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The World Series is headed to a decisive Game 7 following the Dodgers kept alive their title defense dreams alive Friday night with a 3–1 victory over the Blue Jays in Game 6.

The reigning title holders ended Toronto’s ninth-inning rally with a thrilling final double play, silencing a Rogers Centre audience that had arrived prepared to cheer the team's championship in over three decades.

Game 6 Recap

Los Angeles generated all of their scoring in the third inning. With two away, Shohei Ohtani was intentionally walked before Will Smith doubled to left field to score Tommy Edman. Freddie Freeman earned a base on balls to load the bases, and Mookie Betts delivered with a two-RBI hit to left, handing the Dodgers a three-run advantage.

That key hit snapped a playoff dry spell and rekindled the title holders' aspirations of becoming the initial back-to-back World Series winners since the Yankees won three consecutive from 1998 to 2000.

Mound Battle

Kevin Gausman had been dominant to that stage, striking out six of the first seven Dodgers he faced. He struck out 8 through three innings, matching a Fall Classic record, but the third-frame rally proved costly. The Blue Jays' star ended with eight strikeouts over six frames, yielding three runs on three hits and two free passes.

Yamamoto, meanwhile, was solid again under stress. The righty outpitched his counterpart for the second time in a seven days, allowing a single run on five hits over six innings with six strikeouts. He boosted his record to four wins and one loss this postseason with a 1.56 ERA.

The lone score against him resulted from George Springer two-out base hit in the third inning, driving in Barger, who had hit a double earlier in the inning. That single offered a momentary lift in his return to the lineup after sitting out two games with an oblique injury.

Relief Heroics

From there, the Los Angeles relievers carried the load. First-year pitcher Wrobleski escaped a tight spot in the seventh, and fellow rookie Sasaki pitched into the ninth before plunking Kirk to start the inning. Addison Barger followed with a two-base hit that became wedged under the outfield wall, forcing base runners to hold at second and third base.

Glasnow, the Dodgers' Game 3 starter, came on in a relief role and induced a pop fly before Andrés Giménez hit a line drive to left field. Enrique Hernández made the catch and threw to second to double off the runner, sealing the victory and giving the pitcher his first-ever successful save.

Next Up: Game 7

The best-of-seven now comes down to one game. Scherzer will take the mound for the Blue Jays, becoming the sole active hurler to start multiple seventh games of the World Series after doing so in the 2019 season with Washington. The veteran inked a one-year deal to chase one more title and has been a outspoken presence throughout this postseason.

The Dodgers, aiming to be the sport's initial repeat title winners in nearly a quarter-century, are projected to lean on their two-way star for a brief appearance.