World Series 2025 predictions: will the Dodgers repeat or the Blue Jays strike a blow for Canada? | World Series

Is Shohei Ohtani already the greatest of all time?

He is and it’s hard to imagine any other player even coming close to his achievements in this life. In Game 4 of this season’s NLCS, he struck out 10 batters in six shutout innings and hit more than a quarter-mile of home runs. Hall of Fame pitcher Greg Maddux perhaps summed it up best when he said, “He kind of reminds you of Nolan Ryan, and then he reminds you of damn Barry Bonds.” » Gabriel Baumgaertner

Comparing players from one era to another is child’s play… but yes. We’ll never know how Babe Ruth or Cy Young might have fared had they been around today, but there’s no denying that the players are still bigger, stronger and in better shape than ever. To be as dominant as Ohtani is now in two such difficult and different disciplines is superhuman. If he were American, they would have started work on a new wing in Cooperstown. Alan Evans

It rewrites what the term even means. A two-way superstar who has led both leagues in WAR, carried two franchises and now leads a superteam chasing back-to-back titles. Ruth has never faced 100 mph sliders. The trout never took the mound. Ohtani achieves both at historic levels in the age of analytics. Bryan Armen Graham

In what sense? Well, he’s not the best pitcher or the best hitter. Ruth hasn’t pitched and hit simultaneously at the level Ohtani currently does, so he is all alone at the top of his category. David Lengel

What the Blue Jays must do to win

Hit! If the Blue Jays want to win the series, they will have to put pressure on the Dodgers starting pitchers early in the innings. That means reliable, powerful production from star hitters George Springer and Vladimir Guerrero Jr, as well as pesky, tough veteran hitters like Alejandro Kirk and Daulton Varsho. EN

Ohtani may be the best of all time, but Guerrero is even hotter right now. He’s hit six home runs and is batting .442/.510/1.440 this postseason. If anyone can throw the Dodgers pitching staff out of rhythm, it could be him. AE

They need to crush the Dodgers starters. Toronto’s contact-heavy lineup needs to expand its at-bats, increase pitch counts and force Dave Roberts to rely on his bullpen. Defensively, they can’t allow extra takedowns. If Vlad Jr stays hot and Bo Bichette protects him, they have a chance to punch. BAG

Jays need to wear out healthy Los Angeles starters and access the bullpen that the Dodgers were able to hide during the postseason. Toronto needs to put pressure on the defense and take every possible chance on the base paths. But on the field, don’t take any risks: this involves conservative play and outs in exchange for single points to avoid the big inning at all costs. D.L.

What the Dodgers must do to win

The Dodgers are more dangerous when the bottom of their lineup gets on base and frustrates opposing pitchers with long at-bats. If they receive steady production from reliable postseason contributors like Tommy Edman, Max Muncy and Enrique Hernández, then the Blue Jays will need to score in batches to keep up. The Dodgers will also win if their starting pitchers continue to perform as they have: In 10 starts, Los Angeles’ starters have a 1.40 ERA and a 0.75 WHIP over 64.1 innings pitched. In nine of those ten starts, the starting pitcher allowed four hits or fewer. EN

Score three points per game. Their pitching staff is so strong that even if their hitting team has an off night, they will probably still win. They just held the Brewers, who had the best record in baseball this year, to four runs in four games. A pitcher can collapse, but it’s hard to imagine that happening four times. AE

Continue to let the rotation cook. Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Bobby Miller have been dominant, and Rōki Sasaki, coming close, solves their only weak point. If Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman can give the Dodgers the lead, this staff won’t blow them away. Their depth and rest should overcome a tired Toronto staff. BAG

Keep doing what they’re doing. The Dodgers need to put aside that smack talk they were talking about recently and realize that their opponents are capable of winning it all. Los Angeles has the kind of star that baseball is so lacking, and if they live up to that high standard, there’s not much the Jays can do to derail their back-to-back titles. D.L.

