The 2025 World Series is finally upon us. The Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays will face off in the Fall Classic beginning Friday night, a battle between the perennial contenders and a team that hasn't been to the World Series since 1993.

The Dodgers are back to defend their title. Los Angeles completed an NLCS sweep of the Brewers on Thursday, winning 5-1 at Dodger Stadium to secure the franchise’s 23rd trip to the World Series. After defeating the Yankees in the 2024 Fall Classic,

2025 head-to-head results: The Dodgers swept the Mariners in Seattle from Sept. 26-28. The 6-1 series finale victory marked Kershaw’s final regular-season start, and he struck out seven over 5 1/3 scoreless innings.

After winning the World Series last year, the Dodgers went out and managed to still get better, signing top free agents like Blake Snell and Rōki Sasaki. Los Angeles boasts a $350 million payroll, the highest in the league according to Spotrac, and has managed to acquire nearly every major player they’ve sought after including Shohei Ohtani.