Blue Jays whip L.A. Dodgers 6-1, now a win away from World Series title

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The Toronto Blue Jays are a win away from their third World Series title.

A historic performance from rookie pitcher Trey Yesavage and back-to-back first-inning homers from Davis Schneider and Vladimir Guerrero Jr. powered the Jays to a 6-1 Game 5 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers Wednesday at Dodger Stadium.

Yesavage went seven innings, allowing just three hits and one run, and striking out 12 to give the Jays a 3-2 lead in their best-of-seven series with the Dodgers.

Blake Snell took the loss for the Dodgers, allowing six hits and five earned runs in 6 2/3 innings.

Game 6 of the series goes Friday (5 p.m.) in Toronto.

Schneider homered on the first pitch of the game from Snell, ripping a 373-foot shot to left field. Schneider was filling in for usual leadoff man George Springer, who is battling an injury.

Two pitches later, Guerrero continued his stellar 2025 post-season with his eighth post-season homer, a 394-foot blast to left field off Snell.

The Jays duo are the first players ever to hit back-to-back homers to open a World Series game. Schneider’s first-pitch home run was the first in the World Series since Derek Jeter performed the feat in 2000.

Los Angeles got on the board in the bottom of the third, when Hernandez homered off Yesavage to pull the Dogers within 2-1.

The Jays quickly got that run back in their half of the fourth, when Daulton Varsho tripled and was driven in by Ernie Clement’s sacrifice fly.

Through five innings, Yesavage had 10 strikeouts, whiffing each of the Dodgers starting lineup at least once.

The relentless Toronto attack continued in the top of the seventh, when they added two more runs and Snell exited after tossing 116 pages.

Addison Barger scored on a wild pitch and Bo Bichette drove in Andres Gimenez to extend the Toronto lead to 5-1.

Yesavage finished his night with 12 K’s, the most ever in a World Series game by a rookie (breaking a record set by Dodgers legend Don Newcombe in 1949). He threw a career-high 104 pitches.

In the eighth, with Anthony Banda on the mound for the Dodgers, the Jays added another run. Ernie Clement extended his post-game hitting streak to 11 games with a single, advanced to second on a wild pitch and eventually scored on a single from Isiah Kiner-Falefa.

Seranthony Dominguez came in for Yesavage and tossed a scoreless eighth, puncuated by a great defensive play from Guerrero, who snared a hot shot grounder from Shohei Ohtani and recorded the final out of the inning unassisted.

Hoffman struck out a pair of batters in the ninth to close the game.

NOTES: Ohtani was 0-for-4 on the night… If Clement can extend his hitting streak one more game, he will tie the team record set by Pat Borders in 1992… Guerrero now has eight homers and 15 RBI during this post-season run… The Jays last won the Series in 1993, their second of back-to-back titles.