Shohei Ohtani to start World Series Game 7 for Dodgers against Blue Jays and Max Scherzer

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TORONTO (AP) — Shohei Ohtani will start Game 7 of the World Series for the Los Angeles Dodgers against the Toronto Blue Jays, showcasing the two-way star on the mound in the sport's biggest game.

Starting Ohtani makes more sense for the Dodgers than using him in relief.

Under a rule adopted for the 2022 season, pitchers who start games in the batting order can remain in the game as a designated hitter after leaving the mound. If Ohtani would start the game only as a DH and then would take the mound, the Dodgers would lose their DH and pitchers would have to bat in that slot if Ohtani was relieved.

Ohtani has never pitched in relief during his Major League Baseball career. He made a handful of relief appearances in Japan for the Pacific League’s Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, mostly as a rookie in 2013. He closed out Japan’s victory in the 2023 World Baseball Classic final against the United States, striking out then-Los Angeles Angels teammate Mike Trout for the final out.

Ohtani is batting .318 in the World Series with three homers, five RBIs and eight walks. He is 0-1 with a 6.00 ERA, striking out six and walking one in his Game 4 start as he threw 93 pitches.

Max Scherzer is to start for Toronto, becoming only the fourth pitcher to start multiple winner-take-all Game 7s.

Only Bob Gibson (1964, ’67, ’68) and Lew Burdette and Don Larsen (both 1957 and ’58) have started multiple winner-take-all Game 7s in the World Series. Burleigh Grimes started Game 7 in 1920 and ’31, but his first was in a year the Series was best-of-nine.

Scherzer also started the last World Series Game 7 in 2019, boosted by a cortisone injection for an irritated nerve near his neck. Mad Max didn’t have a clean inning and left after five trailing by two runs before his Washington Nationals rallied to win 6-2 in Houston.

A 41-year-old right-hander and three time Cy Young Award winner, Scherzer allowed three runs and five hits over 4 1/3 innings in Game 3 on Monday, which the Dodgers won in 18 innings. ___

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