Endurance and Emotion: Dodgers and Blue Jays Deliver a World Series Classic

Watching the World Series last night between the Toronto Blue Jays and the LA Dodgers was epic. I will admit, this is the first World Series game I have been able to watch this season, and it did not disappoint. With so many other competing games last night, we spent most of the time watching the World Series. We went from the Monday Night Football game to the 11 NBA games, and by the 7th inning, we were hooked and locked into the World Series. Vladimir Guerrero Jr. slapping the home plate to put the Blue Jays ahead 5 to 4 was the start of the excitement for me. But in the bottom of the 7th, two-way superstar Shohei Ohtani stepped up to the plate, and on the first pitch, launched what looked like a rocket over the wall to tie the game at 5 to 5.

This was the first time my friend, who was watching the game with me, saw Ohtani in action, and I wish I had recorded his face. It was priceless. Ohtani is such a mesmerizing player, and because of the quality of the TV, it felt like we were there, up close in Dodger Stadium. It seemed as though we could smell the stale popcorn and hear the chants from the stands. After being tied 5-5 at the end of nine innings, the game went to extra innings, and I do not think anyone was prepared for the journey we were about to embark on.

In the top of the 10th, a great throw by outfielder Teoscar Hernández prevented what would have been a go ahead run for the Blue Jays. After a number of what looked like would be home runs or RBIs, play resumed for hours with neither team able to score. In order to prevent a big play by Shohei Ohtani, the Blue Jays intentionally walked him four times, a World Series record. My friend and I were a bit disappointed to see this strategy. It reminded me of “Hack a Shaq”, where in order to stop Shaquille O’Neal from scoring, the opposing team fouled him because he was a horrific free throw shooter. In this case, the Blue Jays said he cannot beat us if he cannot hit.

At one point in the game, the Blue Jays intentionally walked two players back-to-back, Ohtani and Mookie Betts, in the 13th inning to get to 2024 World Series MVP Freddie Freeman, the same Freddie Freeman who had a walk off homer in last year’s World Series. The decision to keep intentionally walking Ohtani finally bit the Blue Jays in the butt when Freeman delivered another walk off home run in the 18th inning.

Though I am a sportswriter who is unbiased unless I am covering a specific team, I was secretly rooting for Freeman to make the Blue Jays pay for intentionally walking Ohtani and even Betts at one point. The Blue Jays strategy to walk Ohtani may not sit well with some sports fans, but at this point, there is no rule against it, and they will in all likelihood continue to do it.

The game ended after 18 innings of play. Nineteen pitchers were used, the most in World Series history. There were an astonishing 609 pitches thrown, and the game lasted a whopping six hours and 39 minutes. What is even more astounding is that Game 4 is tonight at 8 p.m. EDT or 5 p.m. PST, a very short turnaround. It will be interesting to see how the carryover from Game 3 impacts today’s performance. I will be there watching the entire thing. Get your popcorn ready, this should be fun!