Daily Double Play: Your MLB Update

## Introduction
Friday, October 17, 2025 featured pivotal Major League Baseball postseason action as both League Championship Series shifted momentum. In the National League Championship Series (NLCS), the Los Angeles Dodgers closed out a dominant four-game sweep of the Milwaukee Brewers, powered by a historic two-way performance from Shohei Ohtani. Meanwhile, in the American League Championship Series (ALCS), the Seattle Mariners capitalized on an eighth-inning surge to down the Toronto Blue Jays, taking a 3–2 series lead and positioning themselves on the brink of their first World Series appearance in franchise history.

## National League Championship Series – Game 4: Dodgers 5, Brewers 1
On Friday night at Dodger Stadium, the Dodgers clinched the NL pennant with a 5–1 victory over Milwaukee, completing a four-game sweep and securing their spot in the World Series for the second consecutive season ([truebluela.com](https://www.truebluela.com/dodgers-scores-standings/106084/shohei-ohtani-home-runs-strikeouts-dodgers-nlcs-sweep?utm_source=openai)). Los Angeles scored three runs in the opening inning and added a run in each of the fourth and seventh frames, while the Brewers managed their lone run on a Brice Turang RBI groundout in the eighth.

Shohei Ohtani delivered one of the greatest postseason pitching performances ever seen. On the mound, he worked six scoreless innings, allowing just two hits, walking three, and striking out ten, becoming the first Dodger since 1963 to limit an opponent to two or fewer hits in a postseason start of at least six innings ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_National_League_Championship_Series?utm_source=openai)). But Ohtani’s impact went far beyond the mound – he became the first pitcher in MLB history to hit multiple home runs in a single postseason game, launching a 446-foot leadoff blast in the first inning and a 469-footer in the fourth that cleared Dodger Stadium, before capping the night with a third homer in the seventh ([truebluela.com](https://www.truebluela.com/dodgers-scores-standings/106084/shohei-ohtani-home-runs-strikeouts-dodgers-nlcs-sweep?utm_source=openai)).

Los Angeles struck early against veteran José Quintana, who lasted just two innings while surrendering three runs on six hits. Following Ohtani’s first-inning homer, Tommy Edman’s RBI single scored Mookie Betts, and Teoscar Hernández’s groundout brought home Edman to make it 3–0. In the seventh, Ohtani’s third homer stretched the lead to 5–0 before Turang’s run in the eighth broke the shutout bid ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_National_League_Championship_Series?utm_source=openai)). Closer Roki Sasaki retired the side in order in the ninth to seal the sweep.

With the sweep, the Dodgers registered their first NLCS sweep since 1963, allowed just four total runs in the series – matching their fewest since the four-game 1963 World Series – and became the first team since their own 2017–18 runs to reach back-to-back Fall Classics ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_National_League_Championship_Series?utm_source=openai)). Ohtani was named NLCS MVP, his first postseason award, capping a performance lauded as one of the greatest two-way efforts in baseball history.

## American League Championship Series – Game 5: Mariners 6, Blue Jays 2
In Seattle’s T-Mobile Park, the Mariners surged in the eighth inning to top Toronto 6–2 in Game 5 of the ALCS, taking a 3–2 series lead and moving within one win of their maiden World Series appearance since entering MLB in 1977 ([washingtonpost.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/10/17/seattle-mariners-toronto-blue-jays-alcs-game-5/?utm_source=openai)). Cal Raleigh opened the scoring in the second inning with a solo home run off Toronto starter Kevin Gausman, only to see the Blue Jays briefly retake a 2–1 lead on a George Springer RBI double in the fifth and an Ernie Clement RBI single in the sixth.

Eugenio Suárez ignited the decisive rally in the eighth by launching a tying solo homer, then delivered a go-ahead grand slam to right field, finishing with two home runs and five RBIs ([washingtonpost.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/10/17/seattle-mariners-toronto-blue-jays-alcs-game-5/?utm_source=openai)). Jorge Polanco, Josh Naylor, and Randy Arozarena contributed runs in support of Seattle’s bullpen, which preserved the lead despite Toronto’s efforts. The Mariners became the first home team to win in the series and snapped Toronto’s road-game dominance.

Bryce Miller was dominant early, retiring the first batters in several innings and escaping a bases-loaded jam in the fourth, but was pulled after just 56 pitches despite allowing one run on four hits over four scoreless frames – a decision that backfired as reliever Matt Brash surrendered the tying run in the fifth ([nypost.com](https://nypost.com/2025/10/17/sports/mariners-pull-bryce-miller-at-56-pitches-and-it-quickly-backfires/?utm_source=openai)). Gausman’s rematch outing was strong, throwing 5⅔ innings, yielding one run on three hits with four strikeouts before handing the ball to the bullpen ([mlb.com](https://www.mlb.com/news/mariners-win-alcs-game-5-2025?utm_source=openai)).

Seattle’s victory marks the first time in franchise history the Mariners have won three games in an ALCS and places them one win away from their first World Series berth. Toronto will attempt to stave off elimination in Game 6 on Sunday night in Toronto, where the Blue Jays have won each of their first two home postseason games this year.

## Key Performances
- Shohei Ohtani (LAD): 6.0 IP, 2 H, 0 R, 10 K, 3 BB; 3 HR (446 ft, 469 ft, 7th inning) ([truebluela.com](https://www.truebluela.com/dodgers-scores-standings/106084/shohei-ohtani-home-runs-strikeouts-dodgers-nlcs-sweep?utm_source=openai)).
- Tommy Edman (LAD): 1-for-4, 2 RBI including an RBI single in 1st inning ([en.wikipedia.org](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2025_National_League_Championship_Series?utm_source=openai)).
- Eugenio Suárez (SEA): 2-for-4, 2 HR, 5 RBI (solo in 2nd, grand slam in 8th) ([washingtonpost.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/10/17/seattle-mariners-toronto-blue-jays-alcs-game-5/?utm_source=openai)).
- Cal Raleigh (SEA): 1-for-3, solo HR in 2nd inning ([washingtonpost.com](https://www.washingtonpost.com/sports/2025/10/17/seattle-mariners-toronto-blue-jays-alcs-game-5/?utm_source=openai)).
- Kevin Gausman (TOR): 5⅔ IP, 3 H, 1 R, 4 K, 3 BB ([mlb.com](https://www.mlb.com/news/mariners-win-alcs-game-5-2025?utm_source=openai)).
- Bryce Miller (SEA): 4.0 IP, 4 H, 1 R, 3 BB, 4 K before being lifted .

## What’s Next
- NLCS Champion Los Angeles Dodgers will await their World Series opponent, either the Mariners or Blue Jays, with the Fall Classic scheduled to begin October 22.
- ALCS Game 6: Toronto Blue Jays vs. Seattle Mariners, Sunday, October 19 at Rogers Centre, 7:08 PM ET (FS1). A Mariners win sends Seattle to its first World Series; a Blue Jays victory forces a decisive Game 7 back in Seattle.

This dual-league playoff action underscored the continued impact of generational talents like Shohei Ohtani and marked historic firsts for Seattle, setting the stage for a compelling World Series matchup.