The Los Angeles Dodgers are down three games to two in the World Series against the Toronto Blue Jays. They are two wins away from being the first repeat champions since the 2000 New York Yankees, but are now on the brink of elimination. Dodgers manager Dave Roberts needs to make some changes to secure his third World Series. What should the lineup look like on Friday night?
The Dodgers won Game 2 in Toronto and took the marathon Game 3 in Los Angeles to take a 2-1 series lead. But the Blue Jays fought back, winning the last two games at Dodger Stadium in 2025. They now return to Canada with a chance to win their first World Series since 1993. The Dodgers need to turn things around offensively to stun Canada and the world and take the final two games.
A big change involving Tommy Edman
The Dodgers traded for Tommy Edman at the 2024 trade deadline, and he immediately became a key part of their team. He won the NLCS MVP while playing centerfield for Los Angeles and played multiple positions during his tenure with the St Louis Cardinals. Edman has been playing second base during this postseason, but the best possible lineup may not have him in the infield.
Andy Pages has been miserable offensively during the Postseason, which led to his benching for Game 5. The Dodgers put Alex Call in left field and bumped Kiké Hernandez to center to facilitate the benching. But the young Call was not great either, so Roberts should go to a veteran. Edman should play centerfield, Hernandez back to left, and Miguel Rojas can play second base.
Rojas is a utility infielder with three hits in ten at-bats this postseason. He has been a steady veteran presence on the Dodgers since re-joining the team in 2023. Rojas can help flip the lineup over more than Call or Pages do, and it won't impact them defensively.
Every Dodgers pitcher has their spikes on
The Achilles heel of the 2025 Dodgers is their bullpen. Even after signing Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates in the offseason, games change for the worse when the bullpen doors open. Game 7 starter Tyler Glasnow can stay on the bench and prepare for a potential winner-take-all start. But everyone else should have their spikes on, ready to go for Game 6.
The Dodgers clearly did not follow this cliche during the 18-inning Game 3 marathon. Yoshinobu Yamamoto had to volunteer to pitch the 19th inning just to avoid having a position player pitch. Thankfully for LA, Freddie Freeman's homer stopped that timeline. But when, rather if, Yamamoto comes off the mound on Friday, there has to be creativity from Roberts.
The Dodgers cannot turn back to Blake Treinen or Anthony Banda after their poor performances. Blake Snell and Shohei Ohtani would be better options, even with their tired arms and a Game 7 to plan for. But their starting pitching has been dominant these playoffs, and there is no reason to stop trusting them now.
Push the gas on the base paths
The Blue Jays are in the World Series because they are an elite contact team offensively and play sound defense. But the Dodgers have not made them play elite defense to win these games. While they do not have the fastest players on their team, Los Angeles has to try and create chaos on the bases to throw off the Blue Jays' thriving pitchers.
Freddie Freeman is the only Dodgers player with a stolen base in the World Series. Ohtani attempted a steal but was caught. The Dodgers only had three players with over ten steals in the regular season. Ohtani led the way with 20, Pages had 14 but has not been on base enough, and Hyeseong Kim had 13. Maybe Kim comes into the game and starts the chaos, following his manager's footsteps.
This comeback would not be as dramatic as the 2004 Boston Red Sox coming back from down 3-0 against the New York Yankees. But Roberts kick-started that comeback with a stolen base in Game 4. Someone, like Kim, needs to ruffle the Blue Jays' feathers and steal the momentum back.
Game 6 of the World Series begins at 8:00 p.m. on Friday. If the Dodgers win that game, they will face the Blue Jays in a winner-take-all Game 7 on Saturday night.
