Buster Olney
Jesse Rogers
Jesse Rogers
ESPN Staff Writer
Jesse joined ESPN Chicago in September 2009 and covers MLB for ESPN.com.
The 2025 World Series is nearly upon us, with the Toronto Blue Jays set to host the Los Angeles Dodgers in Game 1 on Friday night.
Which team has the edge going into the Series? What should you expect from the Dodgers’ pitching staff — and from Toronto’s batters trying to hit L.A.’s aces? And which X factors will determine this October’s last team standing?
ESPN MLB reporters Buster Olney and Jesse Rogers teamed up to ask 19 baseball execs, scouts, managers and coaches to break down what to expect in every aspect of this year’s Fall Classic, starting with predicting the world champions.
Survey says the ______ will win it all:
Los Angeles Dodgers: 18 responses
National League scout: “The Dodgers will ride their starting pitching to another title in five games.”
Current manager: “Dodgers in five. The Dodgers’ starting pitching is just so good right now that it’s going to be tough on anyone.”
Former manager: “David vs. Goliath. I think the Dodgers, only because of the starting pitching depth. Both teams have weaknesses in their bullpens, and the Dodgers get more length out of their starters — or at least they let them go deeper.”
Former manager: “Nobody is beating that Dodger rotation. People can talk all they want about the [financial] disparity, but the Dodgers have done a great job getting those guys ready for this time of year, holding them back, giving them rest during the season.”
NL exec: “I have the Dodgers winning it, but Toronto won’t roll over. It could go six games.”
Editor’s Picks
2 Related
Former NL manager: “I just don’t see the Dodgers getting beat. The best shot to beat them was in a shorter series.”
American League coach: “The Dodgers’ depth of pitching is pretty impressive. What will help the Blue Jays is that they don’t punch out, and they’ll have a chance to grind down the starters.”
Current manager: “Because of their starting pitching and the fact that they’re on a heater, I’d go with the Dodgers. They have built enough of a pen to stay competitive late in games. I find it hard to believe they can get beat four times in seven games… It should be interesting to the end, with amazing crowd intensity.”
Toronto Blue Jays: 1 response
AL coach: “The Blue Jays seem to have momentum, if that is even a thing. I’ll take the Jays in six games.”
Current manager: “I think the Jays have a puncher’s chance because of their lineup; the erosion effect is real.”
AL scout: “Toronto has earned the right to be here. Played consistent all year. Then came up big when they needed to in the postseason. New York and Seattle are not pushovers. Of course, neither are the Dodgers. To win, Vlad [Guerrero Jr.] might have to match the entire top of L.A.’s lineup. He’s been the best hitter this postseason.”
Former manager: “It’s not a slam dunk [for the Dodgers], because the Blue Jays have something going with their offense. Too much contact in this age of baseball. If the Blue Jays can wear down the L.A. starters, I think they will pound the Dodgers’ bullpen.”
AL scout: “If Toronto can raise the pitch count of L.A’s starters, they have a chance to score some late-inning runs. I think they’ll do that enough to win a game or two, but I don’t think they can win the Series.”
When the Dodgers are in the field
What to expect from L.A.’s pitchers and defense
NL exec: “That starting pitching performance in the NLCS stands out even more because we are in the day and age of bullpens. It’s interesting how last year, L.A. had to rely on its pen, but this year, it’s their starting staff. [Blake] Snell and those guys are just too good right now. They may not have it as easy against Toronto, so the Dodgers’ bullpen will probably see more action. That’s where they’re vulnerable.”
AL scout: “I loved how [manager Dave] Roberts let his starters go. It paid off. And now, they all got the proper amount of rest. I expect exactly the same in the World Series. There’s still probably some doubt in the bullpen, so why not let those guys go long?”
New ESPN and FOX One Bundle
Bundle ESPN and FOX One and unlock more sports for one unbeatable price. Get the World Series, college football, NBA, NHL and more. Get access
Current manager: “Roki [Sasaki] is a big deal for the Dodgers. They’ve got problems if he isn’t effective.”
NL scout: “Mookie [Betts’] improvement at shortstop makes the Dodgers good enough on defense. They’re not as good as the Blue Jays, but it won’t prevent them from winning the Series.”
AL coach: “Andy Pages needs to show up defensively and offensively for the Dodgers, and Will Smith’s play will be important.”
What to expect from Toronto’s hitters
NL exec: “That offense is legit. I mean, people are seeing it now, but they’ve been dangerous all year. They have great balance, from both the left and right side.”
NL scout: “Their lineup is really deep. There was a game, we were up 5-0 in the second, and it’s just one of those things, you just never felt comfortable. It’s that mix of five or six guys at the top, with power and then all the guys at the bottom taking good at-bats. So, it’s a deep lineup with a bunch of power, is what I would say.”
AL coach: “The Blue Jays’ lineup can wear down good pitching, foul balls off, put the balls in play. The Dodger defense is going to get tested.”
Best of the 2025 World Series
We’ve got it all covered as the Dodgers and Blue Jays battle for the title.
