Blue Jays Dominate Dodgers in Game 5, Take Series Lead Behind Stellar Yesavage Performance
LOS ANGELES, CA – The Toronto Blue Jays seized a 3-2 series lead in the World Series with a commanding 6-1 victory over the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 5 on Wednesday night.A historic start, fueled by back-to-back home runs, and a dominant pitching performance from rookie Bobby Yesavage propelled the Blue Jays to within one win of their first championship since 1993.
Toronto exploded in the first inning, with Davis Schneider launching a leadoff home run on the very first pitch from Dodgers starter Blake Snell. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. followed immediately with another home run, marking the first time in World Series history a team has opened a game with consecutive blasts. guerrero Jr.’s home run also tied the record for the second-moast postseason home runs in MLB history, with his eighth.
Yesavage, making a crucial start, delivered seven walkless innings, stifling the Dodgers’ offense. Blue Jays manager John Schneider lauded the rookie, stating, “Ancient stuff. His slider and split were electric. He was in the zone tonight, getting swing-and-misses.”
The Dodgers managed to get on the board in the third inning when Kike Hernandez hit a solo home run off Yesavage, briefly energizing the Dodger Stadium crowd. Though, Toronto quickly responded in the fourth. Daulton Varsho tripled on a line drive to right field – following a risky play by Teoscar Hernandez – and scored on Ernie Clement’s sacrifice fly, restoring a two-run lead.
Snell, despite the early damage, battled through seven innings, throwing 116 pitches - the third-most of his career – before exiting with runners on base. reliever Edgardo Henriquez inherited a jam and ultimately allowed a run to score on a wild pitch, extending Toronto’s lead to 4-1.bo Bichette then singled to right, bringing in another run and making it 5-1.
Toronto added another run in the eighth inning, with Clement singling and scoring on a single by Isiah Kiner-Falefa, pushing the score to 6-1 and drawing boos from the home crowd.
While Freddie Freeman and Teoscar Hernandez hit solo home runs in the ninth, the Dodgers’ late rally proved insufficient.Shohei Ohtani fielded a runner at first base to end the eighth.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts acknowledged his team’s struggles.”Giving up the basics changes the lineup and affects the game going forward,” Roberts told reporters. “Blake pitched a really great game, but giving up bases and not converting outs came back to haunt us tonight… right now, we’re in the elimination game, and we need to wipe the slate clean and find a way to win game six.” He added, “We’re not doing a good job. We have to make adjustments, come in fresh and compete. That’s all we can do.” Roberts also praised Yesavage,calling his performance “very poise… No panic… very remarkable.”
Game 6 is scheduled for Toronto, with Kevin Gausman set to start for the Blue Jays against Yoshinobu Yamamoto for the Dodgers – with Ohtani likely to be used as a reliever. A Blue Jays victory would secure their first World Series title in three decades. Schneider expressed confidence, saying, “Giving the ball to Kevin Gausman for Game 6 is awesome. It’s another tough match with Yamamoto, but it was a great team win.”
