Rojas ties it in the 9th, Will Smith wins it in the 11th, Yamamoto empties the tank on zero days’ rest as L.A. repeats

TORONTO — Rogers Centre felt like it was vibrating. Silver, blue, and gold confetti swirled on the outfield for the Dodgers’ traveling party; inside the tunnel, red-eyed friends and family hugged a Blue Jays team that came two outs from a title. A padded wall separated the celebrations from the heartbreak—just like the thinnest of margins separated two heavyweights in a Game 7 for the ages.

The Final Act: Late Lightning, Extra-Inning Legend

• Top 9: Miguel Rojas shocks the Dome with a game-tying solo blast off Jeff Hoffman, 4–4.

• Top 11: Will Smith unloads the first extra-inning homer in a winner-take-all World Series game, Dodgers up 5–4.

• MVP Minutes: Yoshinobu Yamamoto, on zero days’ rest, parachutes in, loads the bases, wriggles out in the 9th, and slams the door in the 10th and 11th. Unreal.

The Dodgers claim back-to-back titles—the first MLB repeat since the ’98–’00 Yankees—capping a 4:07 classic that felt like its own month on the calendar.

Toronto’s Punch: Bo’s Big Blow, Leather Everywhere

For eight and a half innings, the script screamed CANADA.

• 3rd inning: Bo Bichette, nursing a bad left knee, torches a first-pitch slider from short-rest Shohei Ohtani 442 feet to left-center—3-run thunder and a 3–1 lead.

• Max Scherzer (41), the oldest to start a WS Game 7, bends, won’t break into the 5th.

• Web Gems: Daulton Varsho lays out to turn extra bases into a sac fly; Vladimir Guerrero Jr. snares a liner to end the 4th.

• 6th: Ernie Clement (who set a postseason record 30 hits) singles and swipes second; Andrés Giménez rifles an RBI double—4–2 Jays.

Temperature Check: Benches Clear, Nerves Don’t

Bottom 4: Three up-and-in heaters to Giménez from Justin Wrobleski; final one plunks him. Benches clear, warnings issued. Toronto kept its pulse steady… until the 9th.

The Turning Screw

• 7th: Trey Yesavage rolls in, triggers a slick 3-6-3 from Vlad to escape.

• 8th: Max Muncy ambushes a splitter—4–3.

• 9th: Hoffman gets two outs on either side of a heartbeat… then Rojas goes deep.

Extra-Inning Knife Edge

• 9th (bottom): Bases loaded, two out—Yamamoto hits Alejandro Kirk, but then coaxes Varsho into a grounder and the Dodgers survive.

• 10th (top): Seranthony Domínguez Houdinis a bases-loaded jam.

• 11th (top): Shane Bieber gets two quick ones; hangs a slider; Smith sends it into history.

• 11th (bottom): Vladdy doubles, moves to third; Barger walks—corners, one out. Kirk rolls it to Mookie Betts at short; 6-3 double play, game, set, repeat.

“Golden Era” vs. New Standard

“One for the ages,” said Dave Roberts. Three titles in six seasons—and counting—for L.A.
John Schneider, voice cracking: “We set a new expectation here.” The Jays emptied the tank—after that 18-inning marathon in Game 3, after the swings of Game 6, after eleven in Game 7. Inches. Wall-thin inches.

When it ended, a wall split the worlds—confetti outside, quiet resolve inside. Not much else separated them.