubs between now and the start of the regular season, we’re diving right in with a way-too-early look at which teams should be poised to compete in 2026 and which ones figure to scuffle.

Chance for repeat/three-peat?

Los Angeles Dodgers: You see stars everywhere you look in L.A. Sure, they flex their financial muscle to attract the brightest and the best, but they’re also very good at finding the right complementary pieces. As long as Shohei Ohtani is around, the Dodgers will be tough to beat. (And he’s under contract through 2033.)

Top contenders

Seattle Mariners: The M’s made it to the ALCS with the help of free agents Josh Naylor and Eugenio Suarez, but the key cogs on the roster – C Cal Raleigh, CF Julio Rodriguez and starters Bryan Woo, Logan Gilbert, George Kirby and Luis Castillo – will all be back. That’s a solid foundation, and along with a fantastic bullpen, that elusive World Series appearance definitely appears within reach.

New York Yankees: Two-time (perhaps three-time?) MVP Aaron Judge anchors an offense that will look to fill Cody Bellinger’s spot in free agency. Starting rotation should be among MLB’s best, especially if Gerrit Cole can return from Tommy John surgery in the second half.

Atlanta Braves: The Braves hardly ever put their optimal squad on the field at the same time all season. OF Ronald Acuña and SP Spencer Strider were sidelined early with injuries, OF Jurickson Profar sat out the middle part with a suspension. SP Spencer Schwellenbach and 3B Austin Riley missed time in the second half. Just a little better luck and the Braves are back with a vengeance.

Solid foundation

Boston Red Sox: With ace Garrett Crochet and top prospects OF Roman Anthony, IF Marcelo Mayer and 2B Kristian Campbell, the future looks bright in Boston. The biggest unknown is what happens with 3B Alex Bregman, who can opt out of the final year of his contract.

Philadelphia Phillies: Was 2025 the final hurrah for this version of the Phils? DH Kyle Schwarber, C J.T. Realmuto and SP Ranger Suarez are free agents. Bryce Harper, Trea Turner and Aaron Nola are entering their age-33 seasons. Ace Zack Wheeler had shoulder surgery in September and may not be ready for opening day.

Detroit Tigers: They cashed in some chips to bolster the postseason roster, but there are several impact prospects on the verge of the majors who could help keep the Tigers competitive for years to come. Plus, any team with Tarik Skubal at the top of the rotation must be taken seriously.

Baltimore Orioles: A new manager and (hopefully) better health should make for a bounce-back season in Charm City. Even better if ownership decides to loosen the purse strings for an impact free agent or two. Trevor Rogers and Kyle Bradish front a pitching staff that should be the focal point of offseason upgrades.

Cleveland Guardians: Jose Ramirez is a rock of consistency in all facets of the game. Gavin Williams and Tanner Bibee are part of a pitching pipeline that seemingly never ends. We saw a glimpse of the future in this year’s playoffs when young OFs George Valera and Chase DeLauter got their feet wet.

We have questions

Houston Astros: We saw just how important a full season from OF/DH Yordan Alvarez is to the Astros’ success when they failed to make the playoffs for the first time since 2016. Father Time is an obstacle for over-30 vets Jose Altuve, Carlos Correa, Christian Walker and Josh Hader. While Hunter Brown is a legit ace, losing Framber Valdez to free agency will create a huge hole in the starting rotation.

Arizona Diamondbacks: Led by OF Corbin Carroll, 2B Ketel Marte and SS Geraldo Perdomo, the D’backs have an offense that can keep them competitive. The pitching staff, however, is filled with question marks. Corbin Burnes was supposed to be the anchor, but he’s recovering from Tommy John surgery and may not pitch again until late 2026.

Kansas City Royals: The top of the order is reason for excitement with MVP candidate Bobby Witt Jr. and lefty power bats Vinnie Pasquantino and Jac Caglianone. Depth is a major concern, as is ace Cole Ragans’ ability to bounce back from a torn rotator cuff that limited him to just 13 starts in 2025.

Tampa Bay Rays: The Rays took a step backward this season, but there’s optimism surrounding a budding superstar in 3B Junior Caminero (45 HR, 110 RBI). He may not be able to replicate those power numbers – and the offense could struggle overall – when the team moves back to Tropicana Field, but an above-average pitching staff will welcome the change.

