Game 3 of the 2025 World Series between the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Toronto Blue Jays unfolded into what can only be described as an epic–a marathon that stretched 18 innings and tested every ounce of endurance, strategy and willpower. The Dodgers eventually prevailed 6-5, taking a 2-1 series lead
From start to finish the game seemed scripted for Hollywood: early leads traded, bullpen after bullpen summoned, defensive miscues and baserunning blunders littering the box score. Yet through the chaos, there emerged a moment of pure magic–culminating in a walk-off home run by Freddie Freeman in the bottom of the 18th inning.
The spectacle saw starting pitchers falter, relievers overtaxed, and both teams somehow still fighting for every out deep into the night. Both bullpens were stretched raw, usage unprecedented. The game tied the longest in World Series history by innings played–matching the 2018 Game 3 between the Dodgers and Red Sox.
The Man Behind the Quiet Heroics: Will Klein
While headlines will and should focus on Freeman’s heroics and the staggering statistics of Shohei Ohtani (who reached base nine times and smashed multiple extra-base hits), the true under-the-radar story of Game 3 lies with reliever Will Klein. His performance in the little spotlight became one of those memorable postseason turnarounds.
Klein, a 25-year-old right-hander, entered the game with minimal major-league experience and even less postseason pedigree. Yet with the Dodgers’ bullpen depleted, he was asked to throw four scoreless innings, the longest outing of his pro career, and held the Blue Jays at bay long enough for the Dodgers’ offense to deliver the knockout blow.
“Just keep going,” Klein said. “We weren’t losing that game, and so I had to keep going back out there. I was going to keep doing that and doing all I could to put up a zero and sit back down and go do it again.”
His line? One hit allowed, five strikeouts, and the win. That kind of run in an 18-inning World Series game is the stuff of a legend. After the game, franchise icon Sandy Koufax reportedly sought Klein out in the clubhouse to offer congratulations, underscoring the magnitude of the moment.
“That was so cool,” Klein said. “I never dreamed that anything like this would happen. So just having all those guys like kind of celebrating me for a second there was just insane. I don’t think I could have dreamt a dream that good.”
The Road to Los Angeles
A fifth-round pick out of Eastern Illinois University by the Kansas City Royals in 2020, Klein entered pro ball as a classic hard-throwing project: electric velocity, raw command, and plenty of upside. But the road from the Midwest to the mound at Dodger Stadium would prove anything but straight.
Over the past 16 months, Klein’s baseball passport has been stamped several times. The Royals traded him to the Athletics in the Lucas Erceg deal at last summer’s trade deadline. The team liked his stuff, but needed roster flexibility, and when the club signed reliever José Leclerc in January, Klein was designated for assignment to make room on the 40-man roster. Within days, he was traded to the Seattle Mariners for cash considerations, joining yet another organization looking for bullpen help.
His stint with Seattle never reached the majors. Instead, Klein logged 21 1/3 innings at Triple-A, struggling to a 7.17 ERA while battling control issues that have long shadowed his career. When the Mariners called up top prospect Cole Young in June, Klein again became the roster casualty–DFA’d to open space and later traded to the Dodgers for journeyman left-hander Joe Jacques.
In Los Angeles, however, things began to click. Klein spent most of the summer refining his delivery and strike-throwing in Triple-A Oklahoma City, where the Dodgers saw enough promise to keep him around. By September, he earned a call-up and delivered a quietly impressive cameo: 15 1/3 innings with a 2.35 ERA. The command still wavered, but his power stuff was undeniable. In total, he issued 36 walks in 44 Triple-A innings between Seattle and Los Angeles.
Implications for the Series and Beyond
That win gives the Dodgers the lead in the series heading into Game 4, which shifts the psychological balance. A team that can win a game of this magnitude, with a bullpen taxed, the starters faltering, and the opponent pushing, is sending a message: we can survive chaos and still pull through.
For the Blue Jays, the question now becomes how they rebound from such a draining defeat. They out-pitched many of their confident expectations, yet still found themselves on the wrong side of history. The management of arms, the wear and tear on relievers and the degree of mental fatigue will now become factors that could haunt them deep into the series.
For Klein, this game could be the launching pad of his postseason reputation. One outing of four scoreless frames in an 18-inning World Series game isn’t just a footnote; it’s a headline.
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