World Series preview: Who has edge? »Ranking best World Series since 2000 »World Series player rankings, best tools »Ohtani’s greatness » | Springer’s run »
AL manager: “It’s all about whether the Blue Jays can get the Dodger starters out of the game early and get into that L.A. bullpen, which is the Dodgers’ biggest weakness. If they can’t do that, this could be a short Series.”
AL coach: “I’m going to be really interested to see how the Dodgers deal with Vladdy, because right now, he’s hitting everything in the zone. He’s dominating every quadrant. This is where the star power could work against the Dodgers [starters]; they are stars, and they’re not going to want to back off. And Vladdy is so hot that maybe you should back off in certain situations.”
AL manager: “There’s no way the Dodgers let Vlad beat them. [Alejandro] Kirk and [Addison] Barger will have to perform.”
AL coach: “Barger will need to have some big at-bats for Toronto, because the Dodgers are going to work around Vlad as best they can and there are going to be runners on base.”
Former NL manager: “[Bo] Bichette will be a key, I think, in the Series. I’m guessing he’s going to play and hit behind Vlad. … If he’s hitting behind Guerrero, he’s going to have to protect with Vlad getting pitched around or walked.”
When the Blue Jays are in the field
What to expect from Toronto’s pitchers and defense
AL exec: “One of the things that’s interesting is none of their super-high-leverage guys are left-handed, so I feel like the Dodgers is a lineup that might combat that a little better than Jays might be.”
AL scout: “You could make the argument that the Blue Jays’ bullpen [has] been better lately, and certainly they’ve gone through a lot more. But in a longer series, it’s just the familiarity aspect of facing the same relievers over and over. Toronto has the advantage in the pen there, but who is going to get [Shohei] Ohtani and [Freddie] Freeman out late in the game?”
Former NL manager: “I don’t see the Dodger pitching giving up too many runs, so Toronto will have to hold the Dodger hitters, as well, to give them a chance.”
Best of Blue Jays’ World Series run
Toronto is in the Fall Classic for the first time since 1993. Here are our must-read picks from the Jays’ march through October.
George Springer, a modern Mr. October »How Vlad Jr., Toronto bet on each other »Relive Blue Jays’ AlCS Game 7 victory »
AL manager: “If the Jays’ left-handed relievers step up, they win this Series. You have to neutralize Shohei and the other lefties in that lineup.”
AL coach: “[Jeff] Hoffman is a pivotal player in my mind. The Jays will score, but Hoffman will have to close out tight games.”
Current manager: “As always, making every defensive play without granting extra outs along with two-out hitting will play a major role.”
AL scout: “I don’t know how healthy Bichette is, but moving [Andres] Gimenez back to second is huge. He’s been the best second baseman in baseball for a while with the glove. Toronto’s defense is really good, and that makes them even better. Up the middle is solid.”
NL exec: “I think they’re more than solid. I guess they need to make sure they get Bichette back. But getting Isiah Kiner-Falefa [going], they’ve really got good defenders everywhere. Kirk is really good behind the plate. Everyone in the infield can catch the ball and has range, and then the outfielders, they can all throw, they can all go get it. They’re all really good players.”
What to expect from L.A.’s hitters
Former manager: “You can pitch to Shohei, because he’ll expand the zone. But if you throw lefties against him and Mookie and Freddie, then eventually you’ll have to deal with Teo [Hernandez], who mashes lefties, or Will Smith, who mashes lefties.”
NL scout: “It’s like there’s zero easy at-bats at all. It’s kind of like those old Yankees teams where they’re all running up pitch counts. They’re not going to chase, and they have power. And so, you have to come into the zone at some point. And it’s just really hard to get through multiple innings [without scoring] just because they all take good at-bats and then seven or eight can hit the ball out of the park.”
Best of Dodgers’ World Series run
L.A. is attempting to go back-to-back. Here are our must-read picks from the Dodgers’ playoff run.
How Dodgers’ rotation is dominating »The greatness of Ohtani shines through »Why Dodgers have looked unbeatable »Inside Sasaki’s transformation to closer »
Current manager: “Mookie is a key player because he follows Shohei. My guess is [Toronto manager] John Schneider won’t let Shohei beat him.”
NL exec: “I think they play smart baseball and they know themselves. But it’s like Betts is such a good baseball player. There’ll probably be a point where he’s going to take an extra base or get a really good jump on when the infield is in or a passed ball that barely squeaks away. So, they’ve got guys like that — Betts or Will Smith, those types of guys that always just put themselves in the right place to make a smart baseball play.”
The X factors the industry thinks will decide the Series
NL scout: “The thing that jumps out is that the two teams remaining spent lots of money on starting pitching. Starting pitching has been the determining factor in the playoffs.”
AL scout: “I advanced the Blue Jays a couple years ago and questioned a couple of John Schneider’s moves. I wonder if he’ll have any head-scratchers. I saw [Mariners manager] Dan Wilson being criticized. Roberts can ride those starters, so he might have less of those types of decisions.”
AL scout: “Then there’s the overarching theme of just the rest vs. rust. I guess you probably are a little better on paper with rest. But it really comes down to have the Dodgers stayed sharp and have the Blue Jays kind of emptied their clip already?”
AL manager: “It’s one thing to have a day off or two days off. The Dodgers will have almost a week off before they get this started. The Jays could ambush them.”
