Five Blue Jays X factors that could spark a World Series upset

Yes, the Dodgers are 9-1 this postseason, steamrolling the National League and making opponents look overmatched. But October has a way of rewriting expectations. Here are five X factors that could help the Blue Jays shock the baseball world.

1. The home field edge is real

And it’s something to watch. In August, the Dodgers (93-69) took two of three from the Blue Jays (94-68), but Toronto’s narrow 5-4 win in the finale is why they have home-field advantage to open the Fall Classic. 

At 54-27, the Blue Jays owned the best home record in baseball, built on elite production: a .271 average (first in the AL), .340 OBP, .448 slugging, and .788 OPS at Rogers Centre. Compare that to the Dodgers’ road marks: .245 AVG, .317 OBP, .409 SLG, and .726 OPS.

The postseason gap is even wider. At home this October, Toronto’s hitting .287/.348/.515 with an .863 OPS, while the Dodgers on the road have managed just .233/.342/.391 and a .733 OPS. Add in six opponent errors during the playoffs and a charged Rogers Centre crowd, and this is more than noise; home field is a real weapon.

2. Built to handle adversity

The Blue Jays and Dodgers reached the World Series on opposite paths. Toronto forged its identity through comebacks and chaos, while Los Angeles cruised through October largely untested. 

The Jays led MLB with 49 comeback wins, just ahead of the Dodgers’ 48, earning their “Comeback Kids” reputation. That resilience carried into the postseason, as Toronto rebounded from blown leads and early deficits, capped by an ALCS comeback over Seattle. 

If Los Angeles leads early, it’ll face something new: a team that turns adversity into fuel.

3. Creative sparks from Bo Bichette

Although it won’t be official until Friday morning, all indications are that Bo Bichette will be on the postseason roster. 

How manager John Schneider utilizes his star remains unclear. Perhaps at second base or DH, but his bat could shift the series. Before his August injury, Bichette led MLB in hits and still finished second with 181. If he’s in the lineup, he’s a clear-cut difference-maker.

4. Solving elite starting pitching

The Blue Jays have built an offense designed to wear down elite arms. They ranked second in MLB in fewest strikeouts (1,099) and led all playoff teams in contact rate, hitting .293 on pitches outside the zone; more than double the postseason average. 

The Blue Jays batters are aggressive, and saw the fourth-fewest pitches per plate appearance in the regular season (3.77), helping them stay out of two-strike counts and avoid strikeouts. 

5. The Jays aren’t the Brewers

Milwaukee’s starters combined for fewer than 10 innings in the entire NLCS, and the Dodgers’ lineup never broke a sweat. 

Toronto’s rotation (Kevin Gausman, Trey Yesavage, Shane Bieber and Max Scherzer) runs deeper. They won’t match L.A.’s aces (Blake Snell, Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Tyler Glasnow and Shohei Ohtani) pitch-for-pitch, but they’ll grind longer outings that wear out the Dodgers’ offense. 

Expect tighter margins early and higher-scoring games late.