So much for the Los Angeles Dodgers dynasty, or at least that's the way things look right now in the World Series. With two-straight losses since their triumph in the 18-inning marathon alternatively known as Game 3, the Toronto Blue Jays have stormed back to take a 3-2 lead in the series after dominating Blake Snell to take Game 5 before returning north of the border for the final games of the World Series. But it's Snell's comments after taking the Game 5 loss that stand out more than anything.
Especially with the dominance of Vladimir Guerrero Jr. on the Blue Jays' side of the proceedings, it wouldn't be too out of bounds to point out the shortcomings of the great Shohei Ohtani over the past two Dodgers losses. Of course, that might be misguided after his unbelievable Game 3 performance, but even if there was someone looking to take aim at Ohtani, Snell just took all of the heat off of him.
And in the case of the Dodgers southpaw, the heat is much more deserved.
For more news and rumors, check out MLB Insider Robert Murray’s work on The Baseball Insiders podcast, subscribe to The Moonshot, our weekly MLB newsletter, and join the discord to get the inside scoop during the MLB season.
Maybe Blake Snell should take a look in the mirror
Following LA's 6-1 loss on Wednesday in Game 5, Snell was speaking with the media and seemed to try and sidestep any accountability while also somewhat taking a shot at Toronto.
"They didn't really get to me," Snell said. "It was first pitch of the game, 97 [mph] fastball up and in. He hits it 98 [mph], it goes out, pretty unlucky. And [Vladimir Guerrero Jr.], yeah, that's just a bad pitch, down-in fastball. But then after that, pretty smooth sailing. Figured out their lineup, what they like to do. Then [Daulton] Varsho gets a triple on a 78 exit velo. It's just unlucky. I'm not one to make excuses, or anything close to that, but it is pretty unlucky. Only so much you can do, and that's baseball."
He didn't stop there as more questions were asked, though, again attributing a lot of what happened for Toronto offensively to "luck".
"Luck plays in baseball, too," Snell said.
Snell: “I’m not one to make excuses… it’s just pretty unlucky. Only so much you can do, and that’s baseball.” pic.twitter.com/lj04W0gMZh
— SportsNet LA (@SportsNetLA) October 30, 2025
Correct me if I'm wrong, but attributing just about everything that happened for the Blue Jays offensively outside of Guerrero's home run as the second hitter of the game for Toronto to bad luck certainly feels like making excuses.
Now, in a vacuum, Snell isn't wrong. Sometimes luck is definitely a factor. A softly hit groundball finds a hole, just as a laser finds leather at other times. However, blaming a loss on luck feels a lot less meaningful from a pitcher who has given up 14 hits and seven walks for 10 earned runs across 11.2 innings against the Jays in this World Series alone.
Blake Snell is embodying the World Series narrative that the Blue Jays are spitting on
When you look at Snell's comments when he's been the losing pitcher in two of the Dodgers' three losses in this series so far, it's hard not to think about how the World Series was being painted coming into it (and I'm not blameless in this regard, either!).
You would've been hard-pressed to find someone who wasn't painting Dodgers-Blue Jays as a superteam against a good team, and thus giving Los Angeles a massive advantage. But that narrative also ignored that Toronto has been one of the best offensive teams in baseball all year and throughout the postseason. That overlooked that the Blue Jays have the bullpen advantage over the Dodgers. That overlooked the fact that Toronto has stars too. And it overlooked the fact that many of the Dodgers stars haven't consistently played up to their ability this season.
That's all to say, the Blue Jays aren't just getting lucky. Snell needs to hear that message, and so does anyone who agrees with the veteran lefty. This team has a strategy at the plate that has worked consistently against everyone not named Yoshinobu Yamamoto. And they've been backed up by Trey Yesavage and other strong pitching performances to boot.
But if the Dodgers are going to listen to any piece of advice from Snell, perhaps it should be to not give up back-to-back homers to start Game 6 or Game 7. That seems like it might help LA more than just hoping that luck is on their side.