San Francisco Giants: GM Buster Posey made a bold move in plucking Tony Vitello from the college ranks to be his new manager. The bold move at midseason to acquire Rafael Devers didn’t quite work out, but middle-of-the-order sluggers don’t grow on trees. The Giants may have the widest range of outcomes of any major league team in 2026.

Needs improvement

Athletics: The first season in their temporary Sacramento home provided plenty of surprises – among them a seven-win jump from 2024. Emergence of rookies Nick Kurtz and Jacob Wilson makes the offense just good enough to be dangerous. But the pitching …

St. Louis Cardinals: The Chaim Bloom era begins in earnest as he takes over baseball operations from John Mozeilak. His first order of business will likely be to find a trade partner and deal veteran 3B Nolan Arenado. Second order of business is to find more power for an offense that had fewer homers than any team except the Pirates.

Minnesota Twins: Jettisoning more than half the major league roster at the trade deadline was certainly a choice. Now the Twins have to find a way to reload, most likely without making a big splash in free agency. CF Byron Buxton is the only true star, but his career is peppered with an assortment of injuries. Same with 3B Royce Lewis. At least the pitching staff should be able to keep games close.

Still a ways off

Los Angeles Angels: Mike Trout remains stuck on a perpetual merry-go-round as he enters his 16th MLB season, still without a postseason win. SS Zach Neto and OF Jo Adell are exciting, yet flawed players. But as usual, Trout just needs more help, and the organization never seems to give him any.

Chicago White Sox: After several years of swapping veterans for prospects, it’s time to start seeing some of those moves pay off. C Kyle Teel and 2B Chase Meidroth are part of the first wave, along with first-round SS Colson Montgomery.

Washington Nationals: The youth movement continues with the hiring of 33-year-old Blake Butera to take over as manager. OF James Wood has superstar potential, while SS CJ Abrams has shown flashes but has lacked consistency. Pitching is the biggest issue; only the Rockies had a worse ERA in 2025.

Pittsburgh Pirates: Isn’t Paul Skenes amazing? If he only had some support from the offense. And from ownership,

TORONTO — The World Series championship is at stake in Game 7, high enough stakes already. Yet that alone wasn’t enough to prevent a benches-clearing incident in the bottom of the fourth inning. 

Dodgers reliever Justin Wrobleski hit Andrés Giménez with a pitch on a 2-2 count, Giménez immediately dropping his bat and complaining to the lefty. 

And an already passively tense Game 7 suddenly turned aggressive. 

The benches cleared, and several shoving matches broke out, as Dodgers third baseman Max Muncy restrained Wrobleski and the Blue Jays hopped over the third base dugout railing to join the fray. 

Louis Varland was warming in the Blue Jays bullpen, readying to relieve Max Scherzer. He dropped everything and led his bullpen mates to the infield. 

Both benches were warned and the next batter, George Springer, drilled a ball off Wrobleski’s foot, to the delight of the crowd. 

While the Dodgers-Blue Jays Game 7 incident grabbed the viewing public’s attention, the tension between the dugouts had been brewing since the bottom of the first inning, when Dodgers starting pitcher and leadoff batter Shohei Ohtani took almost the entire between-innings break resting in the dugout, causing manager John Schneider to complain to home plate umpire Jordan Baker.

Ohtani emerged with about 40 seconds left and the countdown clock stopped. 

After that half inning, Schneider initially conferred at length with Baker. After Ohtani batted in the third, he remained in the dugout from the 3:10 mark at the countdown’s start until 17 seconds remained. 

The crowd booed. Baker said something to Ohtani. The clock stopped. 

As Springer stepped in, it’d been 4 minutes, 20 seconds since a pitch was last thrown. In a mid-inning interview with Fox Sports, Schneider called the delay ‘egregious’ and that the umpires said they’d discuss the delay with Dodgers manager Dave Roberts. 

The point became moot when the Blue Jays chased Ohtani, the pitcher, from the game on Bo Bichette’s three-run homer in the third.

Ohtani was pitching on three days’ rest for the first time in his career

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