Trey Yesavage started the season at Low-A Dunedin and made his MLB debut 38 days ago. On Friday, he will start Game 1 of the 2025 World Series for the Toronto Blue Jays.
The club announced Thursday that the 22-year-old will start the Fall Classic, making him the first rookie to start a first World Series game since Justin Verlander and Anthony Reyes did so in 2006. Reyes won the game, tossing eight-plus innings in a 7-2 win over the St. Louis Cardinals.
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The Blue Jays' more natural choice to start Game 1 would have been Kevin Gausman, but on Monday he appeared in relief for Toronto in Game 7 of the ALCS, which started four days later with a big lead. He as reported hosted a side session on Thursday, preparing him to start Game 2 on Saturday.
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This sequence of events opened a new chapter in Yesavage's meteoric rise. The Blue Jays drafted the right-hander from East Carolina with the 20th overall pick in the 2024 MLB Draft and kept him in the rookie role for the past year.
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Yesavage made his first appearance in the minor leagues in April and progressed through all four levels, earning him a call-up in September. He performed well enough in three starts that he made the AL East champion ALDS roster, and it was in this series that his name became a household name. Facing the New York Yankees Yesavage struck out 11 in 5 1/3 hitless innings. in a victory that gave Toronto a commanding 2–0 lead.
Trey Yesavage will have all of Canada behind him in Game 1 of the 2025 World Series. (Photo by Daniel Sheary/MLB Photos via Getty Images)
(Daniel Shirey via Getty Images)
However, his subsequent starts were not nearly as successful. He allowed 10 hits and seven earned runs in Games 2 and 6 of the ALCS against the Seattle Mariners, losing the first.
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He will now be tasked with limiting a Dodgers lineup led by Shohei Ohtani. who may be waking up at the plate after a slow start to the postseason..
How are the World Series matchups looking for Dodgers-Blue Jays?
While the Blue Jays faced some limitations after being forced to play until Monday, the Dodgers haven't played since last Friday and got all the time they needed to establish their rotation thanks to their win over the Milwaukee Brewers.
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The Dodgers appear to be sticking with the same pitching plan as the NLCS. Blake Snell will face Yesavage in Game 1, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto will get the start in Game 2, most likely against Gausman.
Dodgers manager Dave Roberts would not confirm Thursday that Tyler Glasnow will start Game 3 and Ohtani will start Game 4, but said the agreement was “likelyThis is how the Dodgers lined up against the Brewers, with Ohtani potentially available out of the bullpen in Game 7 after Glasnow.
The other Blue Jays starting pitchers in the ALCS were Shane Bieber and Max Scherzer, who could start at the same positions as Yesavage and Gausman.
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Dodgers rotation looms as their greatest World Series strengthand they'll likely need it against the Blue Jays lineup. Both divisions have historically dominated this postseason.and the question of which one will continue that success seems to be decided by who will host the parade sometime next week.
