Blue Jays defy expectations in an exciting World Series despite losing the crown
The Toronto Blue Jays lost to the Los Angeles Dodgers in a Fall Classic that shocked fans and left them with nothing, but they had set a “new standard,” Toronto manager John Schneider said on Sunday.
With the Blue Jays playing the star-studded defending champion Dodgers in the Fall Classic for the first time since their 1993 victory, many analysts had forecast a “David versus Goliath” series.
Instead, they witnessed a titanic seven-game battle against a dramatic geopolitical backdrop that experts are already calling one of the best World Series ever.
“We have set a new expectation and a new standard here and did it with a lot of hard work,” Schneider stated at his press conference following the Dodgers’ 5-4 victory in Game 7 early on Sunday morning.
“Going back to the beginning of the series when people were calling it David versus Goliath, it’s not even close.”
Ratings are driven by international appeal.
With Canada’s lone team facing the Dodgers’ squad, led by Japanese sensation Shohei Ohtani, the series’ global appeal sent ratings skyrocketing for Game 1, in which Toronto delivered a statement with an 11-4 victory.
With an average of 32.6 million viewers throughout the United States, Canada, and Japan, the game had the highest combined viewership for an MLB game from those three nations since 2016.
Game 3 saw the two teams battle through 18 exhausting innings, tying the record for the longest-ever World Series game, after the Dodgers tied the score in Game 2. First baseman Freddie Freeman’s spectacular walk-off home slam helped the Dodgers win.
“It’s one of the greatest World Series games of all time,” remarked Dave Roberts, the beleaguered manager of the Dodgers.
As the series took on a frenetic tone, over 14.5 million people watched Game 5 on U.S. broadcaster Fox, and the sport’s longtime veterans were prepared to label it an immediate classic with Saturday’s Game 7.
Will Smith hit the game-winning run over the wall in the eleventh inning, while Miguel Rojas, an unlikely hero, tied the score in the ninth, making it another thrilling game of extra innings.
Longtime analyst Mike Lupica remarked, “There has never been a better Game 7 than we got in Toronto,” and he opens a new tab. “And there has never been a better World Series than this one.”
“GUTTED”
For Canada, whose Stanley Cup drought dates back as far as their World Series drought, the loss was a familiar hurt.
Connor McDavid, whose Edmonton Oilers were “completely gutted” for the Blue Jays after losing to the Florida Panthers in Game 6 earlier this season and in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals in 2024, told reporters.
McDavid remarked, “Obviously we know what that feels like,” “They’ve given Canada a lot to cheer about and they should be very, very proud.”
