December Dispatch

We have about two weeks left in 2025, and I never properly acknowledged the incredible World Series we witnessed. As much as it stung for the Yankees to drop the 2024 Fall Classic, Toronto’s dismantling of the Yanks in the 2025 ALDS meant that I was rooting for Los Angeles this time around. There were so many aspects to this year’s edition. The whole experience felt a little like a Sesame Street artwork I viewed at the Hilbert Museum in Orange.

Game 1: For once, Blake Snell is hittable. Fresh off a Game 7 comeback against the Mariners in the ALCS, Toronto explodes for nine runs in the sixth inning including an Addison Barger grand slam. 11-4, Blue Jays.

Game 2: Yoshinobu Yamamoto simply dominates, allowing four hits and one run in a complete game. Will Smith and Max Muncy hit solo shots in the seventh to seize a lead the Dodgers never relinquish. 5-1, Dodgers.

Game 3: This felt like a series turning point, but was it? The Dodgers and Jays trade blows, with a Tommy Edman error leading to a four-run fourth capped off by an Alejandro Kirk three-run blast. Ohtani goes 4-4 with two homers, five walks, three runs, and three RBI. Clayton Kershaw makes a cameo in extra innings as one of 19 pitchers involved, but the win goes to Will Klein after a walk-off homer by playoff legend Freddie Freeman. It’s incredible this one didn’t end prior to the 18th inning. 6-5, Dodgers.

Game 4: Is Vladimir Guerrero, Jr. just as good as his father? Could they end up next to each other in the Hall of Fame? His two-run blast off of Ohtani sets the tone and the Jays string five hits together for another four runs in the seventh. Shane Bieber pitches to contact, and it pays off. 6-2, Blue Jays.

Game 5: Trey Yesavage, all of 22 years old, mows down 12 Dodgers and Chavez Ravine is stunned. Davis Schneider and Guerrero lead off the game by hitting back-to-back round trippers against Snell. Toronto tacks on insurance in the seventh, and Jeff Hoffman closes out a non-save situation. 6-1, Blue Jays.

Game 6: Now, Toronto gets two cracks at bringing home the championship in Canada. In the third, Los Angeles makes Toronto manager John Schneider pay for intentionally walking Shohei. Smith doubles in Edman, who had doubled himself. Then, Mookie Betts plates Ohtani and Smith with a single versus Kevin Gausman. After another stellar performance from Yamamoto, Roki Sasaki struggles in the ninth. Sasaki is fortunate when Barger’s drive into the gap gets stuck in the wall’s padding. Finally, Tyler Glasnow induces an incredible line drive double play to end the game. 3-1, Dodgers.

Game 7: Bo Bichette drives in three with a third-inning dinger against Ohtani. The Jays lead by two after seven frames in a deafening Rogers Center, and I start to sulk despite the positive thought that Toronto bench coach Don Mattingly could get a World Series ring. The Dodgers have other ideas: Muncy brings the visitors within one with a homer to right in eighth. In the ninth, Miguel Rojas becomes an unlikely hero by delivering a game-tying big fly to left against Jeff Hoffman with his team’s back to the wall. A couple of do-or-die defensive plays give skipper Dave Roberts a shot at a second straight title. Smith takes Bieber deep in the 11th frame, and Series MVP Yamamoto closes out the series with 34 pitches the day after starting. While I’m enthused, it’s hard not to feel a bit sorry for Toronto after they came so close. Remarkably, Roberts has already won more championships as a manager than Tommy Lasorda. 5-4, Dodgers.

Now, please enjoy an old photo of me with the Commissioner’s Trophy.

Let’s turn the page to September 24, the last time I set foot in a ballpark. On the way to Angel Stadium, Dori and I grabbed dinner at Tacos Los Cholos. Our ticket taker seemed jealous of the feast we were importing. After we arrived, a good friend from Disneyland strode by while I waited in the club level hallway.

Yusei Kikuchi toed the slab for the Angels, while the Kansas City Royals countered with Stephen Kolek, who had been dealt from the Padres in July. In the second inning, Kolek gave up a double to Luis Rengifo, who would later score on a groundout off the bat of Oswald Peraza. The Angels were celebrating Mike Trout’s 400th career home run, but he got the night off on this Wednesday.

Taylor Ward is now a member of the Baltimore Orioles after being traded for starting pitcher Grayson Rodriguez. Nevertheless, he was a bright spot for the 2025 Angels with 36 home runs and 103 RBI. In this game, his solo shot in the third gave the home squad a 2-0 advantage.

Despite struggling for most of season, Peraza singled and stole second in the fourth. He came around to score on a Kolek throwing error and the Angels led 3-0. Randal Grichuk got Kansas City on the board with a leadoff bomb over the center field fence, but Kikuchi made it through five innings with no other damage.

With Chase Silseth on from the bullpen in the seventh, Carter Jensen delivered a pinch-hit single. That drove home Mike Yastrzemski, who had been hit by an errant pitch. The Angels led 3-2 but still had six outs to obtain.

Luis Garcia handled the eighth before Ron Washington called on Kenley Jansen to finish the game. Jansen is now a member of a stacked Detroit bullpen, but he amassed his 28th save by setting down the Royals in order.

As we headed to the exit, I mused about how a 72-90 team that hasn’t made the playoffs since 2014 can still give you an entertaining night out. Arte Moreno should still sell the franchise, though. Dori told me that it was refreshing to catch a ballgame and share good times together. I couldn’t disagree with any of that!

A big thanks to my readers for opening those emails. We wish you a happy holiday season, Southern California style.