The health of the Dodgers' four top pitchers, and a surprise role change late in the season, have led Los Angeles to face the Toronto Blue Jays for the World Series title.

The Puerto Rican utility player is set to make Dodgers history. He is also hoping to win his third World Series ring.

A day before the start of the World Series, the Dodgers announced pitcher Alex Vesia was away from the team amid a "deeply personal family matter."

A consortium called Guggenheim Baseball Management owns the Dodgers. It consists of 10 people, including Magic Johnson and Billie Jean King. None of them will ever be confused with Steinbrenner. They all remain aloof from the team’s baseball activities.

In a closeout opportunity for the defending champions, Shohei Ohtani took the mound for LA and punched out 10 batters across six-plus scoreless innings of work. At the plate, Ohtani went 3-for-3 with three home runs, one of which left Dodger Stadium and traveled 469 feet according to Statcast.

The Los Angeles Dodgers are just four wins away from capturing their second consecutive World Series title, thanks in part to the highest active payroll of any MLB team and more than $1B worth of deferred payments that will start to become due in 2028.