Game 7 of the World Series is baseball’s ultimate test, and it is always more than just a single game: it is a moment when everything stops, forges heroes, and breaks hearts. And this World Series had all of that once again, like every year. This time, the defending champion Los Angeles Dodgers were set to repeat their title against the Toronto Blue Jays, a team that had not won a title since 1993. So, one team expected to win, and the other prayed.

The game started with a massive bang for the home team in Toronto when Bo Bichette smashed a three-run home run in the third innings off a Shohei Ohtani pitch in the center that gave them an early 3-0 lead. But the Dodgers are champions for a reason. Sacrifice flies in the fourth and sixth cut the 3-2 lead, and then Max Muncy hit a solo homer in the eighth that made the game a tense, back-and-forth fight.

And then Miguel Rojas crushed a game-tying solo home run at the top of the ninth inning when Los Angeles was trailing 4-3 and was down to their final two outs, which sent the Dodgers’ dugout absolutely wild. But the Jays still have a home-field advantage and built their lead with the bases in the bottom of the ninth, but then the Dodgers made a shocking move.

They called on Yoshinobu Yamamoto from the bullpen, who had just thrown 96 pitches the day before and had a complete game in Game 2. Yamamoto, who had already saved the Dodgers twice in this series, calmly saved their season once again with Andy Pages made a running catch that forced the game into extra innings, and the Dodgers ultimately tamed the beast with a Will Smith homer in the extra innings and repeated the championship first time in this century.

But every celebration has a shadow. That shadow fell on Vladimir Guerrero Jr., Vladdy, who had an 11-game hitting streak and gave his team one final hope 11th inning. With a leadoff double, but eventually fell short due to Yamamoto’s mastery. The cameras found him after the final out, where the young star was fighting back tears. A “Made In Canada” tweet showed a photo of Vladdy, writing, “Thanks for the memories.”

And on the flip side, the Dodgers, a team full of MVPs, found their biggest heroes in the most unexpected places when they were almost lost and an out away from their heartbreak. And how did they come back?

With a journeyman’s swing and an ace’s heart

Let’s talk about the man of the hour: Miguel Rojas. The 36-year-old had barely played in this World Series when he stepped to the plate in the ninth inning with already two outs and the team trailing by a run. Rojas, who had just two home runs since the All-Star break, battled Jays star closer, Jeff Hoffman, to a full count and then launched Hoffman’s slider just over the left-field wall. The game was tied! Can you imagine what’s going on with Vladdy Jr. right now? It was the first game-tying homer in the ninth inning of a World Series Game 7. Ever.

But Rojas was not finished yet. The Blue Jays loaded the bases in the bottom of the same innings, and just a single hit from winning the championship. Daulton Varsho hit a sharp grounder in the middle of first and second base in that perfect scenario. Rojas sees that, dives, snags the ball, and makes a perfect throw home. And the off-balance strike nailed Isiah Kiner-Falefa at the plate, and was the second most crucial moment of the game, as the game was finally forced to extra innings after Andy Pages’ catch in the centre field.

Talking about the World Series MVP, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, who won Game 2, Game 6, and finally Game 7  after throwing 2.2/3 shutout innings in relief, Rojas said, “He just became the guy the horse, kind of like everybody knew he was going to be…This year, he took it to a next level.”

This Dodger joy was built on Toronto’s deep heartbreak. Bo Bichette almost became the city’s hero with his third-inning, three-run homer that nearly won the game, playing basically on one leg with a deep left knee sprain. He risked his entire future just to play in this series, and now they lose. Blue Jays manager John Schneider just tried to ease that pain, saying, “We’ve raised the standard and expectation of this organization a hell of a lot this year.’’

The Blue Jays will now face a very painful winter. But was this the most dramatic Game 7 of the already unique World Series you have ever seen? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.