The 2025 World Series, the 121st edition of baseball’s biggest showdown, was won by the defending champions, the LA Dodgers. The decisive game was finally settled in the early hours of the 2nd of November, with the LA side seeing off Canada’s Toronto Blue Jays in Canada to secure a 4-3 victory.
The result on the road meant they retained their crown. Not since another iconic team, the New York Yankees, won three in a row between 1998 and 2000, had the champions held onto the title. The Dodgers (Brooklyn and LA combined) have now won the sport’s top prize on nine occasions. This was their third win since 2020 and more than made up for defeats in the World Series in 2017 and 2018.
For the Blue Jays, the loss represented a first defeat in the iconic showpiece series. They had won the World Series in 1992 and 1993, but this was their first taste of defeat in the key contest. For neutrals and those in Dodgers hats, it was a wonderful end to the season, and this is how it unfolded.
Game 1: Blue Jays Strike First
Playing in their 23rd World Series, the LA side had won the National League West. That was their 12th such win in 13 years, extending their near-total dominance. In contrast, the Blue Jays were in their third showpiece and sealed the American League East for the first time since 2015.
In 2024, they had finished rock bottom, losing 88 times, so this was a major turnaround. They had the advantage of beginning the series at home, courtesy of their higher win percentage in the regular season. Playing games one, two, six and seven at home is a big benefit, not least because it means an extra game – potentially the decider – in front of your own fans.
The Canadian side certainly made it count first up, too. A brilliant offensive performance helped them to a comfortable 11-4 victory. It had been close until the bottom of the sixth, when they put a massive nine runs on the board, helped by an Addison Barger Grand Slam.
Game 2: Dodgers Hit Back
The Dodgers secured a brilliant win at Toronto’s Rogers Centre to put themselves very much back in the series ahead of their three home matches. It was a low-scoring match, tied at 1-1 until the seventh innings, when the hosts then scored two runs, adding two more in the eighth, helping them to a cosy 5-1 win.
Game 3: Hosts Clinch Epic
In Game 3, the 50,000+ fans inside Dodger Stadium were treated to something of an epic. The scoreless first innings gave no indication as to what lay ahead. After the hosts scored two runs in the bottom of the fifth, the scores were tied at 4-4. The sixth was scoreless, the seventh tied 1-1, and we then witnessed 10 innings for both sides without a single run being scored. It was eventually settled in the 18th innings in the Dodgers’ favour, the match tying the record for the longest postseason game in MLB history.
Game 4: Toronto Claim Win on Road
The x could have been negatively affected by losing such a long, tight contest but they hit back to square the series up at 2-2. A home run from Vladimir Guerrero Jr. helped them to a 6-2 win to set things up nicely for the final three matches of the series.
Game 5: Blue Jays Strike Decisive Blow?
With the final two games of the series taking place in Canada, this felt like a must-win game for the Dodgers. Lose and they would need to win back-to-back games on the road to claim the World Series. Toronto must have felt they had things almost wrapped up at the end of the night as they prevailed easily, leading from start to finish. It was 6-1 in the end, with Guerrero Jr. adding another two homers to his tally.
Game 6: Dodgers Keep Hopes Alive
If Game 5 felt like a must-win match, Game 6 literally was for LA, and they managed to deliver the goods to keep the World Series alive and take it to a decider. The only runs of the match for either side were scored in the third innings, LA winning 3-1 in something of a strange contest.
Game 7: LA Upset the Odds in HR Feast
THE LOS ANGELES @DODGERS ARE THE 2025 #WORLDSERIES CHAMPIONS! #CHAMPS pic.twitter.com/EoDS73MXVk
— MLB (@MLB) November 2, 2025
The Dodgers brought a little bit of momentum into this game, but even so, with home-field advantage, the Blue Jays were favourites. In the end, we saw an upset, as the Dodgers prevailed 5-4, hitting five home runs to land the World Series.
At the top of the eighth, the Dodgers trailed 4-2 but they put a run on the board in the final two innings and shut out their hosts. At the top of the ninth, ESPN’s data had given the Blue Jays a 91.7% chance of glory, but it wasn’t to be. The match went to extra innings, the sixth time in World Series history a deciding game had done so.
Neither side could score in the 10th, but then a man with a name for a Hollywood moment struck the decisive blow. Will Smith hit a home run with two men out to give his side the advantage. In the bottom of the 11th we saw golden pitches in a game that was so delicately poised, but the Dodgers held their nerve, and Toronto were left with two men stranded on base.