Here are three things for MLBTR readers to keep an eye on as we head into the final weekend of the 2025 season:
1. World Series comes to a head:
The World Series will wrap up this weekend, with Game 6 scheduled for this evening and Game 7 scheduled for tomorrow if necessary. As the clubs head back to Toronto, the Blue Jays are up 3-2 and need just one more win to secure their first World Series championship in more than 30 years, while the Dodgers will need to win both games if they’re going to successfully defend their title from last year. Right-hander Yoshinobu Yamamoto (2.49 ERA) is set to take the mound for L.A. tonight as he goes for his third consecutive complete game this postseason. Those sterling outings lowered his ERA this postseason to just 1.57 across four starts, though his three runs surrendered to the Phillies across four innings in the NLDS show he’s not invulnerable. Yamamoto’s opponent tonight will be Blue Jays veteran Kevin Gausman (3.59 ERA), who has a 2.55 ERA this postseason but did take the loss when he last matched up against Yamamoto in Game 2.
Neither team has announced starters for a hypothetical Game 7, although Tyler Glasnow and Max Scherzer would be in line to take the ball for the Dodgers and Blue Jays respectively. Of course, with the Dodgers fighting for their playoff lives tonight it will surely be all hands on deck if Yamamoto doesn’t dominate like he did during Game 2. That could involve Glasnow, although manager Dave Roberts teased the possibility that Shohei Ohtani could be available in relief if needed as well. Will the full force of the Dodgers dynasty be enough to beat the Blue Jays in back-to-back games on their home turf?
2. Managerial vacancies dwindling:
After an offseason where a third of the league’s teams had managerial vacancies to fill, only a few remain. The Padres appear to be the closest to a decision of those remaining, as they’ve narrowed their search down to a small group of finalists headlined by future Hall of Famer Albert Pujols. While there’s been plenty of transparency about the search in San Diego, the same can’t be said for Atlanta as the Braves have kept their plans close to the vest. Dodgers bench coach Danny Lehman, Cubs bench coach Ryan Flaherty, and Tigers bench coach George Lombard have been floated as possible options, but it’s unknown what stage in the process the club is at or even if any of those potential candidates have interviewed. The third managerial vacancy left unfilled is that in Colorado, but that search for a new manager won’t even begin until they have a new front office boss to lead it.
3. Top 40 Trade Candidates list:
The end of the World Series will mark the start of the 2025-26 offseason, and here at MLBTR we’ll be celebrating by publishing our list of the top 40 trade candidates for the offseason the day after the World Series concludes. More than half the league has at least one player who they could consider dangling on a list that digs deeper than the most obvious rebuilding clubs and midseason trade candidates, so be sure to check back in the day after MLB crowns its next champion to prime yourself for what could be a busy winter all around the league!
Historical World Series!!
Beat LA!
Random thought: Tony Gwynn would have made a tremendous manager. Wonder what other people think for former players, who regrettably have passed might have made good managers? Lou Gehrig?
Dan Quisenberry
He hasn’t passed yet, but I always thought Wil Clark and Michael Young would be excellent managers.
I don’t know about Young but Clark comes across as grumpy old man yelling at clouds.
Will Clarke is too old school for these daisys
Sometimes those incredibly gifted guys make worse managers than the ones who had to grind to get the most from their modest gifts. Look at the top managers throughout history and there are very few HoF players who were also excellent managers. Ted Williams was famously bad as a hitting coach and manager for telling his players to just see the seams on the ball and other unreal nonsense.
Gwynn did have a great run as a college coach, so he might have been the exception, but in general the best managerial candidates are good because of their interest in baseball as a whole, in managing in particular, their mind for strategy and psychology, and a willingness to put in the work to be excellent in this very unique role.
Ted Williams was famously REALLY GOOD in his first year with the Washington Senators.
I agree, usually it’s the guy who had all the heart and put in all the extra work and made sure they did all the little things correctly that makes the good manager. Guys who had all the talent and didn’t put in as much work bc they didn’t have to don’t typically make the best managers. “Well the pitcher throws the ball, I wait for it to see if I like it, if I like it, I swing and hit it. That’s pretty much how you hit guys.”
But to be fair, looking at the seams does help to make out the rotation of the ball, which tells you what type of pitch it is so you can adjust and hit it so maybe it was his wording that made it sound so off. But looking at the seams is something all hitters do each pitch since they’ve been seeing curves, sliders and others in little league
Mac – Greenwell would have.
I agree about Gwynn.. He was successful coaching San Diego State University, where he coached, among others, Stephen Strasburg. I met Cody Vaughn, who attended SDSU and is the son of Greg Vaughn, at a Brooklyn Cyclones meet and greet with fans 15 years, and he had wonderful things to say about Gwynn as a coach and a human being.
Thurman Munson
Carlton Fisk. 147 visits to the mound per game.
