The Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays are set to reignite one of baseball’s freshest rivalries with a three-game series starting Monday at Rogers Centre. Their last face-off? The 2025 World Series Game 7 — a nail-biter that went into extra innings, ending with the Dodgers clinching the title in dramatic fashion.
Dodgers Look Like the Team to Beat Again
Los Angeles is off to a blazing start this season, and the numbers back it up. Through nine games, the Dodgers boast a 7-2 record with a hefty +20 run differential. That’s no fluke. Their offense is clicking, batting .285 with an on-base percentage of .352 and slugging .485 — numbers well above the league average.
The pitching staff adds to their strength. Shohei Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, and Tyler Glasnow have been pitching like aces. The bullpen, which struggled in recent seasons, looks more stable with Edwin Díaz anchoring the late innings. The Dodgers’ depth means they don’t have any glaring holes right now.
But there’s a wrinkle. Mookie Betts, one of the team’s MVP-caliber stars, landed on the injured list Sunday with a strained oblique. He joins Tommy Edman, Enrique Hernández, and Blake Snell on the shelf. Snell’s absence cuts into the rotation’s depth, but the Dodgers still have plenty of talent ready to step up.
Blue Jays Struggling to Find Their Groove
Toronto started the season with a sweep of the Athletics. But the wins weren’t pretty — two of the three required walk-off efforts, and one needed extra innings. Things have since fallen apart. The Blue Jays have dropped five of their last six games. That stretch included a home series against the Colorado Rockies — a team that was historically bad last year — where Toronto lost two of three.
Then they got swept by the Chicago White Sox, another team with a poor record last season.
For a team that made the World Series just months ago, that’s a rough patch. Injuries aren’t helping. Starting pitchers Shane Bieber and Trey Yesavage are sidelined, along with fellow starters Cody Ponce and José Berríos. Catcher Alejandro Kirk is also out with a fractured thumb. These absences weaken the Blue Jays’ rotation and lineup, making their challenge against the Dodgers even tougher.
Pitching Matchups Set the Tone for Series
The opener Monday night features a lefty duel that’s loaded with storylines. Dodgers’ Justin Wrobleski will start against former LA pitcher Max Scherzer, now with the Blue Jays. Wrobleski was recently added to the Dodgers’ rotation after working in relief early this season. He’s familiar with the Blue Jays crowd — last season, he was central to a benches-clearing brawl in Game 7 of the World Series. Wrobleski isn’t fazed. “They’re gonna boo me and it’s gonna be really awesome,” he said. “That’s what makes sports great.”
Scherzer, a future Hall of Famer, delivered a strong season debut, allowing just one run over six innings with four strikeouts. At 41, he’s still pitching with passion, telling reporters after the World Series clincher, “I never thought I could love baseball this much.”
Lineups Adjusted for Injuries and Strategy
The Dodgers lineup will look different without Betts. Manager Dave Roberts is juggling his roster to keep key players fresh for the series’ middle and late games. Will Smith, the Dodgers’ regular catcher, is sitting out Monday’s opener to rest, with plans to catch Yamamoto and Ohtani later in the series. That means Hyeseong Kim makes his first start at shortstop, and Dalton Rushing gets the nod behind the plate again.
The rest of the Dodgers lineup includes Ohtani as designated hitter, Kyle Tucker in right, Freddie Freeman at first base, and Teoscar Hernández in left. Max Muncy and Andy Pages round out the infield, with Alex Freeland in center field. The team has mixed in some lefties at the top of the order, moving Freeman up to the No. 3 spot and Hernández into cleanup.
On the Blue Jays’ side, George Springer leads off and serves as designated hitter. He had 32 home runs last season and was a top MVP candidate in the American League. Vladimir Guerrero Jr., one of the league’s brightest young stars, hits cleanup. The lineup also features Davis Schneider in left and Kazuma Okamoto at third base. Toronto’s offensive firepower is significant, but questions linger about their consistency and health.
What to Watch in This Rematch
There’s more than just baseball on the line here. The Dodgers and Blue Jays are rekindling a rivalry that exploded during last year’s World Series — a series that had everything: extra innings, wild swings, and heated moments that spilled onto the field. Expect the energy at Rogers Centre to be electric, with the crowd still buzzing from that epic conclusion.
For the Dodgers, this series is a chance to prove last year’s title wasn’t a fluke. For the Blue Jays, it’s an opportunity to shake off a rough stretch and show they’re still contenders. Injuries and recent form favor the Dodgers, but baseball is unpredictable. One game can change momentum, and both teams have plenty of talent ready to make a difference.
Monday’s opener pits two pitchers with plenty of history and firepower, setting the stage for a series loaded with tension and high stakes. The Blue Jays will need to find answers fast if they want to challenge the Dodgers at home again.
