What You Need to Know For the Upcoming World Series
George Springer watches his go-ahead home run in the seventh inning of Game 7 of the ALCS, putting the Blue Jays ahead 4-3.
Joe Carter’s World Series-winning home run. Kawhi’s shot. The Bautista bat flip — you’ve got company.
Monday night was the scene of the biggest moment in Toronto sports history since the Toronto Raptors’ NBA championship win in 2019, when George Springer put the Blue Jays ahead 4-3 in the seventh inning of Game 7 of the ALCS. The Blue Jays would shut the door in the eighth and ninth innings, sending them to their first World Series in 32 years.
Here are five things you need to know heading into the 2025 World Series:
This is the Blue Jays’ first World Series appearance since their iconic 1993 World Series win. To put that into perspective, only six of the 26 names on the ALCS roster were alive the last time the Jays were in a World Series.
Vladimir Guerrero Jr. comes into the series with a chance to break multiple postseason records. He currently stands at 19 hits and six home runs. The current record holder for both categories is Randy Arozarena, who had 29 hits and 10 home runs in the 2020 MLB postseason.
Max Scherzer will be appearing in what could be his final World Series with his fourth different team, with a chance to win with his third.
After 43 years in the MLB as a player, coach, and manager, Blue Jays bench coach Don Mattingly will be appearing in his first-ever World Series.
The 2025 World Series will feature two players who identify with Canada: Vladimir Guerrero Jr., born in Montreal, and the Dodgers’ Freddie Freeman, born in the United States but with both parents Canadian. Freeman always represents Canada when competing in events such as the World Baseball Classic.
The Jays are set to face off against the National League juggernaut Los Angeles Dodgers, with Game 1 set for this Friday at 8 p.m.
U SPORTS basketball is upon us
Let’s break down three questions to keep in mind heading into the 2025-26 season:
Can UVic retain its glory?
After an undefeated season and a national championship win, the University of Victoria Vikes look to pick up right where they left off heading into the 2025-26 campaign. With two Canada West all-stars — Renoldo Robinson and Ethan Boag — returning, can UVic go back-to-back?
Who’s going to win the women’s OUA MVP?
The OUA features four major transfers this season — all of whom could be MVP contenders:
Christina Morra: Wake Forest University (NCAA) ➡️ Guelph
Keira Daly: UBC ➡️ McMaster
Myriam Kone: Calgary ➡️ TMU
Kiyara Letlow: Cape Breton ➡️ Queen’s
Rhooms back-to-back OUA MVP?
In his final year, TMU’s Aaron Rhooms looks to defend his title as the reigning OUA MVP. After leading the TMU Bold to an undefeated preseason and another appearance in the 2025 CEBL, can Rhooms go back-to-back as OUA MVP?
Business spotlight - AFC Toronto ⚽️
AFC Toronto will head into the Northern Super League playoffs as the first-ever winners of the Supporters’ Shield after beating the Montreal Roses 2-1 this past Sunday in their regular-season finale.
The match also served as the club’s Fan Appreciation Night presented by Desjardins Group, featuring merchandise giveaways and partner activations with AFC Toronto–affiliated companies such as Dove and Sidelaunch Brewing Co.
What’s a Fan Appreciation Night?
Fan Appreciation Nights are events teams host to show their gratitude to supporters, often featuring merchandise giveaways, contests, and in-game promotions.
The impact: According to Morning Consult, group sales can increase by 15–20% during such events, boosting revenue and demonstrating a proven fan-engagement strategy for sports franchises.
In a year that saw AFC Toronto reach a projected media value of $69.3 million, amass 7.368 million views across social platforms, and set a single-game record attendance of 14,158 fans — along with 115,000 viewers online for their inaugural match — the club’s Fan Appreciation Night, paired with a Supporters’ Shield win, underscored its success both on and off the pitch.
Record-breaking weekend in Canada West volleyball 👀
It was a record-breaking weekend in Canada West volleyball, as a pair of setters etched their names into the record books.
Both UBC’s Mason Greves and Saskatchewan’s Noah Opseth broke the all-time assists record for their respective programs.
Greves tallied his 3,160th career assist in Game 2 of a back-to-back against the Brandon Bobcats, moving him into ninth place on the all-time assists list. With a full season ahead, Greves has the opportunity to climb even higher, with a chance to finish his U SPORTS career among the top three setters in Canada West history.
On the other side of the conference, Opseth recorded his 2,591st career assist in a 3-0 loss to Alberta, becoming the program’s all-time leader in assists — the first time this mark has been reached in 15 years.
ISU Short Track World Tour round two recap ⛸
The ISU Short Track World Tour was back this weekend — and so was Canada!
Following a weekend that saw the Ice Maples claim seven medals, the Canadian team built on that momentum, capturing another 10 medals at the second stop of the World Tour in Montreal.
Results:
🥇 William Dandjinou - Men’s 500m
🥇 William Dandjinou - Men’s 1500m
🥇 William Dandjinou - Men’s 1000m
🥇 Courtney Sarault - Women’s 1000m
🥇 Courtney Sarault, Kim Boutin, Danaé Blais, and Florence Brunelle - Women’s 3000m relay
🥇 Danaé Blais, Courtney Sarault, William Dandjinou, Félix Roussel - 2000m mixed relay
🥇 William Dandjinou, Steven Dubois, Maxime Laoun, Felix Roussel - Men’s 5000m relay
🥈 Steven Dubois - Men’s 1000m
🥈 Courtney Sarault - Women’s 500m
🥉 Steven Dubois - Men’s 1500m
The third leg of the ISU Short Track World Tour will take place Nov. 20–23 in Gdansk, Poland.
Quick hits
⚾️ ⚾️ Mississauga’s Josh Naylor finished the ALCS with 16 total hits, placing him third on the 2025 MLB postseason hits list at the conclusion of the series.
⚽️ Canada opened the FIFA Women’s U-17 World Cup in Morocco with a dominant 4-1 win over Nigeria.
🎾 Félix Auger-Aliassime captured the European Open title in Belgium on Sunday, defeating the Czech Republic’s Jiri Lehecka 7-6 (2), 6-7 (7), 6-2 to claim his eighth career tour title.
🎾 Leylah Fernandez won the Japan Open for her fifth career title, defeating Tereza Valentova 6-0, 5-7, 6-3.