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ANAHEIM, Calif. — Shohei Ohtani‘s next scheduled mound start for the Los Angeles Angels has been pushed back one day to Friday in Toronto.

Angels manager Phil Nevin announced the decision Sunday on Ohtani, who had been tentatively scheduled to take his semiregular turn in the rotation Thursday in Detroit.

Ohtani instead will take the mound Friday night when the Angels open a weekend series against the Blue Jays, fellow contenders for the American League’s wild-card playoff spots.

The mound start in Toronto will be the last for Ohtani before the Aug. 1 trade deadline. The Angels must decide whether to trade Ohtani or to risk losing him for almost nothing as an unrestricted free agent in the winter.

Nevin said the Angels pushed back Ohtani to give him six days of rest between mound starts, but also to shift the rotation so Ohtani doesn’t have to make his ensuing start on a Wednesday afternoon in Atlanta. Nevin is worried that the heat and humidity in that day game against the Braves could cause a reoccurrence of the finger blister that bothered Ohtani earlier this month but has since healed.

“The humidity, the moisture in your hands, could affect that blister, and that’s the part that I worried about,” Nevin said. “I brought it up to him, and he agreed. It doesn’t change the amount of starts he’s going to have. Basically, it just gives him Toronto instead of Atlanta, and then a couple more games at home. But it takes him off the two day games in a row. I’d prefer that he pitches at night, just for the rest.”

The Angels’ afternoon game in Atlanta is on Aug. 2, the day after the trade deadline. That means Nevin is clearly planning to play the rest of the season with Ohtani on his roster, even if the Angels haven’t definitively said whether they’ll keep the two-way superstar.

Even after winning five of their first eight games on a nine-game homestand that ends Sunday against Pittsburgh, the Angels must make a charge to have any hope of contending for their first playoff berth in Ohtani’s six-year career. Los Angeles began Sunday four games behind Toronto for a wild-card spot, but with three additional teams between the Angels and the Blue Jays.

The series in Toronto is important for both teams in determining a potential head-to-head tiebreaker in the playoff race. The Jays took two of three from the Angels in Anaheim earlier this season.

Ohtani leads the majors in homers (35), OPS (1.065), slugging percentage (.668) and triples (7) at the plate. He is 8-5 with a 3.71 ERA and 148 strikeouts in 19 mound starts, and opponents are batting a major-league-worst .195 against him.

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Utah’s Dampier now probable to face Colorado

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Utah's Dampier now probable to face Colorado

Utah quarterback Devon Dampier has been upgraded to probable for the Utes’ game against Colorado, according to the updated Big 12 availability report released Friday night.

The junior quarterback has dealt with a lower leg injury this season, and coach Kyle Whittingham said Dampier “got beat up in this game pretty good” after the Utes’ 24-21 loss to rival BYU last weekend.

Dampier was initially listed as questionable Wednesday but progressed throughout the week and took reps in practice, sources told ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

The 5-foot-11, 210-pound junior, a transfer out of New Mexico, has started every game despite the injury and ranks sixth in the Big 12 in total offense with 1,375 passing yards, 442 rushing yards and 18 total touchdowns.

True freshman backup Byrd Ficklin played four snaps against BYU and would be in line to start if Dampier is unavailable Saturday against the Buffaloes (10:15 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Utah wide receiver Tobias Merriweather and defensive tackle Dallas Vakalahi were downgraded from doubtful to out against Colorado. Merriweather ranks second among Utes wideouts with 130 receiving yards on eight receptions this season.

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2025 World Series: Live updates and analysis from Dodgers-Blue Jays Game 1

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2025 World Series: Live updates and analysis from Dodgers-Blue Jays Game 1

The defending World Series champion Los Angeles Dodgers opened the 2025 MLB season in Japan on March 18.

Now, 220 days later, they meet the Toronto Blue Jays in Game 1 of the Fall Classic.

Will the Dodgers be the first team to repeat as champs since the New York Yankees at the turn of the century? Or will the underdog Blue Jays win their first title since 1993?

It all starts Friday night. We’ll have the action covered right here, from pregame lineups to live analysis during the game to takeaways after the final pitch.

Key links: Mega-preview, predictions | Schedule

Live updates

Gamecast: Follow the action pitch-by-pitch here

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Jays’ Bichette to start at 2B, bat cleanup in G1

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Jays' Bichette to start at 2B, bat cleanup in G1

TORONTO — Bo Bichette, who has not played since spraining his left knee in early September, was added to the Toronto Blue Jays‘ roster for the World Series against the Los Angeles Dodgers.

Bichette, a two-time All-Star at shortstop, will play second base for the first time in his major league career and bat cleanup in Game 1 on Friday night in Toronto, according to the lineup released by the Jays.

“I’ve been able to get a lot of good work in, but honestly, I’m leaning on a whole life’s work of swings and at-bats that have all been dedicated to being ready for this moment,” Bichette said. “I feel ready, and I’m ready to get out there. I’m super excited.”

The Blue Jays also included first baseman Ty France on their roster for the first time this postseason. Outfielder Joey Loperfido and right-handed reliever Yariel Rodriguez, who were on the American League Championship Series roster, were not included.

Bichette has not played in a game since injuring the knee in a collision with Yankees catcher Austin Wells on Sept. 6. Bichette attempted to return in time for the AL Championship Series but could not run the bases without significant pain the day before the Blue Jays had to submit their roster.

The infielder worked out at second base and faced live pitching Wednesday and Thursday, after which he said the knee was “feeling good enough.” Blue Jays manager John Schneider said Bichette could play second base, shortstop or even serve as the team’s designated hitter during the series, a move that would likely push George Springer into right field.

“I’ve seen him do it, albeit minor leagues a few years ago — or a number of years ago,” Schneider, who previously worked in the organization’s minor league system, said of Bichette playing second base. “But as long as he was moving around fine and physically felt OK, you felt good about putting him out there.”

Set to be a free agent this winter, Bichette had a rebound season after posting a .598 OPS in 81 games in an injury-plagued 2024 campaign. The homegrown star, 27, finished second in the majors with a .311 batting average and hit 18 home runs with 94 RBIs and an .840 OPS.

Without him, the Blue Jays have played Andres Gimenez, their regular second baseman, at shortstop in the postseason with Isiah Kiner-Falefa getting most of the starts at second base.

Los Angeles added right-handers Edgardo Henriquez and Will Klein while dropping lefty Alex Vesia and righty Ben Casparius. The Dodgers said Thursday that Vesia was not with the team in Toronto because of a family matter. The Dodgers opted to leave Vesia off the roster entirely rather than putting him on Major League Baseball’s family medical emergency list, which would have allowed him to return to the roster within three to seven days.

“We just didn’t want to have any potential for any kind of pressure,” Dodgers president of baseball operations Andrew Friedman said. “This is so much bigger than baseball. For us, it was doing whatever small part we could to just a hundred percent be supportive.”

Former closer Tanner Scott was not added. The left-hander was dropped from the National League Division Series roster following surgery Oct. 8 to remove an abscess from an infection on his lower body.

Clayton Kershaw, who was left off the Dodgers’ wild-card series roster and did not pitch in the NLCS, is on the World Series roster. Kershaw has said he plans to retire after this season.

Information from ESPN’s Alden Gonzalez and the Associated Press was used in this report.

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