At least as far as Managers getting hired is going teams aren’t playing the usual game of geezer musical chairs that is typical at this time of the year. At least we’re getting some new names.
I love the move to younger managers. I’m tired of seeing the Maddon’s and Showalter’s and Girardi’s just moving around the league.
Mike – That’s because experience is no longer valued. By allowing anyone to be a managerial candidate, even if they have no managerial or coaching experience at any level, it opens up the field for a lot more candidates.
Melch – Why? There’s a reason most corporate leaders are in their 50’s-60’s ……. because they’ve gained a wealth of knowledge and experience over the years.
Knowledge-wise, Stan Musial would have been an awesome manager. But he was too nice a guy. I can see one of his players saying “I was too tired to turn that into a triple, so I slowed down” and Musial nods in agreement.
3,630 hits.
1,815 at home.
1,815 on the road.
Charlie O’Brien
I think it goes to Game 7, but maybe the Jays take care of business tonight. Good luck, rooting for them if only because it’s been so long since they won their back to back championships.
Christy Mathewson would have been a good manager, except that he had only a .482 winning percentage over 345 games managing the Reds.
Anyone having issues using this website on the phone? I’ll see a notice bell and click on it and then nothing shows and the whole website freezes as if I can’t click on any links. I’ve tried clearing cache as well. Strange. No issues using other websites, though.
York – No problems here, I was on this website while talking on my rotary phone this morning and everything worked fine.
Cans and string for me, everything’s good.
I have Comcast so I pay through the nose for slow internet. I should go hunting for an AOL CD-ROM.
@Fever Pitch Guy
I get it. Boston is still having tea parties and living in the 1700s. But I think I’m living a bit ahead of you with my brand new, black and white screen TV. Love watching baseball on it. Currently watching the 1951 World Series.
Now when I load it on my phone I get “Bad Request” and can’t load the page at all. Amazing!
I had that problem a week or two ago. Went away
Its been a great series and the Blue Jays are clearly the better team however I think it’ll go to game 7. Go Jays Go!
I’ve really enjoyed watching the Jays play this year. Even when they lost, it was still entertaining. It was a type of baseball I haven’t seen since probably the ’80’s. Ever since the steroid era, everyone’s been focused on playing 9-inning home run derbys. Launch angles, exit velocities, high strikeouts and low batting averages, but lots of homers.
The Jays don’t have a roster burdened with an abundance of superstars (Vladdy notwithstanding). What they have is a bunch of guys who bought into an offensive concept of putting the ball in play. A focus of making good contact and avoiding wasted at bats (strikeouts). And it’s not as if they gave up on homers. They were still in the top half of the league in homeruns, because when you make consistent contact, you’re going to barrel up your share of dingers without swinging for the fences.
I sure hope there are a few organizations out there who are looking at the Blue Jays offense as a template. It would be nice to see more teams embracing this style of baseball. It’s simply a more entertaining style of play.
There’s a good chance more teams will have to consider it given how much established Home Run Derby hitters cost these days. As the gulf between the rich and non-cable teams widens we may see an increase in the singles, doubles and SB offenses if for no other reason than those players are cheaper. I loved the 80s game so I hope it re-emerges in the coming years.
The Royals have a similar offensive approach/philosophy. Problem is that while they can match up with the Jays for four hitters or so, half the Royals lineup is a black hole.
Canuck so perfectly said !!!!! It’s so much better of a brand of badeball. The best sport in the world !!!…. The launch angle strike out 200 times a year .240 batting average is considered “great” making contact moving runners along 80s style or whatever you want to call it. Like you said so much more entertaining. It’s been a fantastic series hope it goes 7 would be so happy for the Jays and there fans and if dodgers do it again then a repeat so hard to pull off . Either way such a great series very entertaining and enjoyable!
I suspect Billy Williams would have made a good manager, if the Cubs (or anyone) had given him a shot. (He is still alive, in his mid-80s.)
The Jays may not win it, but they are a very solid team. They could use a true ace, and maybe some shutdown bullpen guys, but that lineup is solid. They have star hitters and a bunch of guys who do the little things to win.
Cal Ripken Jr. Nine players and 16 pitchers.
Canada, please. We beg you.
My out of the blue Dodgers trade possibilities. Outfielders Christian Yelich and Buxton
trey has been a savage in these playoffs
Oooooh yeah!
if the dodgers force a game 7, Ohtani will open and go two innings with Glasnow following. no sense brining in Ohtani for bulk work as an RP because the second he gets I to trouble, you need to decide if it’s worth sacrificing his bat.
The site says their list of potential trades follows, but they forgot to give a log on to see the list!
Why do you spell your name backwards?
Dodgers are the slight favorites today
And they win, they are slight favorites tomorrow
Jay’s are pretty heavy favorites to win the WS.
Probabilities can be weird.
Is anyone else wanting a game 7 matchup between Kershaw and Scherzer?
Every Jays fan should like that matchup.