Blue Jays’ Path to a Game 4 World Series Win Comes Down to 3 Keys
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Game 3 of the 2025 World Series delivered an instant classic. Over six hours of 18-inning baseball saw the Los Angeles Dodgers emerge victorious over the Toronto Blue Jays, courtesy of a walk-off home run from Freddie Freeman. While game three brought a big momentum boost for the Dodgers, it was immediate heartbreak for the Blue Jays.
However, Toronto has an opportunity to even up the series Tuesday night. After Shohei Ohtani's unbelievable day at the plate in game three, he will toe the rubber for Los Angeles in game four. On Monday, Ohtani went 4-4 with two home runs and three RBIs. After his game tying long ball in the seventh inning, he was intenionally walked a whopping five times.
For manager John Schneider, he will hand the ball to Shane Bieber. He'll be making his first career World Series start. What will it take for the Blue Jays to take a game four win?
Shane Bieber Has to Have a Quality Start
It's obvious that a key to a victory in any circumstance is getting a good outing from the starting pitcher. However, after Toronto essentially played two full games last night, it is absolutely imperative that Bieber gives them a lengthy start.
Schneider used nine pitchers in the loss. The only arms that weren't used on the World Series roster was Kevin Gausman and Trey Yesavage. It's highly likely that players will be called on for back-to-back appearances, but if Bieber can give them at least six innings, it will be a major boost for the relievers.
Game three holds major ramifications for the rest of the series. It's difficult to play a game the next day after 18-innings of high stress baseball, but game five will be played on Wednesday. Neither team gets any rest and these next games could come down to which manager utilizes their bullpen best.
Bieber will be making his fourth start this postseason. His best outing came in game three of the ALCS against the Seattle Mariners. He pitched six innings, allowing two runs on four hits with eight strikeouts. All eyes turn to the 30-year old as he attempts to stop the Dodgers offense.
The Base Running Has to Improve
In game three, Toronto's base runners ran into too many outs. In the second inning, Bo Bichette was picked off after he thought Daulton Varsho drew a walk. It killed any momentum the Blue Jays were developing in the inning.
In the ninth, Isiah Kiner-Falefa was thrown out at third by Tommy Edman as he tried to swipe an extra base. Finally in the 10th inning, Nathan Lukes roped a ball down the right field line and Davis Schneider was thrown out at home by Teoscar Hernandez.
You can certainly attribute a couple of those mistakes to great defense by the Dodgers, but it's unacceptable to run into that many outs on the base paths.
The Blue Jays Offense Needs a Big Swing Against Ohtani
Ohtani has been nearly flawless on the mound this postseason. He's accumulated 19 strikeouts to just four walks in a pair of starts. While Toronto doesn't strikeout a ton, that could change against the Dodgers' flamethrower.
It likely will be difficult to generate multiple base runners in an inning but if they do, they may have to rely on the long ball. The Blue Jays have found success stringing together multiple hits in an inning, but one home run could be the difference in this ball game.
It's an absolute must win for Toronto. Going down 3-1 is a tough deficit to overcome, so Schneider's ball club has to find a way to pull out a victory in game four.
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-18b43fc96f33cf096c365e79101baa24.jpeg "Zion Trammel")
Zion Trammell graduated from TCU in 2023 with a degree in sports broadcasting and journalism. He currently writes for TCU Horned Frogs on SI. In addition to writing, he is the play-by-play voice for Southlake Carroll baseball and hosts a TCU show on the Bleav Network.
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