A bold prediction

After failing to get a hit in the 2024 World Series, Dodgers third baseman Muncy leads the team in home runs and is Los Angeles’ best hitter in the series. Muncy is exceptionally dangerous against right-handed pitchers, and the Blue Jays only have two left-handed arms on their roster. In the NLCS, Muncy became the all-time playoff leader for the Dodgers. After the World Series, he will hold this record securely. EN

Aubrey alert. There were a lot of jokes about it being the Drake vs. Kendrick Lamar World Series. Drake is clearly leaning into it and will do something typically cheesy, like release a freestyle that rhymes “Bo Bichette” with “wet.” Kendrick will ignore it. AE

Sasaki records several six-out saves and wins a game in reliefbecoming the youngest pitcher to win a World Series title. His 102 mph fastball turns the final innings into a one-man show and erases the narrative of the Dodgers bullpen for good. BAG

At one point in this series, Grumpy Toronto fans will throw stuff on the field and force the Dodgers players into the dugout. We’ve seen it before and were about to see it again before the refs called it the right way on the ALCS interference play in Game 7. They’re a wealthy population in Toronto, but they were nervous even before the trade war. D.L.

World Series MVP

Let’s mix it up a little and give it to Blake Snellthat will finally get Game 6 of the 2020 World Series out of his mind. That said, the prize will go to Ohtani if ​​he pitches well and even has a decent series on offense. He won the NLCS MVP despite being the team’s worst hitter before his historic performance in Game 4. EN

Blake Snell. As a Game 1 starter, he’s the ace most likely to start more than once, and two dominant performances could be enough to seal him. He has allowed three runs on 15 hits over his last six games with a 0.68 ERA over that span. I wouldn’t bet against him continuing down this path. AE

Shohei Ohtani. He would home run in back-to-back games in Toronto and had a remarkable start in Game 5. It won’t just be about production – it will be an aura, a feeling of inevitability when he steps into the box. A transcendent player taking on the biggest stage head-on. BAG

The World Series MVP is the veteran Kevin Gausmanwho wins two big games and disarms the biggest weapons on the Los Angeles roster. He allowed just three runs in three playoff starts and let up in Game 7 against Seattle. It’s its separator that stirs the drink and even disciplined Dodgers will have a hard time getting rid of it. Count on Kevin to help Toronto win the trophy in the North. Will they have to pay taxes? D.L.

Your World Series winner will be…

Dodgers 4-2 Blue Jays. It will be a tighter series than people expect. Expect the Blue Jays to pull out at least one lopsided victory after knocking out one of the Dodgers’ vaunted starting pitchers early in the game. The problem for the Blue Jays will be an inconsistent bullpen, not their starting pitcher, who will struggle against a patient group of veteran Dodgers hitters. EN

Dodgers 4-1 Blue Jays. It seems predestined that the Dodgers would win. If they have a weakness, it’s their bullpen (a shaky 4.27 ERA in the regular season) – but the return to form of Sasaki and his devastating splitter should help stabilize things if anything starts to go wrong. Meanwhile, Toronto absolutely needs everything to go well. Maybe they can ride Guerrero and Gausman to an upset, but four wins is a huge ask. AE

Dodgers 4-3 Blue Jays. Their rotation depth is unmatched, their stars have been rested and Ohtani’s presence elevates the confidence of the entire roster. This should be a breeze for the Dodgers, but baseball is funny sometimes. Toronto’s offense will make the most of its home-field advantage, but the Dodgers’ combination of starting pitching, discipline and star power will prove simply too great to prevent baseball’s first repeat champion in a quarter-century. BAG

Blue Jays 4-3 Dodgers. Yamamoto, Snell, Ohtani, Glasnow? What are you supposed to do with these guys? They were so good that their beleaguered bullpen only pitched seven innings in their sweep against the Brewers. It’s definitely old school in Los Angeles. It’s hard to imagine Toronto pulling it off, but now really try. Imagine Bichette returning to the lineup and picking up where he left while Guerrero and Springer stay hot. How about Gausman pitching twice at Rogers Center, where the Jays are so hard to beat? Contact hitters waste pitches and put the ball in play: anything can and does happen. Suddenly we’re in Game 7 when Addison Barger hits them all in the 10th inning, helping the Jays win their first title since 1993. Not bad, huh? D.L.