Plaschke: Dodgers roar back to life to even World Series. Now it's time for their fans to roar at home

Will Smith stared into left-field, then turned to ignite the Dodgers dugout with a scream.

Max Muncy stared into left field, then turned to quiet the stands with a finger on his lips.

Two blasts, two reactions, one saved World Series.

Sputtering after making 17 consecutive outs, threatening to ruin more brilliance by Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the Dodgers suddenly erupted with two longballs in about two minutes Saturday, seventh-inning home runs by Smith and Muncy rescuing their game and quite possibly their season in fueling a 5-1 victory over the host Toronto Blue Jays at the Rogers Centre to tie the Series at one game apiece.

While the two game-changing fastballs left the yard, Yamamoto never did, becoming the first pitcher to earn consecutive complete game postseason victories in 24 years and the first Dodger to bulldog it since Orel Hershiser in 1988.

That’s right, on the heels of his complete game gem against the Milwaukee Brewers in the NLCS, this was 105 more pitches of mastery, Yamamoto working all nine innings, giving up the one run, four hits, nine strikeouts, no walks, retiring the final 20 hitters, simply amazing, again.

“It was one of those things he said before the series, losing is not an option, and he had that look tonight,” said Dodger manager Dave Roberts.

The series momentum, which belonged to Toronto after the Jays’ 11-4 blowout victory in the opener, now shifts solidly back to the Dodgers, with the next three games being played at Dodger Stadium beginning Monday.

How are they looking? Tyler Glasnow, Shohei Ohtani, and Blake Snell, that’s how. Those three will be their starters for the next three games at Dodger Stadium, which means a once-distressed series could be clinched by the Dodgers before it leaves town again.

So much changed so fast.

One moment, the teams were locked in a 1-all tie for six innings, a breathtaking pitching duel between Yamamoto and the Jays’ Kevin Gausman.

Then, with one out in the seventh, Gausman blinked first, Smith turning on a 94-mph fastball and driving it 404 feet into the left-field seats. The usually stoic Smith screamed into his dugout, and their return screams were amplified when, one out later, Muncy drove a 96-mph fastball 351 feet over the left-field fence to make it 3-1.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto is given the game ball by third baseman Max Muncy after pitching a complete game Saturday.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto is given the game ball by third baseman Max Muncy after pitching a complete game Saturday. (Robert Gauthier / Los Angeles Times)

“Huge relief…just huge relief,” said Roberts. “Kind of a big exhale from the dugout.”

It was Smith’s first home run of the postseason, which began with him nursing an injured right hand, but which has evolved into him once again becoming the beating heart of the Dodger lineup.

It was Muncy’s 15th career postseason homer at a Dodger, which, if you haven’t noticed, is the most in club history.

“For me, I really think it’s just he made a couple mistakes to me and Will and we were able to take advantage of it,” said Muncy, later adding, “Obviously, it’s huge. You get the lead, and on top of that, you get a little bit of insurance for Yama, who we just felt like was cruising through the game at that point.”

That indeed left the stage to Yamamoto, the richest pitcher in baseball history with a $325-million contract, a deal which now seems worth it.

Entering the game he had a 2-1 record with a 1.83 ERA in three playoff starts, most recently beating the Brewers with the Dodgers’ first postseason complete game in 21 years.

And now he’s just done it again, aided by two tacked-on Dodger runs in the eighth, finishing so strongly the last 19 batters only hit three balls out of the infield.

In all, it set the stage for a Game 3 at Dodger Stadium on Monday night that will be filled with biting emotion as the locals welcome back two old, um, friends.

Springer will be batting leadoff for the Jays, and Max Scherzer will be starting on the mound, and if you don’t boo both of them into vapor, then I don’t know you anymore.

Springer, of course, is one of the last active members of the Houston Astros team that cheated the Dodgers out of the 2017 World Series championship. In that series he hit .379 with five home runs and seven RBIs and was named MVP, but he did so while leading a team that stole the Dodgers signs and were prepared for the Dodgers pitches.

Remember the banging of the trash cans? Sure you do. Does it still make you furious? Sure it does.

This being the Dodgers first postseason meeting with Springer since that travesty, it would be a nice time to show him just how furious.

Then there’s the well-traveled Scherzer, who came to the Dodgers at the trade deadline in 2021 and was seemingly destined to lead them to a second consecutive championship.

Except when they needed him most, he tapped out.

After surrendering just two runs in 12 ⅓ innings in the wild card and division series — even saving the division series clinching game against the San Francisco Giants — Scherzer began to tire in the NLCS against the Atlanta Braves. He was days from becoming a free agent. He didn’t want to risk his health and ruin a potentially big contract.

So when the Dodgers asked him to start Game 6, he cited injuries and said he was not available. Walker Buehler was rushed into action in his place and gave up four runs in four innings in a 4-2 season-ending loss.

The Dodgers have not forgotten that day. Scherzer was like, what day?

“I wouldn’t be looking backwards at all for any motivation,” he told the media Saturday. “I have plenty of motivation. I’m here to win and I’ve got a clubhouse full of guys who want to win, too. So we’re a great team and that’s the only thing I need to think about.”

Dodger fans may choose to remind him. On Monday at Dodger Stadium they’ll get their chance.

This story originally appeared in Los Angeles Times.

Plaschke: Dodgers roar back to life to even World Series. Now it’s time for their fans to roar at home

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